Volume 32 in the North Carolina Studies in the Romance Languages and Literatures series.

Volume 32 in the North Carolina Studies in the Romance Languages and Literatures series.

The reference source that biologists interested in West Indian herpetofauna have been waiting for.--Steven Reichling, curator, Memphis Zoo A state-of-the-art compendium. The West Indies is one of the hottest of the world's biodiversity hot spots and will continue to be a focus of ecological research, now invigorated by this definitive synthesis.--S. Blair Hedges, Pennsylvania State University The West Indies have become a major focus for biologists and conservationists. Its herpetofauna is considered one of the richest and most vulnerable in the world. These fragile natural environments are home to many unique animals that occur only on these islands. Loss of habitat, development of scenic areas for a burgeoning tourist industry, and the introduction of invasive species have contributed to an already tenuous situation for many of the region's native species. This volume summarizes the natural history of each of the more than seven hundred species of frogs and reptiles that live in the West Indies. Sure to be the starting point for all future research on West Indian amphibians and reptiles, it will be an essential companion to the biologist contemplating or conducting research in the area.

As a review of the status of biogeography in the West Indies in the 1980s, the first edition of Biogeography of the West Indies: Past, Present, and Future provided a synthesis of our current knowledge of the systematics and distribution of major plant and animal groups in the Caribbean basin. The totally new and revised Second Edition, Biogeography

Drawing on letters, illustrations, engravings, and neglected manuscripts, Christopher Iannini connects two dramatic transformations in the eighteenth-century Atlantic world--the emergence and growth of the Caribbean plantation system and the rise of natural science. Iannini argues that these transformations were not only deeply interconnected, but that together they established conditions fundamental to the development of a distinctive literary culture in the early Americas. In fact, eighteenth-century natural history as a literary genre largely took its shape from its practice in the Caribbean, an oft-studied region that was a prime source of wealth for all of Europe and the Americas. The formal evolution of colonial prose narrative, Ianinni argues, was contingent upon the emergence of natural history writing, which itself emerged necessarily from within the context of Atlantic slavery and the production of tropical commodities. As he reestablishes the history of cultural exchange between the Caribbean and North America, Ianinni recovers the importance of the West Indies in the formation of American literary and intellectual culture as well as its place in assessing the moral implications of colonial slavery.

This meticulous book summarizes all available information on West Indian herpetofauna. Using data from more than 6,000 pages of field notes and 1,000 literature sources, Schwartz and Henderson present a detailed account of every known reptile and amphibian species existing on the numerous islands of the West Indies. For each (almost 600), they offer a complete synopsis, including description, holotype, source of illustrations, and range map. A section on natural history summarizes what is known about the habitat, microhabitat, economic bearing, food habits, and reproduction of each animal, and in some cases it shows how these traits change from island to island. In opening remarks, the authors plead eloquently for awareness of the rampant environmental degradation taking place on the islands. For every herpetologist, biologist, ecologist, or biogeographer with an interest in the Antillean biota, Amphibians and Reptiles will become the source from which all future research proceeds.

Take this book with you on your next trip to the Bahamas or the Turks and Caicos Islands or keep it close to hand in your travel library. The Natural History of the Bahamas offers the most comprehensive coverage of the terrestrial and coastal flora and fauna on the islands of the Bahamas archipelago, as well as of the region's natural history and ecology. Readers will gain an appreciation for the importance of conserving the diverse lifeforms on these special Caribbean islands. A detailed introduction to the history, geology, and climate of the islands. Beautifully illustrated, with more than seven hundred color photographs showcasing the diverse plants, fungi, and animals found on the Bahamian Archipelago.