250 JOURNAL OF MAMMALOGY
literature would have been substantially greater
if it reviewed a broader literature with explicit
text references.
Emphasis on the book’s contributions to sci-
ence should not eclipse Harvey’s superb photo-
graphs that accompany and illustrate Kat’s text.
In addition to transporting views of Okavango’s
diverse habitats and gripping squabbles at small
kills, there are rarely seen shots of a newborn
cub, lions puzzling with the challenges posed by
pangolins and porcupines, and the edginess of a
pride shortly after a takeover.
This remarkable book boldly challenges con-
ventional wisdom and clearly states its case for
lions living in the habitat mosaic that surrounds
Okavango delta. It will take years for Harvey
and Kat to marshal all of the support needed to
substantiate their proposed amendments to what
they regard as the Serengeti Orthodoxy. But in
the end, we will have a far fuller understanding
of this charismatic feline.—BRUCE D. PATTER-
SON, Department of Zoology, Field Museum of
Natural History, Chicago IL 60605-2496.
LITERATURE CITED
BERTRAM, B. C. R. 1978. Pride of lions. Scribner, New
York.
BROOKS, D. R., AND D. A. MCLENNAN. 1991. Phylog-
eny, ecology, and behavior: a research program in
comparative biology. The University of Chicago
Press, Chicago, Illinois.
COHELEACH, G. 1982. The big cats: the paintings of
Guy Coheleach. Harry N. Abrams, Inc., New York.
FUNSTON, P. J., M. G. L. MILLS, H. C. BIGGS, AND P.
R. K. RICHARDSON. 1998. Hunting by male lions:
ecological influences and socioecological implica-
tions. Animal Behaviour 56:1333–1345.
GUGGISBERG, C. A. W. 1961. Simba, the life of the lion.
Howard Timmins, Capetown, South Africa.
KAT, P. 2000. Prides and prejudice: challenging the
accepted truths about lions’ family lives. BBC Wild-
life 18:28.
O’BRIEN, S. J., ET AL. 1987. Biochemical genetic var-
iation in geographic isolates of African and Asiatic
lions. National Geographic Research 3:114–124.
PACKER, C., ET AL. 1988. Reproductive success of li-
ons. Pp. 363–383 in Reproductive success. (T. H.
Clutton-Brock, ed.). The University of Chicago
Press, Chicago, Illinois.
PACKER, C., D. A. GILBERT, A. E. PUSEY, AND S. J.
O’BRIEN. 1991. A molecular genetic analysis of kin-
ship and cooperation in African lions. Nature 351:
562–565.
PACKER, C., AND L. RUTTAN. 1988. The evolution of
cooperative hunting. The American Naturalist 132:
159–198.
SCHALLER, G. B. 1972. The Serengeti lion: a study of
predator–prey relations. The University of Chicago
Press, Chicago, Illinois.
Vol. 82, No.
Journal of Mammalogy, 82(1):250 252, 2001
Ankel-Simons, F. 2000. PRIMATE ANATOMY:
AN INTRODUCTION. 2nd ed. Academic Press, San
Diego, California, 506 pp. ISBN 0-12-058670-
3, price (paper), $59.95.
Very few introductory books on the subject of
primate comparative morphology exist today,
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perhaps because of the monumental task of sur-
veying the .200 extant species. However, the
need for such a book is great. Thankfully, Dr.
Ankel-Simons has undertaken the task in this
2nd edition of her 1983 work. This new edition
of Primate Anatomy undertakes the extraordi-
nary challenge of presenting detailed morpho-
logic information from primate species that must
be accessible to the new, undergraduate prima-
tology student, yet meticulous enough for the
advanced student. Primate Anatomy reads easily
enough to be useful to the new student. It also
contains enough detailed information to allow
the advanced student to synthesize functional
and evolutionary trends across the primate order
and to understand how these trends fit into the
overall scheme of mammalian functional mor-
phology and evolutionary biology. Because of
Ankel-Simons’ engaging writing style, zealous
attention to detail, organization, and obvious fa-
miliarity with and love of the subject, the effort
largely succeeds.
The text is written in the classical anatomy
style reminiscent of Adolph H. Schultz and Wil-
liam K. Gregory. This is not surprising, because
Ankel-Simons spent her primatology training
under Schultz. Although this classical style may
be perceived by some neophyte primatology stu-
dents as being dry, the text is magnificently
packed with rich and rigorous descriptions of
primate morphology and development that span
the order. Ankel-Simons has done an especially
remarkable job of gathering and presenting in a
single sourcebook concise yet detailed descrip-
tions of prosimian morphology and develop-
ment, a group for which, unfortunately, we hold
relatively little knowledge. New to this edition
is a chapter on techniques involved in molecular
biology and their potential bearings on the study
of primates, an absolute necessity to any pri-
matology student today.
Chapter 1 consists of a taxonomic list of the
living primates that could probably have been
condensed with Chapter 2. One of the most sat-
isfying aspects of the 1st chapter is the set of
February 2001 BOOK REVIEWS
references for organizing the taxonomy as it is
presented. Although the primate taxonomy cho-
sen by Ankel-Simons naturally reflects her opin-
ions, she explains her reasons for organizing it
as she does and gives references to authors
whose opinions differ from her own.
Chapter 2 consists of a lesson in taxonomy.
For the new student, this is a good general les-
son that includes the history of taxonomy, types
of classification, and problems of different pri-
mate classification schemes. The section on phe-
netic classification and cladistics is presented in
a style that can be easily grasped by students
new to the subject.
Chapter 3 gives a rich history of primatology
from its beginnings in the mid-20th century and
its earlier influences from Aristotle, the great
German anatomists, and Thomas Huxley and
Darwin. This chapter concludes with a definition
of the order Primates and what shared traits they
all possess that distinguish them from other
mammals. Interestingly, Ankel-Simons also in-
cludes Tupaiiformes (order Scandentia, the tree
shrews) in her discussions of the order Primates,
although as a taxonomic group Tupaiiformes
have recently been removed from the order Pri-
mates. She includes them here as a possible
model of what the Cretaceous forebears of pri-
mates may have looked like.
Chapter 4 is an ambitious survey of the extant
primates and Tupaiiformes, including general in-
formation on pelage, social systems, habitats,
diet, and locomotory styles. This chapter in-
cludes a delightful wealth of information and
references on prosimians as well as useful tables
that summarize some of the differences among
broad taxonomic categories in a readily acces-
sible organization.
Chapters 5–8 describe primate evolutionary
trends in morphology of the bones, teeth, and
brain as well as species differences in these
traits. Chapter 5 deals with the skull and gives
a very good overview of major evolutionary
trends in the main functional matrices of the
bony skull for primates in general and in select-
ed species. This is particularly well executed in
the nasal region and ear region, which have the
best diagrams in the chapter. The chapter con-
cludes with a comparison of skull morphology
among selected species. The drawback with this
chapter is the relative paucity of references in
discussions of skull development and morphol-
ogy across species. In addition, tables summa-
251
rizing differences across prosimian and anthro-
poid groups, as was done in Chapter 4, would
have been helpful in organizing the information
more clearly.
Chapter 6 undertakes the immense task of
summarizing brain morphology across the pri-
mate order in an evolutionary framework. The
chapter begins with a concise yet illuminating de-
scription of the major evolutionary adaptations of
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the primate brain that separate it from the gen-
eralized mammalian brain. A following section
describes generic brain functional morphology re-
gion by region. Several helpful diagrams are in-
cluded in this chapter; however, inclusion of a
diagram on ventricular structure and at least a
sagittal section diagram on internal brain struc-
ture to guide the student through descriptions of
the anatomy would have been desirable.
Chapter 7 presents readily understandable in-
formation on the general structure of teeth, spe-
cies-specific dental formulae, mechanics of eat-
ing, and correlation between tooth morphology
and feeding. For the new student, this chapter will
be a straightforward lesson on dental formulae,
scientific nomenclature, and tooth morphology.
This chapter has excellent diagrams on tooth
morphology that will make it a favorite reference
for students. Several good diagrams of tooth or-
ganization of particular species also are included.
Chapter 8 summarizes the vast sea of knowl-
edge on the postcranial skeleton, moving from
the vertebrae and thorax through the limbs and
ending with a short mention of muscles and an
interesting section on locomotion. Most of the
skeletal information is devoted to functional
morphology of vertebrae, which includes many
satisfying biomechanical correlates. Many love-
ly figures of comparative vertebral morphology
are included. The shorter sections on the limbs
are not as detailed as for vertebrae but do pre-
sent a broad survey across the order. Ankel-Si-
mons included only limited information on pri-
mate muscle in this text, citing previous work of
others and lack of differences among primates
in their postcranial musculature. This is a curi-
ous decision, perhaps made because of limita-
tions of space. Primate Anatomy includes mus-
cular information only on the back muscles of
the capuchin (Cebus) and then only as diagrams.
The final section gives information on locomo-
tory styles of major primate groups, as well as
an engaging discussion on locomotory catego-
ries devised by various authors and some of the
252 JOURNAL OF MAMMALOGY
difficulties associated with attempts at creating
broad locomotor categories.
Chapter 9 is devoted to the sense organs and
viscera. This is an appealing chapter that fur-
nishes general morphologic and chemical infor-
mation on the senses and viscera along with de-
tail on various species. The 2 largest sections
review olfaction and eyesight. In the former, a
nice introductory discussion of odor, scent
glands, and the rhinarium is included. An erro-
neous statement on p. 354 asserts the vomero-
nasal organ is absent in humans. Recent work
has suggested that this structure is indeed pre-
sent in humans (Johnson et al. 1985).
Chapters 10 and 11 describe placentation, ear-
ly primate development, reproductive organs, re-
production, and growth. The section on placen-
tation gives an elegant lesson on development of
the placenta and placentation trends in primate
groups.
Chapter 12 describes structures of chromo-
somes and includes karyotypes of many of the
primate species in tabular form, along with a brief
yet sufficient description of blood groups. Molec-
ular biology and its techniques are covered as a
new chapter in this edition, Chapter 13. A brief
overview of DNA is given 1st, leading into the
many techniques of molecular biology and their
possible application to primatology, including ad-
vantages and disadvantages of each method. Fi-
nally, Chapter 14 concludes the work with a
glance toward the future of primatology.
In general, this text succeeds at the goal of
being a readily accessible introductory guide
through the basics of knowledge that any pri-
matology student needs to grasp. The book may
be most useful to the undergraduate student, but
it also will be a concise reference of comparative
primate morphology for the advanced student.
The price is excessive but not unexpected con-
sidering the publisher. If a new edition is ever
considered, the author should contemplate in-
cluding more diagrams in the chapter on the
brain. Overall, this new edition is a welcome
addition to the field of primatology.—ANNIE M.
BURROWS, School of Physical Therapy, Slippery
Rock University, Slippery Rock, PA 16057.
LITERATURE CITED
JOHNSON, A. M., R. JOSEPHSON, AND M. HAWKE. 1985.
Clinical and histological evidence for the presence
of the vomeronasal (Jacobson’s) organ in adult hu-
mans. Journal of Otolaryngology 14:71–79.
Vol. 82, No. 1
Journal of Mammalogy, 82(1):252 254, 2001
Twiss, J. R., Jr., and R. R. Reeves (eds.).
1999. CONSERVATION AND MANAGEMENT OF MA-
RINE MAMMALS. Smithsonian Institution Press,
Washington, D.C., 471 pp. ISBN 1-56098-778-
2, price (hardcover), $64.00.
Marine mammals fascinate people in their di-
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versity of shapes and sizes—from the massive
blue whale, which is larger than any dinosaur,
to the relatively tiny, 5-foot-long vaquita. This
splendid book, edited by John Twiss, Jr., and
Randall Reeves, includes articles contributed by
32 scientists specializing in the conservation bi-
ology of marine mammals. The topics covered
range from peoples’ attitudes to legislation to
population ecology and controversies related to
keeping marine mammals in captivity. This book
highlights the ongoing struggle to save endan-
gered marine mammals and is a valuable con-
servation tool for students, biologists, politi-
cians, and policy makers globally. Information
on the interactions between marine mammals
and their fish prey, history of the International
Whaling Commission (IWC), risks to small ce-
taceans, and principles of marine-mammal con-
servation also are discussed. This book is well
written and easily readable for both professional
and nonprofessional biologists.
The book is divided into 20 chapters, includ-
ing a preface in which the senior editor tells how
the book was conceived when his colleague
(John Reynolds) suggested producing a text on
marine mammals for the 1st time. Although the
book covers in-depth topics on endangered
monk seals, manatees, and right whales, it would
have been more comprehensive if topics on bi-
ology and conservation of the walrus and sea
otter were included.
The editors give a brief introduction to all top-
ics in Chapter 1. In Chapter 2, the authors de-
scribe how attitudes toward marine-mammal
conservation have evolved in North America
over recent decades. They provide data on how
the number of marine mammals killed for com-
mercial use declined from the 1960s to the
1980s. During the same period more people took
whale-watching trips. Opposition to whaling by
countries such as Japan, Norway, and Denmark
also has increased. Animal welfare groups have
undertaken legal actions and risky protests at
sea, confronting whaling and fishing vessels to
stop the killing of whales and dolphins. Al-