Patterns of Distribution of Amphibians: A Global Perspective

Amphibians - which have little control over their body temperatures or evaporative water loss - are closely tied to their environments and as such can be used as indicators of destruction of habitats. At a time when populations of many species of amphibians are declining from unknown causes, biologists and conservationists need to know the patterns of distribution of amphibians and where large numbers of species and endemics occur. This volume is a synthesis of information on the worldwide distribution of amphibians. Chapters on each of nine global regions are written by experts who have gathered the diverse data from the literature and from their own experience in the field. The regional treatments emphasize patterns of distribution and their interpretation with respect to geography, climate, vegetation and evolutionary history, providing sytheses of these patterns. The contributors also address existing and recommended aspects of conservation. The bibliography accompanying each chapter is an introduction to the literature on the amphibians of each region. Appendixes provide lists of species and their areas of distribution within each major region of the world. Maps, graphs and tables are also included.

Table of Contents:
Preface Chapter 1. Global Distribution of Amphibians: Patterns, Conservation, and Future Challenges Chapter 2. Distribution Patters of Amphibians in the Nearctic Region of North America Chapter 3. Distribution Patterns of Amphibians in Middle America Chapter 4. Distribution Patterns of Amphibians in the West Indies Chapter 5. Distribution Patterns of Amphibians in South America Chapter 6. Distribution of Amphibians in North Africa, Europe, Western Asia, and the Former Soviet Union Chapter 7. Distribution Patterns of Amphibians in Temperate Eastern Asia Chapter 8. Distribution of Amphibians in Southern Asia and Adjacent Islands Chapter 9. Distribution of Amphibians in Sub-Saharan Africa, Madagascar, and Seychelles Chapter 10. Distribution Patterns of Amphibians in the Australo-Papuan Region Index

About the Author :
William E. Duellman is a Curator Emeritus, Division of Herpetology, Natural History Museum, and Professor Emeritus, Department of Systematics and Ecology, at the University of Kansas, Lawrence. He is the author of nearly 300 publications, including Hylid Frogs of Middle America, Biology of an Equatorial Herpetofauna in Amazonian Ecuador, and, with his wife Linda Trueb, Biology of Amphibians, also available from Johns Hopkins.

Review :
Anyone with an interest in the distribution and/or abundance of amphibians will find something of value in this remarkable collection of essays. Copeia There can be no doubt that Patterns of Distribution of Amphibians is destined to become the standard reference on amphibian zoogeography. It is an impressive book containing a breathtaking wealth of detail, while at the same time encompassing an extraordinarily broad subject area. Herpetological Review Patterns of Distribution of Amphibians provides a gateway to the pertinent literature on amphibian distribution for each geographic region of the globe. It should be on the shelves in the herpetology or biogeography section of any academic or research library. Ecoscience This book is an instant classic reference, rich in data and comparison and contrast, a tribute to the industry of all its authors, but especially of its editor who has been a ever-growing force in amphibian systematics and zoogeography over four decades. Canadian Field-Naturalist