Functional vertebrate morphology

A carefully edited collection of 18 papers authored by 21 accomplished researchers, including contributions from the four editors. Emphasis throughout is on biomechanical principles and functional adaptations of anatomical architecture during specified activities. Various locomotory movements, feeding, mastication, and swallowing, vision, and ventilation are the major activities stressed. Fins, tetrapod limbs, eyes, trunk features, muscalature, skull and jaws, Weberian ossicles, the octavolateralis system, and the brain are among the many structural subjects detailed. Over 200 drawings and photographs amply illustrate the text. Included is a list of contributors, an index, and a reference section containing over 1,100 titles arranged according to the 18 units of the book. Intended as a textbook and a reference source for advanced undergraduates and graduate students, Hildebrand's work is similar in approach to Carl Gans's Biomechanics (CH, Dec '74). The editors have succeeded in making the book interesting and readable, avoiding unnecessary technical jargon. Highly recommended for upper-division college and university science libraries.-E.D. Keiser, University of Mississippi.--Choice Reviews.