Table of Contents

PrefaceAcknowledgments1Introduction32Skin103Breathing174Limbs and Locomotion265Tail336Nose and Chemoreception377Eyes and Vision428Food Habits549Ears and Hearing6710Voice7611Temperature Characteristics8912Body Water Regulation10213Protection against Predators11014Home Range and Movements12115Territorial Behavior and Fighting12616Homing and Migration13117Reproduction14018Parental Care19519Contributions of Amphibians to Human Welfare20520Declining Amphibians210Literature Cited253Index301

About the Author

Robert C. Stebbins is Emeritus Professor of Zoology and Emeritus Curator in Herpetology, Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, University of California, Berkeley. He is the author of numerous books, including A Field Guide to Western Reptiles and Amphibians. Nathan W. Cohen is Emeritus Director of Curriculum Development in Science, University of California Extension, Berkeley.

Reviews

"This fine book helps us to appreciate amphibians more fully and provides vital scientific information that may help us to protect them... Although amphibians are but one piece of the biodiversity crisis, this book may become a model for those who champion the preservation of threatened species of all kinds."--Andrew R. Blaustein, Trends in Ecology and Evolution "Conveys the authors' enthusiasm for studying the natural history of a fascinating group of animals. The illustrations are superb [and the] line drawings are a delight... A major contribution."--Kentwood D. Wells, The Quarterly Review of Biology '[P]rofessional zoologists and serious amateurs... will find it a really useful, and enjoyable, work of reference."--Nicholas Gould, International Zoo News "This book ... seems likely to replace Duellman and Trueb's Biology of Amphibians as the standard text for students and researchers."--Chris Mattison, New Scientist