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Young Readers Nature Library #2
The Reptiles
Traces the evolution of reptiles and discusses the physical characteristics and habits of the three main groups existing today--turtles, lizards and snakes, and the crocodilians.
Hardcover
First published January 1, 1963
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About the author
Archie Carr
23 books10 followersArchie Carr was a University of Florida Graduate Research Professor of Zoology and was associated with the University for more than fifty years. His entire career was spent at the University of Florida, first as a student, B.A. (1932), M.S. (1934), and as the University’s first Ph.D. (1937) in zoology.
His ability to translate science into literature brought the first international attention to the plight of sea turtles. He wrote 11 books and over 120 scientific articles about sea turtles and their habitats before his death in 1987. His work and writings ranged throughout Florida, the Caribbean, and Africa. After his death, he was honored with the creation of the Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge in Florida and the Dr. Archie Carr Wildlife Refuge in Costa Rica.
Archie Carr published his first paper on sea turtles in 1942, but it was not until he wrote his classic Handbook of Turtles (1952) that he began to focus his research on sea turtles. He described his early discoveries about the plight of sea turtles in his book The Windward Road particularly in his chapter The Passing of the Fleet, which was a call to arms and resulted in global efforts to conserve sea turtles from extinction.
Archie Carr was one of those rare individuals who could inspire both scientific and general public audiences with his writings. His genius and creativity were allowed full scope because the University of Florida awarded him a graduate research professorship in 1959, essentially freeing him of all responsibilities so that he could pursue his research and writing. He repaid that investment many-fold.
In 1987 he was awarded the Eminent Ecologist Award by the Ecological Society of America. He made extraordinary contribution to sea turtle conservation by way of bringing attention to the world's declining turtle populations due to over-exploitation and loss of safe habitat.
Source: University of Florida; http://accstr.ufl.edu/accstr-overview...
His ability to translate science into literature brought the first international attention to the plight of sea turtles. He wrote 11 books and over 120 scientific articles about sea turtles and their habitats before his death in 1987. His work and writings ranged throughout Florida, the Caribbean, and Africa. After his death, he was honored with the creation of the Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge in Florida and the Dr. Archie Carr Wildlife Refuge in Costa Rica.
Archie Carr published his first paper on sea turtles in 1942, but it was not until he wrote his classic Handbook of Turtles (1952) that he began to focus his research on sea turtles. He described his early discoveries about the plight of sea turtles in his book The Windward Road particularly in his chapter The Passing of the Fleet, which was a call to arms and resulted in global efforts to conserve sea turtles from extinction.
Archie Carr was one of those rare individuals who could inspire both scientific and general public audiences with his writings. His genius and creativity were allowed full scope because the University of Florida awarded him a graduate research professorship in 1959, essentially freeing him of all responsibilities so that he could pursue his research and writing. He repaid that investment many-fold.
In 1987 he was awarded the Eminent Ecologist Award by the Ecological Society of America. He made extraordinary contribution to sea turtle conservation by way of bringing attention to the world's declining turtle populations due to over-exploitation and loss of safe habitat.
Source: University of Florida; http://accstr.ufl.edu/accstr-overview...
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
December 19, 2024
My free library find has a different cover, but the same author and title, so I think I'm in the right place. We didn't really read this book, my daughter is only three. We did skim the photos and drawings, which are splendid. But be warned, some are a bit gory.
November 8, 2019
(1969 hardback) This starts off very well, and is particularly informative over the first few chapters pertaining to evolution, dinosaurs, amphibians, eggs and skeletons of reptiles. My particular copy had 15 pages ripped out from p33-48, which I suspect was due to blasphemous evolutionary theories that were unacceptable to a school somewhere. There are a few great photos of a giant prehistoric turtle skeleton, a kangaroo rat jumping over a snake and a lunatic wrestling an anaconda in a river, but the text is a little too Florida-centric, a little repetitive and simplistic. I didn't expect it to be like David Attenborough's books, and it's certainly much more educational than modern books for younger readers, but it was still rather too undemanding for what it could've been. 3.25/5
September 13, 2020
It is very enjoyable to read a book written by someone who is so passionate about something. The first couple chapters are especially enjoyable because of this and written in a way that isn't your typical dry textbook. The main flaws of this (besides advancements in our scientific understanding since the writing) are that sometimes information is repeated too often and in more and more words. Sometimes a lot of words are used to describe nothing much at all. I wasn't expecting recipes for eating all kinds of reptiles. Recipes I will personally choose to ignore. Overall it is worth a bit of a read (at least the early chapters) just because of the author's passion.
August 4, 2011
Like ‘em or hate ‘em, reptiles are fascinating creatures. LIFE Nature Library’s The Reptiles is an accessible, clearly written introduction to the unusual biology of this class of animals. The chart of reptile evolution has been completely redrawn since this book came out, but otherwise the biology is still pretty accurate (disclaimer: I'm a geneticist, not a herpetologist).
I didn’t like this volume nearly as much as the others in the series. Though technically good, the writing is a little too “chatty.” Adding a personal touch to a scientific discussion is great, but devoting a third of the text to the author’s back yard in Florida seems a bit excessive. But far worse: it is extremely bad form to lament the imminent extinction of green sea turtles, immediately after rhapsodizing about the quality of the turtle soup in eight different restaurants in Germany. Oh, the hypocrisy, it burns.
I didn’t like this volume nearly as much as the others in the series. Though technically good, the writing is a little too “chatty.” Adding a personal touch to a scientific discussion is great, but devoting a third of the text to the author’s back yard in Florida seems a bit excessive. But far worse: it is extremely bad form to lament the imminent extinction of green sea turtles, immediately after rhapsodizing about the quality of the turtle soup in eight different restaurants in Germany. Oh, the hypocrisy, it burns.
March 20, 2013
This was my absolute favorite book growing up. I probably checked it out from my school library enough times to fill the card. It's an informative tome with a nice balance of text and pictures, but honestly, this book is so engrained in my head it's hard to be objective about it (hence the five star review). Great snake picture on the cover, too. Books like this made me want to be a herpetologist.
February 2, 2013
I fell in love with reptiles after reading this book. Reptiles are here on earth from more than 200 million years and one of the most diverse creatures on the earth. They have survived in the most difficult conditions of earth and this book by Archie Carr is just a perfect tribute to them. I only hated the part where writer tells about making different dishes from reptiles.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews