Download Free Alytes Book in PDF and EPUB Free Download. You can read online Alytes and write the review.

Amphibians of North Africa is a comprehensive compilation of available data on the amphibians and reptiles found in various ecosystems across North West Africa and parts of the Mediterranean region. It is essential to identifying and understanding the ecological role of regional herpetofauna and its conservational importance. It examines the biological origins and diversity of amphibians in North Africa, along with their diverse ecosystems, including deserts, grasslands and subtropical forests. The book features detailed descriptions of the adult and larvae stages of species, such as the North African fire salamander, the common painted frog, Brongersma's toad and the Mediterranean tree frog. This book is a vital resource for herpetology and ecology students and researchers, helping them identify, understand and conserve these amphibians and reptiles in their various habitats across the North African and Mediterranean regions. - Presents the only book on research and species recognition of North West African and Mediterranean amphibians and reptiles in all life phases - Provides novel, iconographic material about little-known species - Features helpful visuals, including ink-drawings, photographs of adult and larvae stages, habitat photographs and distributional maps
At the end of the last century and the beginning of this century, the prob lems of immunity in lower vertebrates and the influence of environmental temperature attracted attention for the first time (ERNST, 1890; WIDAL and SICARD, 1897; METCHNIKOFF, 1901). However, relatively little work has been done on this subject until recently. The early investigators were chiefly in terested in the immuno-pathological problems. They immunized various species of lower vertebrates essentially with bacterial vaccines; agglutinating, neutralizing and protective antibodies were detected in their blood. The in fluence of environmental temperature on the immune response was investigated, since this subject represented great economical and theoretical importance. Epizootic diseases were observed to occur in relation to the cold season of the year, when the decrease or spontaneous increase of water temperature occurred (SCHAPERCLAUS, 1965; BESSE et al. , 1965; KLONTZ et al. , 1965 WOOD,1966). The immunological deficiency of fish, caused by their natural or experimental stay in cold water, is now evident for both humoral and cellular immunity. In this review we will focus on two points: We shall attempt (1) to explain the mechanism by which the environmental temperature influences the immune resistance of fish to pathogens, (2) to determine the chronological location of this temperature-sensitive stage in the process of antibody formation, and to make some approaches to the general antibody formation mechanism.
Consisting of more than six thousand species, amphibians are more diverse than mammals and are found on every continent save Antarctica. Despite the abundance and diversity of these animals, many aspects of the biology of amphibians remain unstudied or misunderstood. The Ecology and Behavior of Amphibians aims to fill this gap in the literature on this remarkable taxon. It is a celebration of the diversity of amphibian life and the ecological and behavioral adaptations that have made it a successful component of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Synthesizing seventy years of research on amphibian biology, Kentwood D. Wells addresses all major areas of inquiry, including phylogeny, classification, and morphology; aspects of physiological ecology such as water and temperature relations, respiration, metabolism, and energetics; movements and orientation; communication and social behavior; reproduction and parental care; ecology and behavior of amphibian larvae and ecological aspects of metamorphosis; ecological impact of predation on amphibian populations and antipredator defenses; and aspects of amphibian community ecology. With an eye towards modern concerns, The Ecology and Behavior of Amphibians concludes with a chapter devoted to amphibian conservation. An unprecedented scholarly contribution to amphibian biology, this book is eagerly anticipated among specialists.