Origin Africa
eBook - ePub

Origin Africa

A Natural History

  1. 472 pages
  2. English
  3. ePUB (mobile friendly)
  4. Available on iOS & Android
eBook - ePub

Origin Africa

A Natural History

About this book

A richly illustrated journey through the evolution of Africa's extraordinary natural world across deep time

Origin Africa is a unique introduction to the natural history and evolution of the most misrepresented continent on Earth. Celebrated evolutionary biologist and artist Jonathan Kingdon, a leading expert on the natural history of Africa, tells this extraordinary story as no one else can. Featuring a wealth of photographs and illustrations, the book is both a visual and narrative feast.

Africa is the richest continent, containing every habitat from desert to tropical forest and the widest range of plants and animals found anywhere. It has experienced extraordinary climate fluctuations, meteor bombardment, and cataclysmic volcanic eruptions. Yet life has not only survived but evolved almost countless species. One group of primates evolved out of this crucible and moved out of Africa to dominate every continent on Earth. Africa has properties that ensure that most of human evolution couldn't have occurred anywhere else.

A fascinating story told as never before, Origin Africa chronicles how the natural conditions of Africa enabled a spectacular evolution of plants and animals, including Homo sapiens.

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Yes, you can access Origin Africa by Jonathan Kingdon in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in Sciences biologiques & Histoire de l'Afrique. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Title Page
  3. Dedication
  4. Copyright
  5. Contents
  6. Acknowledgements
  7. Preface
  8. Chapter 1. What is Africa?
  9. Chapter 2. Gondwana’s Core
  10. Chapter 3. Dawn and Consequences from Chance
  11. Chapter 4. Afloat on Planet Ocean (Adrift and Heading North)
  12. Chapter 5. Global Wobbles and Climate Change
  13. Chapter 6. Habitats Defined by Plants
  14. Chapter 7. Emigration and Immigration
  15. Chapter 8. Diversity – Highs and Lows
  16. Chapter 9. Succession
  17. Chapter 10. Diseases and Plagues
  18. Chapter 11. Louder, Softer, Bigger, Smaller, Faster, Slower, Duller, Brighter
  19. Chapter 12. Behaviour Drives Morphology
  20. Chapter 13. Ecological Elders
  21. Chapter 14. Import and Export of Primates
  22. Chapter 15. Slow but Smart
  23. Chapter 16. The Boreal, Latitudinal Realm
  24. Chapter 17. The Austral, Longitudinal Realm
  25. Chapter 18. Niche-thieves
  26. Chapter 19. Out of Africa and Back Again – the Banda Strandlopers
  27. Chapter 20. Translating Nature
  28. Chapter 21. Mind and Memory
  29. Chapter 22. Process as Principle
  30. Further Reading
  31. Index