Lords and Lemurs

Lords and Lemurs
Author: Alison Jolly
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Total Pages: 352
Release: 2004
Genre: History
ISBN: 9780618367511

Chronicles the rich human, plant, and animal diversity of this Isle off the East Coast of Africa, home to lemurs, unusual reptiles, and other creatures more at home in mythology than natural science.

The Sloth Lemur's Song

The Sloth Lemur's Song
Author: Alison Richard
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Total Pages: 369
Release: 2022-08-04
Genre: Nature
ISBN: 0226817563

"This is a sweeping account of Madagascar past and present, from a land locked in the heart of Gondwana to its emergence as an island, from landscapes populated by dinosaurs to forests filled with the unique array of species alive today, and from a place unknown to people to one where human impact on the environment is a pressing concern. Alison Richard has immersed herself in research and conservation in Madagascar for nearly fifty years, and is an expert guide. Her book, seamlessly integrating scientific research and detailed natural history with personal experiences, shows both what connects this biodiversity hotspot to the rest of the world through time, and what separates it. Along the way, she reflects on how our world views shape the way we interpret evidence and the importance of the stories we tell about Madagascar in our understanding of this unique place and the conservation of its rich natural heritage"--

Endangered Species

Endangered Species
Author: Janice Harper
Publisher:
Total Pages: 304
Release: 2002
Genre: History
ISBN:

Endangered Species: Health, Illness and Death among Madagascar's People of the Forest is an ethnographic study of a group of people living in a forested region in Madagascar. These people have been targeted for recent conservation and development initiatives intended to protect species biodiversity. Although international aid dollars are tied to national conservation policy, very little has been written on how these policies are affecting the people who live in Madagascar. Based on anthropological research in a village located on the periphery of a U.S.-funded national park, and further supported with archival and library research, this study shows how concepts of culture have been misused by policy makers to promote park objectives, while misunderstandings arising from the use of ethnic stereotypes have contributed to serious health and economic problems for people living in the forest region. Many policy-makers fail to appreciate the actual ways that people live and farm in the forest, and how they negotiate their quest for health. Janice Harper suggests that lineage and social class rather than ethnic heritage are more relevant to the ways that people access and interact with the land, forest, and strategic resources. How this interaction shapes health and healthcare is one of the most poignant and compelling of many contributions to anthropological knowledge made by this study. This book would be appropriate for use in courses on anthropology, African studies, or environmental studies. This book is part of the Ethnographic Studies in Medical Anthropology Series, edited by Pamela J. Stewart and Andrew Strathern, Department of Anthropology, University of Pittsburgh. "It is one of the clearest and most detailed pictures that I have read about the multiple pressures on 'coastal' Malagasy... It is beautifully and horrifyingly written." -- Alison Jolly, author of Lords and Lemurs and Lucy's Legacy "This is a superb book. Harper's deeply nuanced, and carefully historicized ethnography offers a sophisticated and accessible account of the contradictions that characterize conservationists' desire to protect rainforest flora and fauna while also wreaking havoc on indigenous and highly marginalized human communities... Harper must be commended for her diligence as a researcher: it is astonishing how much knowledge one reaps from so succinct a study." -- International Journal of African Historical Studies, Volume 36, Number 1 "This is an important book because national parks, employing exactly the politics described here, exist all over Madagascar. My hope is that people working in development will read this book and be moved to act against the lack of concern for the well-being of the local population as exhibited by the management of the RNP project." -- The Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute, Volume 10, Number 1, March 2004

Lemurs

Lemurs
Author: Lisa Gould
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 466
Release: 2006-12-13
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0387345868

This book brings together information from recent research, and provides new insight into the study of lemur origins, and the ecology and adaptation of both extant and recently extinct lemurs. In addition, it addresses issues of primate behavioral ecology and how environment can play a major role in explaining species variation. It is the only comprehensive volume to focus on lemur ecology and adaptability, with chapters written by all the big names in the field.

The Missing Lemur Link

The Missing Lemur Link
Author: Ivan Norscia
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 325
Release: 2016-06-09
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 131657797X

Lemurs share a common distant ancestor with humans. Following their own evolutionary pathway, lemurs provide the ideal model to shed light on the behavioural traits of primates including conflict management, communication strategies and society building and how these aspects of social living relate to those found in the anthropoid primates. Adopting a comparative approach throughout, lemur behaviour is cross-examined with that of monkeys, apes and humans. This book reviews and expands upon the newest fields of research in lemur behavioural biology, including recent analytical approaches that have so far been limited to studies of haplorrhine primates. Different methodological approaches are harmonised in this volume to break conceptual walls between both primate taxa and different disciplines. Through a focus on the methodologies behind lemur behaviour and social interactions, future primate researchers will be encouraged to produce directly comparable results.

Ringtailed Lemur Biology

Ringtailed Lemur Biology
Author: Alison Jolly
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 385
Release: 2006-11-30
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0387341269

This volume includes up-to-date field research on the longest-studied and best known of lemur species. It contains articles by scientists from America, Europe, Japan and Madagascar, who combine their knowledge to describe an animal which is unique among primates. The papers review past research and add new dimensions of research related to nutrition, health, hormonal biology, plant ecology, behavioral ecology, and demography of Lemur catta.

Lemurs of Madagascar

Lemurs of Madagascar
Author: Russell A. Mittermeier
Publisher: Conservation International Tropical Pocket Guide Series
Total Pages: 20
Release: 2009
Genre: Indridae
ISBN: 9781934151310

Laminated identification guide illustrating 65 species of extant nocturnal prosimians in Madagascar.

Human Evolution Beyond Biology and Culture

Human Evolution Beyond Biology and Culture
Author: Jeroen C. J. M. van den Bergh
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 575
Release: 2018-10-18
Genre: Nature
ISBN: 1108470971

A complete account of evolutionary thought in the social, environmental and policy sciences, creating bridges with biology.

The Sloth Lemur's Song

The Sloth Lemur's Song
Author: Alison Richard
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Total Pages: 369
Release: 2023-09-05
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0226829499

A moving account of Madagascar told by a researcher who has spent over fifty years investigating the mysteries of this remarkable island. Madagascar is a place of change. A biodiversity hotspot and the fourth largest island on the planet, it has been home to a spectacular parade of animals, from giant flightless birds and giant tortoises on the ground to agile lemurs leaping through the treetops. Some species live on; many have vanished in the distant or recent past. Over vast stretches of time, Madagascar’s forests have expanded and contracted in response to shifting climates, and the hand of people is clear in changes during the last thousand years or so. Today, Madagascar is a microcosm of global trends. What happens there in the decades ahead can, perhaps, suggest ways to help turn the tide on the environmental crisis now sweeping the world. The Sloth Lemur’s Song is a far-reaching account of Madagascar’s past and present, led by an expert guide who has immersed herself in research and conservation activities with village communities on the island for nearly fifty years. Alison Richard accompanies the reader on a journey through space and time—from Madagascar’s ancient origins as a landlocked region of Gondwana and its emergence as an island to the modern-day developments that make the survival of its array of plants and animals increasingly uncertain. Weaving together scientific evidence with Richard’s own experiences and exploring the power of stories to shape our understanding of events, this book captures the magic as well as the tensions that swirl around this island nation.