Mammals, warm-blooded, big-brained, and lactating, are the most highly organized animal group on the planet and, despite their relatively small numbers, the dominant one. Split off from reptiles over 200 million ears ago, they now range over the earth in myriad forms from rodents to whales to primates. Humans are but one subspecies of mammals, but we have much in common with even the most distant of our cousins, and examining their biology and sociology reveals much about ourselves. This volume collects fascinating articles about mammals by award-winning Times journalists, carefully organized so that each builds upon the principles gleaned in the preceding article. The result provides fundamental truths about the way our world and its mammalian inhabitants work. In order of ascending brain power, the book reveals the bizarre behaviors of the rarest of creatures and little-known facts about common animals, from naked mole rats that colonize like bees and the two-foot-tall Himalyan flying squirrel, thought to be extinct, to the randy peace-keeping practices of bonobo chimpanzees of Zaire and the brutal and cunning courtship of dolphins, who depend on an exceedingly complicated social structure to get the job done. Among the startling discoveries of odd animals are bats who lactate and a giant, man-size sloth that may still exist in the Amazon rainforest. Focused chapters include: surprisingly cowardly lions, hyenas, and other cat relatives; returning wolves - and the landmark journalism on their reintroduction to Yellowstone Park - as well as their cousins foxes and African wild dogs; seafaring mammals such as the placid manatees and disappearing right whales; primates; and finally, a look at ourselves and how we relate to others in our mammalian class regarding parenting, play, aggression, emotionality, sociability, and more. With the wonderful illustrations that originally accompanied the articles, and introductions to each chapter by Nicholas Wade, who guides readers through the maze of mammals with erudition and insight, this book will fascinate naturalists, biologists, and animal lovers of every stripe.

主编尼古拉斯·魏德

尼古拉斯·魏德是《纽约时报》的撰稿人。他早年曾作过《自然》杂志驻华盛顿的通讯员和代理编辑，1990至1996年间，他担任过《纽约时报》“科学时代”栏目的编辑。他发表的主要著作有：《最后的实验》、《诺贝尔的决斗》、《真理的叛逆》（与威廉·J·布劳德合著）和《病入膏肓的世界》。他出生于英国，现居美国新泽西州。