Overview

True river dolphins as well as marine dolphins that frequent freshwater systems are large animals that have traditionally gone unnoticed by the general public and, in a certain sense, by marine mammal specialists as well. In fact, only a limited number of researchers have investigated the biology of these dolphin species. This is quite surprising given that these species are commonly the top predators in their habitats. Now for the first time, revolutionary molecular techniques are being applied to answer evolutionary reconstruction questions of many animals, including river dolphins. In addition, new paleontological records are dramatically changing our perspective about the relationships of these dolphins with each other and with other cetaceans. In this book, new census information and important ecological characteristics are provided of the river dolphins Inia, Sotalia, Pontoporia, Lioptes, and Orcaella. For the first time, molecular and genetic results of theses dolphin species are presented. A compilation of these data is essential if we are to present a strategic conservation plan for these animals. Upon being informed of critical evolutionary historical data, conservation biologists will now be able to tailor their conservation efforts for each threatened river dolphin species. Additionally, new morphological data and the new discoveries in the fossil record for river dolphins are examined. The major dolphin specialists in Colombia, Brazil, Bolivia, Argentina, the United States of America, China, and India present their newest results within a single book that graduate students, professors, scientists, evolutionary ecologists, aquatic mammalogists, population ecologists, conservation ecologists, and marine biologists will all find valuable for the foreseeable future.

Full Product Details

Author:   Joseph Mark Shostell ,  Manuel Ruiz-Garcia
Publisher:   Nova Science Publishers Inc
Imprint:   Nova Science Publishers Inc
Weight:   1.006kg
ISBN:  

9781608766338

ISBN 10:   1608766330
Pages:   504
Publication Date:   19 August 2010
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Awaiting stock  
The supplier is currently out of stock of this item. It will be ordered for you and placed on backorder. Once it does come back in stock, we will ship it out for you.

Table of Contents

Preface; An Introduction to River Dolphin Species; Seasonal Ecology of Inia in Three River Basins of South America (Orinoco, Amazon & Upper Madeira); Conservation of the River Dolphin (Inia boliviensis) in Bolivia; Mobility of the Axial Regions in a Captive Amazon River Dolphin (Inia geoffreness); The Application of Equation Models to Determine the Age of Pink River Dolphin Skulls; Amazon River Dolphin: High Phylopatry due to Restricted Dispersion at Large & Short Distances; Amazon River dolphin Polymorphism & Population Differentiation of MHC class II Peptides; Micro-geographical genetic structure of Inia geoffrensis in the Nap-Conway River Basin by Means of Chesser's Models; Changes in the demographic trends of Pink River Dolphins (Inia) at the microgeographical level in Peruvian & Bolivian Rivers & within the Upper Amazon: Microsatellites & mtDNA Analyses & insights into Inia's origin; Fossil Record & the Evolutionary History of Iniodea; Fishery Activity Impact on the Sotalia populations from the Amazon Mouth; Dolphin-Fishery Interaction: Cost-Benefit, Social-Economical & Cultural Considerations; Ethnoecology of Sotalia guianensis (GERVAIS, 1853) in the Amazon Estuary; Molecular Ecology & Systematics of Sotalia dolphins; Population Structure & Phylogeograhy of tucuxi dolphins (Sotalia fluviatilis); Life History & Ecology of Franciscana, Pontoporia blainvillei (Cetacea, Pontoporiidae); Review on the threats & conservation Status of Franciscana, Pontoporia blainvillei (Cetacea, Pontoporiidae); Detection of Yangtze Finless Porpoises in the Poyang Lake Mouth Area Via Passive Acoustic Data-Loggers; Population Status & Conservation of Baiji & the Yangtze Finless Porpoise; Failure of the Baiji Recovery Program: Conservation lessons for Other Freshwater Cetaceans; High Level of MHC Polymorphism in the Baiji & Finless Porpoise, with Special Reference to Possible Convergent Adaption to the Freshwater Yangtze River; Population Status & Conservation of the Ganges River Dolphin; The Evolutionary History & Phylogenetic Relationships of the Superfamily Platani; Index.

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