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Sto caricando le informazioni... Antipode: Seasons with the Extraordinary Wildlife and Culture of Madagascar (edizione 2002)di Heather E. Heying (Autore)
Informazioni sull'operaAntipode: Seasons with the Extraordinary Wildlife and Culture of Madagascar di Heather Heying
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By definition, "antipode" is a point on the earth diametrically opposite from another. As a field biologist specializing in reptiles and amphibians, Heather Heying has been to some of the most remote places on the globe. Her career consists of trekking through dense rainforests, sitting for hours at a time observing elusive creatures, and spending weeks on end in remote, sometimes inhospitable locales. But nothing she previously experienced quite prepared her for the three seasons she spent studying the tiny, bright, poisonous frogs found only at what is the antipode of her world, both geographically and figuratively - the island-nation of Madagascar. The majority of Madagascar's wildlife is endemic -- found nowhere else. Lemurs rule the forest canopy, while on the ground, snakes and lizards search for evening meals of frogs and bugs, all against a gorgeous backdrop of rainforest. It's a biologist's paradise - but at times can also be a foreigner's worst nightmare. Madagascar in no way resembles what most Westerners know as normal existence. Technologically, it is laps behind the first world. Time shuffles by at a slow gait. Poverty is rampant - people pride themselves on how many pots of rice a day they eat. Language and culture barriers, combined with bureaucratic red tape, can make travel virtually impossible. In stories that are in turns moving, insightful, hilarious, and beautiful, Heather recounts her experiences -- from run-ins with naked sailors and unusually hostile lemurs to tropical hurricanes and greedy tourist entrepreneurs. As she carefully navigates an obstacle-strewn path, she gradually uncovers the hidden lives of the beautiful yellow and blue poison frogs she studies. And all the while, she is coming to understand her role as a female Westerner in a foreign society, and her intense love for and fascination with the stunning cultures and wildlife of Madagascar. Non sono state trovate descrizioni di biblioteche |
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Google Books — Sto caricando le informazioni... GeneriSistema Decimale Melvil (DDC)508.691Natural sciences and mathematics General Science Natural historyClassificazione LCVotoMedia:
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The last chapter does have more details about the actual frog study- this species was remarkable for being somewhat social, the males vying for small territories, not just breeding rights- and exhibiting some parental care. I would, as usual, liked to have read more about the animal behavior, but all the details of her trials and frustrations, her discoveries with the culture and what it was like to live in a place so very far away and lacking many conveniences and comforts we just take for granted, was plenty interesting in and of itself. One thing that stood out to me was how hard she found it to simply mark the individual frogs for identification. Apparently it's common practice for field biologists to tag frogs by cutting off certain toes! She didn't want to do that and tried other methods- including tying decorated waistbands around them, or sewing colored beads onto their skin, but finally (near the end of the book) found a way to tattoo the little amphibians. ( )