Intervertebrate Structure and Function - 2nd Ed de Barrington, E. J - 1979

Halsted Press, 1979. 2nd Edition . Hardcover. Very Good/Poor. 6.5" x 10. H/B 765 pages, condition is very good, the DJ is very faded, and has some edge wear. An owners name to the flyleaf. This text provides a comparative treatment of animal structure and function as exemplified by the invertebrates. Breaking away from the usual rigid division into systematic groupings of animals, it presents, against an evolutionary background, a unified exposition of structure, function, and mode of life which is complementary to the usual phylogenetic approach. Opening with a discussion of the origin of life, and the biochemical and ultrastructural characteristics that are fundamental to living systems, Professor Barrington shows how the potentialities of these systems are realised in diverse patterns of organisation, development, and larval life. This leads to an examination of the ways in which animals interact with each other and thereby secure maximal exploitation of their environment through the very successful and often highly specialised modes of life found in such variety in the invertebrates. All undergraduates studying invertebrate zoology or comparative physiology will find this fresh and exciting book of great value. The second edition offers a more comprehensive treatment of invertebrate movement, an extended discussion of chemical communication which takes account of recent developments in invertebrate endocrinology, and a lengthier analysis of animal association. Numerous passages have been reworked to take account of new findings and, on occasion, to provide more explicit accounts of the experimental analysis of function where the first edition had assumed prior reading and understanding. These additions have brought with them 170 new figures and tables.