Synopses & Reviews
Dazzling in their variety of sizes, shapes, and colors, the cichlids (small perch-like fishes) of Lake Victoria, like the finches of the Galapagos Islands and Hawaii's Honeycreepers, have been geographically isolated long enough to undergo unusually broad speciation. These small fish form a species flock -- closely related species that have descended from a common ancestor and radiated, or fanned, into different specializations -- that is the most spectacular in the world, fascinating anatomists, ecologists, ethologists, and evolutionary biologists alike. The process of speciation was still under way until just recently, when the introduction of the large, predatory Nile perch so disrupted the Lake's intricate ecosystem that the glorious spectrum of cichlids has almost vanished.Darwin's Dreampond tells the evolutionary story of the extraordinary "furu" and the battlefield leading to extinction. Tijs Goldschmidt skillfully blends a masterful discussion of the principles of neo-Darwinian evolution and speciation with a history of Lake Victoria's ecosystem. The science unfolds in the context of the engaging first-person narrative of Goldschmidt's adventures and misadventures as a field researcher. An astute observer and a clear and witty writer, he warmly portrays the colors and textures of the landscapes and the lives of the local people as he interacts with them during the course of his fieldwork.
Review
"The biological story itself is fascinating, and Mr. Goldschmidt tellsit well. But the genius of his book lies in the way he has combinedthe science with travel writing. He interleaves the two in a highlyreadable way, so that his Tanzanian experiences lighten thescience.... the book should give universal pleasure." Mark Ridley , The New York Times Book Review The MIT Press The MIT Press
Review
andquot;The biological story itself is fascinating, and Mr. Goldschmidt tells it well. But the genius of his book lies in the way he has combined the science with travel writing. He interleaves the two in a highly readable way, so that his Tanzanian experiences lighten the science. . . . the book should give universal pleasure.andquot;
andmdash;Mark Ridley, The New York Times Book Review
Review
"Tijs Goldschmidt has trapped a ghost image in this solid and highlyperceptive work - the glorious, haunting, and indecipherable complexity ofbiological life. Goldschmidt also shows us, however, that the human desireboth to understand and to exploit such life is equally thought-provoking.Thus does Darwin's Dreampond become a first rate account of a modernscientist's field work among the cychlids and the Sukuma people of LakeVictoria." Barry Lopez, author of Arctic Dreams The MIT Press
Synopsis
This book tells the evolutionary story of the extraordinary "furu" and the battlefield leading to extinction.
Darwin's Dreampond tells the evolutionary story of the extraordinary "furu" and the battlefield leading to extinction. Tijs Goldschmidt skillfully blends a masterful discussion of the principles of neo-Darwinian evolution and speciation with a history of Lake Victoria's ecosystem. The science unfolds in the context of the engaging first-person narrative of Goldschmidt's adventures and misadventures as a field researcher. An astute observer and a clear and witty writer, he warmly portrays the colors and textures of the landscapes and the lives of the local people as he interacts with them during the course of his fieldwork.
Synopsis
Darwin's Dreampond tells the evolutionary story of the extraordinary "furu" and the battlefield leading to extinction. Tijs Goldschmidt skillfully blends a masterful discussion of the principles of neo-Darwinian evolution and speciation with a history of Lake Victoria's ecosystem. The science unfolds in the context of the engaging first-person narrative of Goldschmidt's adventures and misadventures as a field researcher. An astute observer and a clear and witty writer, he warmly portrays the colors and textures of the landscapes and the lives of the local people as he interacts with them during the course of his fieldwork.
Synopsis
This book tells the evolutionary story of the extraordinary "furu" and the battlefield leading to extinction.
Description
Includes bibliographical references (p. [251]-261) and index.