The Kingfisher Illustrated Animal Encyclopedia - Hardcover

David Burnie

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0753404516 ISBN 13: 9780753404515

Publisher: Kingfisher, 2000

Synopsis

This comprehensive encyclopaedia of animals should be useful for all the family. Using a highly visual approach with photographs and artworks of animals in action, "The Kingfisher Illustrated Animal Encyclopaedia" combines hard facts about a particular animal with details of its lifestyle, behaviour, other members of its family, and habitat and conservation. Each entry specifies the class, order, family, genus and species of the animal and describes its characteristics. The encyclopaedia contains details of more than 2000 animals of all types, from armadillos and wallabies to sea cucumbers and fish eagles, arranged thematically from the smallest animal to the biggest. The book is divided into two main parts. In "Invertebrates", the sections are simple animals, cnidarians and comb jellies, flatworms, roundworms and ribbon worms, segmented worms, molluscs, arthropods and echinoderms. In "Vertebrates", the sections are fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals. There are also special features scattered throughout the book that focus on general animal subjects such as hibernation, aestivation, colour and camouflage. More than half the entries are illustrated by photographs or artwork. The design and layout of information in "The Kingfisher Illustrated Animal Encyclopaedia" is intended to be clear, modern and should appeal to child and adult alike.

About this title

About the Author:

David Burnie studied zoology and botany at the University of Bristol, and has worked
as a nature reserve ranger and biologist. He has written and contributed to many awardwinning
books and multimedia titles, and has acted as a consultant and scriptwriter for
many natural history programmes. He is an avid birdwatcher, botanist and bughunter.

From Booklist:

Reviewed with Dorling Kindersley Animal Encyclopedia.

These two single-volume animal encyclopedias are designed for the upper-elementary level and up. In both, the color photographs practically leap off the page and are accompanied by brief descriptions that will activate one's curiosity to look further.

The DK volume begins with a lengthy presentation called "Animal Life" covering such general topics as classification, communication, habitats, and migration. This is followed by "Animal A-Z," where animals are treated in segments of up to three pages. As one expects from DK, the emphasis is on the illustrations, which are accompanied by captions, and short chunks of text and fact boxes that list family, habitation, food, life span, size, and other data. There are almost 150 A-Z entries, many including full-page photographs that show animals in their natural habitats. More than 2,000 species are covered, although the majority are represented only by a photograph. Animals were presumably selected because of their interest to children (and British children at that, because there is a full-page entry for hedgehogs). The text concludes with a glossary and an index.

The Kingfisher volume takes a more scientific approach. Noted naturalist Burnie sets a nice background in his introduction about the characteristics of animals. He includes a couple of pages that depict the classification of animals, followed by two pages that clearly show how all the animals fit into the animal kingdom. Instead of the alphabetical format used in the DK volume, information on animals is arranged by class, from simple animals to mammals. These divisions are further broken down by phylum and subphylum. Within these sections, there is a paragraph devoted to each selected species (more than 2,000 in all) providing scientific name, distribution, and size, as well as a brief description. Sidebars treat topics such as metamorphosis and symbiosis. A glossary and index complete the text.

Photographs and illustrations abound. Each bewitching photo attracts the reader to read the description, and Burnie's descriptions are interesting. He tells us, for example, that most pipe fish swim horizontally, but some swim vertically. The males carry the eggs until they hatch, as do male seahorses. (Could this get a discussion going on the division of labor around a home?) There are several pictures of copulating animals, such as the toads in the section on amphibians. Most adults (parents and teachers) should not find this objectionable and will recognize the natural scientific tone.

In both volumes, the strong visual presentation is likely to attract readers. The DK volume may be more accessible to children in younger grades, while the Kingfisher volume will be appreciated by students who are ready for a more sophisticated approach. Both books are recommended for homes, schools, and public libraries. RBB
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About this edition

• Publisher: Kingfisher
• Publication date: 2000
• ISBN 10: 0753404516
• ISBN 13: 9780753404515
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 320