The Invertebrates: A New Synthesis

The majority of undergraduate texts in invertebrate zoology fall into one of two categories. They either offer a systematic treatment of groups of animals phylum by phylum, or adopt a functional approach to the various invertebrate anatomical and physiological systems of the better known species. The Invertebrates: a New Synthesis is the first and only textbook to integrate both approaches and thus meet the modern teaching needs of the subject

Most textbooks of invertebrate zoology follow either a systematic or a functional approach. The Invertebrates is the first book to synthesise and integrate both approaches, describing the range and diversity of invertebrates and the way they work.

The first half of the gook describes all the known phyla of invertebrates with living representatives, together with the animal-like protists. Rather than describe all the anatomical features of different types of animals, the book distils only those essential characteristics of each group with which the student should be familiar. Lists of diagnostic features permit comparison between the phyla; the diversity of body plans illustrated by line figures of the different forms.

The second half of the book concentrates on the unifying features of invertebrate functional anatomy, physiology and behaviour, describing how the invertebrates display a range of solutions to the problems of living and reproduction. Throughout, form and function are presented from an evolutionary viewpoint, in the light of the selective pressures that have influenced and continue to mould invertebrate biology.