The Art of Being a Parasite

ISBN-13: 9780226114385 / Angielski / Miękka / 2005 / 280 str.

Claude Combes; Daniel Simberloff

Opis

Parasites are a masterful work of evolutionary art. The tiny mite "Histiostoma laboratorium," a parasite of" Drosophila," launches itself, in an incredible display of evolutionary engineering, like a surface-to-air missile at a fruit fly far above its head. Gravid mussels such as "Lampsilis ventricosa "undulate excitedly as they release their parasitic larval offspring, conning greedy predators in search of a tasty meal into hosting the parasite.
"The Art of Being a Parasite" is an extensive collection of these and other wonderful and weird stories that illuminate the ecology and evolution of interactions between species. Claude Combes illustrates what it means to be a parasite by considering every stage of its interactions, from invading to reproducing and leaving the host. An accessible and engaging follow-up to Combes's "Parasitism," this book will be of interest to both scholars and nonspecialists in the fields of biodiversity, natural history, ecology, public health, and evolution.