In Parasitism, Claude Combes explores the fascinating adaptations parasites have developed through their intimate interactions with their hosts. He begins with the biology of parasites--their life cycles, habitats, and different types of associations with their hosts. Next he discusses genetic interactions between hosts and parasites, and he ends with a section on the community ecology of parasites and their role in the evolution of their hosts. Throughout the book Combes enlivens his discussion with a wealth of concrete examples of host-parasite interactions.

The news that a flowering weed--mousear cress (Arabidopsis thaliana)--can sense the particular chewing noise of its most common caterpillar predator and adjust its chemical defenses in response led to headlines announcing the discovery of the first -hearing- plant. As plants lack central nervous systems (and, indeed, ears), the mechanisms behind this -hearing- are unquestionably very different from those of our own acoustic sense, but the misleading headlines point to an overlooked truth: plants do in fact perceive environmental cues and respond rapidly to them by changing their...