An expansive and detailed review of the biology of Caribbean amphibians, considering their threats, conservation and outlook in a changing world. Amphibians are the group of vertebrates undergoing the fastest rate of extinction; it is urgent that we understand the causes of this and find means of protecting them. This landmark illustrated volume brings together the leading experts in the field. As well as offering an overview of the region as a whole, individual chapters are devoted to each island or island-group and the measures used to protect their amphibians through legislation or nature reserves. The biological background of insular biogeography, including its methods, analysis and results, is reviewed and applied specifically to the problems of Caribbean amphibians - this includes a re-examination of patterns and general ideas about the status of amphibians in the Anthropocene. The Conservation and Biogeography of Amphibians in the Caribbean offers an important baseline against which future amphibian conservation can be measured in the face of climate change, rising sea level and a burgeoning human population. Covers over 300 species.
Neftali Rios-Lopez holds a PhD in biology and is a Professor of Biology at the University of Puerto Rico. He has written more than 40 scientific articles on natural history, taxonomy, bioacoustics, population and community ecology, climatic change, and conservation of herpetofauna. Harold Heatwole holds PhDs in zoology, botany, and earth science. He has worked at the universities of Puerto Rico, New England and North Carolina State. As well as being editor for ten years of the journal Integrative and Comparative Biology, he is author of almost 350 scientific articles. His research interests include herpetology, biogeography, seabirds, tardigrades and ants. He is a Fellow of the Explorers' Club.
1. Theories of Insular Biogeography and Ecology Harold Heatwole and Neftali Rios-Lopez 2. Amphibians of the Bahamas and Turks and Caicos Islands R. Graham Reynolds and Sean T. Giery 3. The Amphibians of Cuba: integrative insight into the diversity and conservation of a highly vulnerable fauna Luis M. Diaz, Ansel Fong G., Alberto R. Estrada, Antonio Cadiz, Amnerys Gonzalez, Rolando Fernandez de Arcila, Irelis Bignotte-Giro, and Sixto J. Inchaustegui 4. The Southwestern Caribbean Islands Harold Heatwole and Javier Sunyer 5. Amphibians of Jamaica K. Stephenson and B. Wilson 6. Status of amphibians in the Republic of Haiti: a review Neftali Rios-Lopez 7. Status of amphibian conservation and decline in the Dominican Republic, Hispaniola Sixto J. Inchaustegui and Luis M. Diaz 8. Amphibians and their history, distribution, and conservation in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands Neftali Rios-Lopez, Alberto R. Puente-Rolon, Nicole F. Angeli, Sondra I. Vega-Castillo, and Daniel Davila-Casanova 9. Amphibians of the Lesser Antilles Robert Powell and Robert W. Henderson 10. Amphibians of Aruba, Curacao, and Bonaire Gerard van Buurt 11. The Venezuelan Islands Harold Heatwole 12. Amphibians and their Conservation in Trinidad and Tobago Renoir J. Auguste, J. Roger Downie, Michael J. Jowers, Richard M. Lehtinen, Ryan S. Mohammed, and John C. Murphy 13. Amphibians of the Bocas Del Toro Archipelago, Republic of Panama Sandra P. Galeano, Layla Freeborn, and Ricardo Cossio
Overall this is a strong volume and a landmark publication for Caribbean herpetology... Hopefully, The Conservation and Biogeography of Amphibians in the Caribbean will inspire a new generation of research and preservation in this fascinating group. -- Wilson Guillory, Bulletin of the Chicago Herpetological Society
