Lost Species - Great Expeditions in the Collections of Natural History Museums

We hear routinely about dinosaurs unearthed in the Gobi Desert, about new marsupials found in the forests of Madagascar, about darling deep sea squid in the polar regions. These discoveries tend to be accompanied by wondrous feats of adventuring scientists. But just as one can experience the world in a backyard, or farther reaches of the world with a good book and a comfy armchair, scientists themselves know that the natural history museums of the world contain some of the best terrain for discovering new species. In recent years scientists have found in museum drawers and cabinets a new rove beetle collected by Darwin, a tiny lungless salamander thinner than a matchstick, a monkey from the Brazilian rainforest, and a 40 million year old beardog. The Lost Species shares the thrill of spelunking in museum basements, digging in museum trays, and breathing new life in taxidermied beings--a in a days' adventure for the scientists in this book. These discoveries help tell the story of life, and the priceless collections of natural history museums.

About the author

Christopher Kemp is a scientist living in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He is the author of Dark and Magical Places: The Neuroscience of Navigation.

Product details

• Authors: Christopher Kemp, Kemp Christopher
• Publisher: University Of Chicago Press
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 30.11.2020
• EAN: 9780226513706
• ISBN: 978-0-226-51370-6
• No. of pages: 256
• Subjects: Guides > Nature; Natural sciences, medicine, IT, technology > Natural sciences (general); NATURE / General, SCIENCE / Life Sciences / General, SCIENCE / History, natural history, History of Science, Life sciences: general issues, Nature and the natural world: general interest