Living in Groups (Oxford Series in Ecology and Evolution) - Tapa dura

It's a very nice book and I learned a lot from it. (David Sloan Wilson, Depts of Biology and Anthropology, Binghamton University, NY)

Living in Groups is highly worthwhile for any biologist interested in the nature of groups. (David Sloan Wilson, Quarterly Review of Biology)

The authors convey an infectious enthusiasm for their subject but are also critical, pointing out the need for both theory and empirical research. Their treatment of parasites in addition to predators as an important influence on groups is especially noteworthy. (David Sloan Wilson, Quarterly Review of Biology)

... was I inspired? Yes, indeed ... would I buy it? My answer is that I had already bought my own copy of "Living in Groups" before receiving the evaluation copy. (Animal Behaviour)

This will be the first book that I hand to a new gradute student and I recommend it to all biologists who think about animals that live in groups. (Trends in Ecology and Evolution)

Group Living is a widespread phenomenon within the animal kingdom and has attracted considerable attention in a number of different contexts. This book is focused on the unifying concepts regarding group behaviour that have been developed over the last two decades.

The authors set out to discuss the mechanisms that govern the evolution and maintenance of grouping behaviour throughout the animal kingdom, and the ecological factors that control observed group size and group composition in particular situations. Although the book's emphasis is on the elaboration of a conceptual framework, extensive examples and case studies illustrate the diversity of grouping phemonema across taxonomic boundaries, and demonstrate the general applicability of the concepts involved.

This book will familiarise the reader with the latest ideas on the ecology and evolution of group-living animals, providing a summary and critical synthesis of the extensive and diverse literature on the subject.