Platypus: The Extraordinary Story of How a Curious Creature Baffled the World
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- Synopsis
- From the Book Jacket: When the first specimen of a platypus arrived in England in 1799 it was greeted with astonishment and disbelief. What was this strange creature from the new colony of Australia? It defied rational explanation, with its webbed feet and duck's beak attached to what seemed to be a mammal's body-surely it was a hoax on the part of those cheeky new colonials? As eighteenth century naturalists struggled to classify the platypus, the little animal excited curiosity and sparked fierce debate in international scientific circles, drawing in leaders of zoology and comparative anatomy in Britain and Europe. This is the enigmatic story of a biological riddle that confounded scientists for nearly ninety years, challenging theories of creationism, evolution and the classification of species along the way. Secretive, elusive and beguiling, the platypus has continued to captivate public and scientific Attention to the present day. Ann Moyal is a well-known historian of Australian science and has held research and teaching positions at a number of Australian universities. She is the author of many books and papers and is the founder and past President of the Independent Scholars Association of Australia. She now lives in Canberra.
- Copyright:
- 2001
Book Details
- Book Quality:
- Excellent
- Book Size:
- 230 Pages
- ISBN-13:
- 9781560989776
- Publisher:
- N/A
- Date of Addition:
- 03/09/08
- Copyrighted By:
- Ann Moyal
- Adult content:
- No
- Language:
- English
- Has Image Descriptions:
- No
- Categories:
- Nonfiction, Science, Animals
- Submitted By:
- Shelley L. Rhodes
- Proofread By:
- BookMouse
- Usage Restrictions:
- This is a copyrighted book.