Plains Vizcachas

When I first proposed a series entitled Current Mammalogy to the pub lishers, they were reluctant to undertake such a project because they viewed the field of mammology as overly fragmented. At first I found this idea to be difficult to accept; however, upon reflection, I came near to agreeing with it. Although many of us work on mammals, we gen erally feel more allegiance to our specialties, such as systematics, ge netics, cytogenetics, ecology, behavior, pest control, paleontology, wildlife management, primatology, and marine mammalogy, than we do to the general field of mammalogy. However, rather than becoming discour aged from pursuing this project, I became more certain than ever that a series such as Current Mammalogy was needed. We hope to make this series a place where specialists can present their ideas not only to other members of their specialty, but to those outside the area as well. Hopefully, this exchange of ideas will be a mutually beneficial exercise. The Editorial Board of Current Mammalogy has decided to keep the range of subjects in each volume as broad as possible rather than concentrating on one or two topics, in the hope that this will keep the series as useful as possible to the broadest range of readers.

Fully integrative approach to the socibiology of caviomorph rodents Brings together research on social systems with that on epigenetic, neurendocrine and developmental mechanisms of social behavior Describes the social systems of many previously understudied caviomorph species, identifying the fitness costs and benefits of social living in current day populations as well as quantified evolutionary patterns or trends Highlights potential parallels and differences with other animal models

South America has one of the greatest riches in the world in terms of biodiversity. Despite all this richness, recent reports warn of different threats to this biodiversity. As a strategy to reduce the rate of loss of animal species, the development and application of assisted reproduction techniques (ARTs) for their conservation currently stands out. Thus, this book compiles information on recent scientific studies regarding the development of ARTs for the conservation of wild mammalian species in South America, thus serving as an important source of reference for professionals and students interested in wildlife conservation.

A semiannual journal of research devoted to helminthology and all branches of parasitology.

The plains vizcacha (Lagostomus maximus) is a remarkable rodent of the Neotropic given several peculiar aspects of its biology, some of them quite unique among rodents or even among mammals. This book gathers specialists studying plains vizcachas from very different approaches, including paleontology, systematics, morphology, physiology, development and conservation. It is divided in two Parts, 1) Evolutionary History, and 2) Morphology, Development and Physiology. It will surely be a required reading for any researcher working with caviomorph rodents, mastozoology of the Neotropics or internal anatomy and physiology of mammals.

"Newly revised and extensively updated, the fifth edition of Mammalogy explains and clarifies the subject of mammalian biology as a unified whole, taking care to discuss the latest and most fascinating discoveries in the field. In recent years we witnessed significant changes in the taxonomy of mammals. The authors kept pace with such changes and revised each chapter to reflect the most current data and statistics available. New pedagogical elements, including chapter outlines, lists of key morphological characteristics, and further reading sections, help readers grasp the most important concepts and explore additional content on their own." --Book Jacket.

Lactation is a fascinating process. Research over the last decade has provided new insights into the regulation of mammary gland development and involution. Lactation is the last step in reproduction, and therefore it is linked to reproduction strategy. Photoperiod species such as sheep, or pseudo-ovulatory (at mid-gestation) species as the rodent Lagostomus maximus, are interesting and unique models to study mammary gland physiology. This book also offers updated insights into the mechanisms that control postlactational involution, therefore also providing information to better understand breast cancer. Small noncoding RNA has opened new understanding in gene regulation. In this regard, our knowledge of mammary gland development and milk secretion has increased extremely. This book provides current scientific information on all these interesting topics. It will certainly be of great benefit to those interested in biomedical sciences.