A Natural History of Shells

From "one of the master naturalists of our time" (American Scientist), a fascinating exploration of what seashells reveal about biology, evolution, and the history of life

Geerat Vermeij wrote this "celebration of shells" to share his enthusiasm for these supremely elegant creations and what they can teach us about nature. Most popular books on shells emphasize the identification of species, but Vermeij uses shells as a way to explore major ideas in biology. How are shells built? How do they work? And how did they evolve? With lucidity and charm, the MacArthur-winning evolutionary biologist reveals how shells give us insights into the lives of animals today and in the distant geological past.

Author: Geerat J. Vermeij
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Published: 04/23/1995
Pages: 216
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.76lbs
Size: 9.00h x 6.14w x 0.55d
ISBN: 9780691001678

About the Author
Geerat J. Vermeij is Distinguished Professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences at the University of California, Davis. He is the author of The Evolutionary World: How Adaptation Explains Everything from Seashells to Civilization; Privileged Hands: A Scientific Life; Nature: An Economic History (Princeton); and Evolution and Escalation: An Ecological History of Life (Princeton).