Bizarre Beasts and Other Oddities of Nature (Weird and Wonderful Series) - Softcover

In this work, subtitled ``And Other Oddities of Nature,'' 12 spreads feature bizarre animals and plants and include sidebar discussions of other unusual products of the natural world. Among the oddities are the duck-billed platypus, hammerhead shark, matamata turtle, king vulture, vampire bat, Australian frilled lizard, giant anteater, and mandrill. Also appearing are incredible insects, fantastic fish, and amazing plants. Ganeri (Out of the Ark, p. 295, etc.) provides introductory paragraphs that are surrounded by five or six captioned full-color drawings, and a small range map as well as facts and vital statistics. The drawings, by various illustrators, are not to scale: The tiny vampire bat, with a wingspan of eight inches, appears the same size as the king vulture and its wing span of six-and-a-half feet; is the electric eel really larger than the swordfish? This title is fun for browsing, but not essential. (glossary, index) (Nonfiction. 8-10) -- Copyright ©1996, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

stranger than fiction The Australian frilled lizard, the stinging velvet ant and the insect-eating pitcher plant are among the creatures of Bizarre Beasts: And Other Oddities of Nature by Anita Ganeri. Color illustrations of the fantastic beasts dominate the oversize pages, while short blocks of text explain their survival strategies and strange features and disguises. Fact panels provide more information, and the last page features a glossary and index.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.