1st Edition
Evolution of the Monitor Lizards Systematics, Morphology, and Biogeography of the Varanids
Preface and Acknowledgments PART I Overview and History Chapter 1. Introduction to Monitor Lizards Chapter 2. The Herpetologists and the History of Monitor Lizard Research PART II Morphology Chapter 3. Characters and Character States of the Varanidae Chapter 4. Monitor Anatomy I: External Morphology Chapter 5. Monitor Anatomy II: Internal – the Skeleton Chapter 6. Monitor Anatomy III: Internal – the Soft Anatomy PART III Ecology and Behavior Chapter 7. Behavior Chapter 8. Monitor Lizard Ecology Chapter 9. Mating and Reproduction PART IV Systematics and Evolution Chapter 10. Origin, Evolution, and Prehistoric Biogeography Chapter 11. Relationships: The Systematics of Monitor Lizards Appendix I Appendix II Bibliography Index
Biography
Robert George Sprackland is a herpetologist who has been interested in zoology since early childhood. He studied herpetology and paleontology at the University of Kansas (BA), San José State University (MA), and University College London (Ph.D.), where he conducted the bulk of his research at the Natural History Museum, London. Robert began studying varanids while an undergraduate and has pursued his interest in the lizards across Australia, Europe, and New Guinea for over 45 years. He has published three books and over 40 papers about monitors, plus dozens of other zoological papers. Robert spent most of his academic career teaching college biology, anatomy, and physiology, and has been conducting research in the Department of Vertebrate Zoology at the Smithsonian Institution since 2015.
