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List Price: £38.50
Our Price: £36.54
Author:
Fredric L. Frye
By Krieger Publishing Company
 One of the best Iguana books I've read, but still lacking., 1999-01-11
Being a Iguana keeper for many years now I always try to keep up with my reading on the subject. Books by Fredric L. Frye are no stranger to me, being the the proud owner of his 'Reptile Care' volumes (The best reptile medical books in print). This book is written for the average ig keeper or wannabe keeper. I say this because it has infomation which will be of interest to long term ig owners as well as valuable knowledge for the beginner. What I liked about the book was the fact that the author makes it clear that owning a iguana is a long term commitment which will require a lot a effort. He also make the point that aslong as the effort is put in the owner is rewarded by having a wonderful pet. The big problem I have with this book is not really the fault of the author. infomation on keeping iguanas changes almost month to month as new things are learnt and this book is now getting on for three years old so some of the infomation contained in it is slightly out of date. Having said that, I've found nothing in this book which wasn't far more acurate than any other book I've read. Iguanas are not toys and require a lot of homework to be done prior to owning one. This book goes along way to informing a person as to what is needed although it does have some quetionable advice, such as a harness and lead being a good idea...NOT! So if you own a Iguana, or are thinking of owning a iguana, this book should grace your bookshelf but use other sources also,including the WWW.
List Price: £32.50
Our Price: £19.65
Author:
W. G. Degenhardt, Charles W. Painter, Andrew H. Price
By University of New Mexico Press
 Seminal work on NM Herps., 1998-10-17
There are many, even myriad, good things about this book. However, there are a few things I did not like and which, if corrected in a future revision, could turn this book into a world beater in the field of herpetology. First the "bad" things: 1. This book needs a topo and political map or several. Places and physical features are constantly mentioned but, other than the tiny range maps associated with each species account, there is only one map at the front of the book which shows the counties and major cities, that is if you consider Animas and Hobbs to be major cities. 2. The glossary needs improvement. There are many terms which are used constantly which should be defined but are not. For instance, in one species account, a lizard is described as having scales which are "imbricate and mucronate." Just for kicks, I looked in the glossary. "Mucronate" is defined - "imbricate" is not. 3. Find another way to arrange the "List of scientific and common plant names used in the text." There is no arrangement whatsoever to the list. Plants are listed alphabetically by genus under the family. However, the family names are haphazard. Thus, if one does not know the family name, one has to peruse the list from top to bottom to find the plant named in the text. Woe be unto the reader who doesn't know that Helianthus is in the family "Compositae," the last named family. Pardon me for saying this but it appears as if the authors used their college botany texts to research the family names. After years of not complying with nomenclatural convention, the botanists finally joined the world and changed family names to agree with convention. Thus, Compositae became Asteraceae and Gramineae became Poaceae, for example. Also, ALL plants mentioned should be listed, even aquatic plants. Plants are keys to finding reptiles and even subtle differences in plant denizens of a habitat may make a great deal of difference in the animals found there. NOW FOR THE GOOD STUFF The standard items are all found at the beginning of the book, e.g., Foreword, Preface, Acknowledgments followed by a concise Physiographic Sketch of New Mexico (Words, not pictures) which in no way can take the place of a good physical map of the state. One of the best features is a "Brief History of Herpetology in New Mexico" in which the authors give insight into the historical aspects of herpetology in the state. This theme is repeated in the text of the species accounts with interesting snippets of history intermixed with the drier facts of science. A checklist of NM herps is provided and this is where disagreements are going to arise. The authors utilize what some would consider "old" or "controversial nomenclature." However, if one reads the species accounts, all disputed uses of nomenclature are explained. Even though I disagree with some of the generic nomenclature used, the authors gave good and valid reasons for using what they did. There are good keys to all the major groups of herps in NM and they appear detailed enough to lead a novice to the right creature, as long as the scales are not imbricate. The species accounts are very well written except for the occasional typo - "then instead of than", for instance -and give loads of information. Virtually everything one would want to know about an animal is in here. The species accounts follow a format similar to the SSAR Catalogue species accounts and that is not at all bad. It might be good if a majority of this type of book were to follow a similar format. A very fine section of glossy photos is found in the midst of the species accounts. It seems that this is the way publishers are going to make books now so, take it or leave it. The photos, by the way, are arranged in the same manner as the text for fairly easy location. Degenhardt, et al, have compiled a magnificent bibliography with everything you ever wanted to know about New Mexico Herps and where to find it. The authors have years of experience in New Mexico herpetology and have used every one of those years in producing an outstanding volume. It's a little large to carry out in the field but it is worth every penny and when in New Mexico, should be at least carried in the vehicle. This book would be a bargain at twice the price.
List Price: £35.00
Our Price: £24.50
Author:
Alain Dupre, Berbard Devaux, Franck Bonin
By A & C Black Publishers Ltd
Complete, up-to-date, fantastic and entertaining, 2007-09-27
Nice colour photos of all turtles, each with map give us a distribution idea. Good text no confusions, plenty of information, not boring. Don't need to look for other but if you look just for keeping this is not the choice.
List Price: £31.95
Our Price: £31.95
Author:
Gary W. Ferguson, Jean Baptiste Ramanamanjato, Achille Raselimanana
By Krieger Publishing Company
 Panther Chameleon Scientific studies, not an owners manual., 2008-02-02
I got this book for christmas, as i had asked for it. I have a panther chameleon and hadnt seen this book available anywhere else other than on ebay for ridiculus prices.
I've got to say at first i was slightly disapointed, but to be honest i think i had preconceptions that the book was going to be like an owners manual which it definately isn't. Or at least a background of captivity history etc. Yes, there is a few pretty pictures, and discriptions of breeds, and brief husbandry.
But overall its about scientific studies, 16 pages just on literature cited, and 11 pages on particular authors specific literature works.
Not to slate, it would provide an interesting read, but not what i was looking for.
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