The Encyclopedia of Animals

Book excerpt: Discover the lifestyles, habitats, and behaviors of the animal kingdom as you’ve never seen them before with The Encyclopedia of Animals. Each page of this comprehensive guide is packed with amazingly detailed artworks and full-color photographs. From the flying squirrel to the yellow-bellied sapsucker, and from the fire ant to the sun bear, animals are seen in all their splendid variety in this fascinating visual guide. Divided by class and family, the sections in this book clarify the distinguishing traits of the animals, which are depicted in colorful scientific drawings; captions provide additional information. User-friendly and with the sections marked by color tabs for quick consultation, this book could serve as a field guide or a desk reference. Shown in all their glory, here are the gulper eel, the blue wildebeest, the giant African bullfrog, the Sumatran Orangutan, the Chilean flamingo, and the tiny but terrifying anglerfish. Many of the book's images show the animals in their natural environment and behaving as they would in the wild. An orangutan is shown swinging from a branch, a bird-of-paradise is illustrated during a courtship display, and hyenas are depicted in pursuit of zebra prey. Map icons illustrate the animal’s distribution around the world, while key fact boxes highlight features of the animal’s anatomy, diet, and genus. Learn more about your favorite species, from the smallest insects to the largest mammals, with expert information and up-to-date population statistics throughout. User-friendly and accessible, this is the perfect modern encyclopedia for animal enthusiasts of all ages.