The Rise of Fishes - 9780801896958

Fishes that walk, fishes that breathe air, fishes that look like---and are---monsters from the deep. These and many more strange creatures swim through The Rise of Fishes, John A. Long's richly illustrated tour of the past 500 million years. Long has updated his classic work with illustrations of recent fossil discoveries and new interpretations based on genetic analyses. He reveals how fishes evolved from ancient, jawless animals, explains why fishes have survived on the Earth for so long, and describes how they have become the dominant aquatic life-form. Indeed, to take things a step further, we learn much about ourselves through this book, for all amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals are descendants of ancient fishes.

Clear, accessible, and engaging, The Rise of Fishes combines scientific expertise with entertaining stories about Long's own excursions, which span the oceans and continents. The book includes photographs of fossils from around the world as well as dramatic color illustrations depicting what those fishes may have actually looked like

Jacket design: Glen Burris. Jacket illustrations: Front: Late Devonian fishes, including the ray-fin Tegeolepis. Painting by Brian Choo. Inset, Eocene-era Eobothus from the Monte Bolca site in Italy. Courtesy Lorenzo Sorbini. Back: A scene showing the diversity of Early Devonian fauna. Painting by Brian Choo. Author photo: Heather Robinson