Cooperation Among Animals-An Evolutionary Perspective by Lee Alan Dugatkin
Cooperation Among Animals-An Evolutionary Perspective.-Lee Alan Dugatkin. 1997. Oxford University Press, New York. xvii + 221 pp., numerous figures and photographs. ISBN 0-19-508621-X. $60.00 (cloth). ISBN 0-19-508622-8. $29.95 (paper).
This volume is part of the Oxford Series in Ecology and Evolution, edited by Robert May and Paul Harvey. Although other volumes in this series have become classic studies, this one seems to be flawed from the start with the author's own admission that the topic is too big and that several excellent works on the subject already exist. After two introductory chapters, the heart of the book consists of chapters on cooperation in fishes, birds, non-primate mammals, non-human primates, and insects. The bird chapter starts with a disclaimer that the topic of cooperative and communal breeding is too big to be covered in a single book chapter, and will therefore be ignored. Topics covered in that chapter include territoriality and cooperation, cooperative hunting, food calls and sharing, alarm calls, and mobbing behavior. Each chapter highlights a few specific examples, so not much synthesis is presented. The author seems to focus on studies with which he is most familiar, particularly those of his former mentors (but, of course, we train our students to make us famous!). Nonetheless, this book would be useful for introducing the topic of cooperation among animals, particularly to advanced undergraduates.
