A Natural History of Shells

by Geerat Vermeij

Overview

Geerat Vermeij wrote this "celebration of shells" to share his enthusiasm for these supremely elegant creations and what they can teach us about nature. Most popular books on shells emphasize the identification of species, but Vermeij uses shells as a way to explore major ideas in biology. How are shells built? How to they work? And how did they evolve? With lucidity and charm, the MacArthur-winning evolutionary biologist reveals how shells give us insights into the lives of animals today and in the distant geological past. And, in a new preface, Vermeij tells how a childhood love of collecting seashells in his native Holland sparked a lifelong passion for natural history and science.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780691229249
Publisher:	Princeton University Press
Publication date:	09/28/2021
Series:	Princeton Science Library , #123
Pages:	236
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x (d)

About the Author

Geerat J. Vermeij is Distinguished Professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences at the University of California, Davis. He is the author of The Evolutionary World: How Adaptation Explains Everything from Seashells to Civilization; Privileged Hands: A Scientific Life; Nature: An Economic History (Princeton); and Evolution and Escalation: An Ecological History of Life (Princeton).

Table of Contents

New Preface vii

Chapter 1 Shells and the Questions of Biology 3

Part I The Rules of Shell Construction

Chapter 2 Themes and Variations: The Geometry of Shells 9

An Introduction to Molluscs 9

The Logarithmic Spiral and the Conservation of Shape 16

The Diversity of Shell Shapes 18

Handedness and the Notion of Constraint 21

Growth and Form: The Inadequacy of the Logarithmic Spiral 27

Episodic Growth 31

Internal Remodeling 32

Arthropods and Molluscs Compared 35

The Evolution of Geometric Diversity 36

Chapter 3 The Economics of Construction and Maintenance 39

Mineral Availability 40

Energetics and Calcification 42

Solutions to Dissolution 45

Structure and Strength 50

The Shell as a Burden 51

An Evolutionary Perspective on Cost 52

Annotated Bibliography 54

Part II Life in a Dangerous World: How Shells Work

Chapter 4 The Mechanics of Shells 61

Rigors of the Upper Shore 63

Life in Waves and Currents 68

Life as a Swimmer or Floater 76

Life on Sandy and Muddy Bottoms 81

Burrowing 83

The Riddle of Specialization 91

Chapter 5 Predators and Their Methods 94

Predation and Selection: The Evolutionary Importance of Failure 95

Finding the Victim 98

Pursuit 100

Capture and Subjugation 100

The Geography of Death 108

A Geographic Perspective on Risk 110

Chapter 6 Coping with Enemies: The Shell as Protection 113

Detection and Recognition 113

Silent Movement and Rapid Escape 115

Interfering with Manipulation 116

Shell-Wall Thickening 122

Corrugations and Buttresses 125

Reducing the Effects of Damage 129

Guarding the Entrance 135

The Shell as an Offensive Weapon 140

Chemical Defense 142

Intimate Associations 143

Annotated Bibliography 149

Part III The Dimension of Time

Chapter 7 A Historical Geography of Shells 153

The Geography of Tropical Marine Life 155

Historical Geography of the Tropics 157

Historical Perspective on Tropical Molluscs 160

The Temperate and Polar Regions 166

Extinction and Invasion 170

Chapter 8 Evolutionary Economics: The Rise and Fall of Adaptive Themes 174

A Chronology of the History of Life 175

The Evolution of Enemies 179

The Invasion of Sediments and Rocks 182

Molluscan Responses 183

The Economics of Specialization 189

The Evolutionary History of the Housing Market 192

Molluscan History and the World Economy 197

Annotated Bibliography 200

Index 203

Editorial Reviews

"Vermeij provides an elegantly written and beautifully illustrated account of shell construction, function and evolution, while showing how these molluscan houses give us insights into ecology and the history of life. A book that will be treasured by scientists and lay readers alike."

Nature Lib

"This is a pleasingly different book. Most other popular books on shells help one to identify them. In this book Vermeij uses shells to help understand the ecology, evolution, and history of snails, clams, and other Mollusca, the phylum of animals that construct 'shells.' . . . This book uses both contemporary and fossil shells to explore many ideas and processes in general biology. . . . I have been seeking this book for years."

The Quarterly Review of Biology

"This is a pleasingly different book. Most other popular books on shells help one to identify them. In this book Vermeij uses shells to help understand the ecology, evolution, and history of snails, clams, and other Mollusca, the phylum of animals that construct 'shells.' . . . This book uses both contemporary and fossil shells to explore many ideas and processes in general biology. . . . I have been seeking this book for years."

Quarterly Review of Biology

One of Choice's Outstanding Academic Titles for 1994

Winner of the 1993 Award for Excellence, New Jersey Education Association (NJEA)

From the Publisher

"Vermeij provides an elegantly written and beautifully illustrated account of shell construction, function and evolution, while showing how these molluscan houses give us insights into ecology and the history of life. A book that will be treasured by scientists and lay readers alike."

Nature

"I was swept away by the world of molluscs and found myself fascinated and informed. . . . By the end of the book I was convinced that anyone with a passion for their subject would enjoy and be educated by Vermeij's obvious passion for his."

Biologist

A Natural History of Shells is a fascinating biological view of shells as the products of living organisms....We come to appreciate and understand the diverse wonders of economy, function, and construction that can be seen in shells.

New Scientist - Douglas Palmer

A Natural History of Shells is a fascinating biological view of shells as the products of living organisms....We come to appreciate and understand the diverse wonders of economy, function, and construction that can be seen in shells.
— Douglas Palmer

New Scientist