Marine Mammals

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xii

   PDF

2. Introduction

   • Randall W. Davis

   Pages 1-5

3. Return to the Sea: The Evolution of Marine Mammals

   • Randall W. Davis

   Pages 7-27

4. Respiration and the Effects of Pressure

   • Randall W. Davis

   Pages 29-55

5. Metabolism and Thermoregulation

   • Randall W. Davis

   Pages 57-87

6. Locomotion

   • Randall W. Davis

   Pages 89-132

7. Physiological Adaptations for Breath-Hold Diving

   • Randall W. Davis

   Pages 133-175

8. Sensory Systems

   • Randall W. Davis

   Pages 177-217

9. Feeding and Digestion

   • Randall W. Davis

   Pages 219-266

10. Sleep

    • Randall W. Davis

    Pages 267-278

11. Back Matter

    Pages 279-302

    PDF

This comprehensive book provides new insights into the morphological, metabolic, thermoregulatory, locomotory, diving, sensory, feeding, and sleep adaptations of Cetacea (whales and dolphins), Pinnipedia (seals, sea lions and walrus), Sirenia (manatees and dugongs) and sea otters for an aquatic life. Each chapter reviews the discoveries from previous studies and integrates recent research using new techniques and technology. Readers will gain an understanding of the remarkable adaptations that enable marine mammals to spend all or most of their lives at sea, often while hunting prey at depth.

• Pinnipeds, Cetaceans, Sirenians, Sea otters
• adaptation
• dive response
• marine mammals
• metabolism
• physiological homeostasis

“This book is the culmination of a tremendous amount of time digging into the scientific literature, and I think that the author has done an excellent job of presenting and summarizing all of this information.” (William D. Halliday, The Canadian Field-Naturalist, Vol. 134, 2020)

• Marine Biology, Texas A&M University, Galveston, USA

  Randall W. Davis

Randall William Davis is an educator and researcher who studies the physiology and behavioral ecology of marine mammals and other aquatic vertebrates. His physiological research focuses on adaptations of marine mammals for deep, prolonged diving. Davis has continually emphasized the importance of studying aquatic animals in their natural environment and has spent many years developing animal-borne instruments that record video and monitor three-dimensional movements, swimming performance and environmental variables to better understand their behavior and ecology. His academic endeavors and 95 research expeditions have taken him to 64 countries and territories on seven continents and all of the world’s oceans.

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