This second edition emphasizes the environmental impact on reproduction, with updated chapters throughout as well as complete new chapters on species such as sharks and rays. This is a wide-ranging book that will be of relevance to anyone involved in species conservation, and provides critical perspectives on the real utility of current and emerging reproductive sciences. Understanding reproductive biology is centrally important to the way many of the world’s conservation problems should be tackled. Currently the extinction problem is huge, with up to 30% of the world’s fauna being expected to disappear in the next 50 years. Nevertheless, it has been estimated that the global population of animals in zoos encompasses 12,000 – 15,000 species, and we anticipate that every effort will be made to preserve these species for as long as possible, minimizing inbreeding effects and providing the best welfare standards available. Even if the reproductive biology community cannot solve the global biodiversity crisis for all wild species, we should do our best to maintain important captive populations. Reproductive biology in this context is much more than the development of techniques for helping with too little or too much breeding. While some of the relevant techniques are useful for individual species that society might target for a variety of reasons, whether nationalistic, cultural or practical, technical developments have to be backed up by thorough biological understanding of the background behind the problems.

Reproductive Technologies in Animals provides the most updated and comprehensive knowledge on the various aspects and applications of reproductive technologies in production animals as well as companion, wild, exotic, and laboratory animals and birds. The text synthesizes historical information and recent discoveries, while dealing with economical and geographical issues related to the implementation of the same technologies. It also presents the effects of reproductive technology implementation on animal welfare and the possible threat of pathogen transmission.Reproductive Technologies in Animals is an important resource for academics, researchers, professionals in public and private animal business, and students at the undergraduate and graduate levels, as it gives a full and detailed first-hand analysis of all species subjected to the use of reproductive technologies. - Provides research from a team of scientists and researchers whose expertise spans all aspects of animal reproductive technologies - Addresses the use of reproductive technologies in a wide range of animal species - Offers a complete description and historical background for each species described - Discusses successes and failure as well as future challenges in reproductive technologies

Reproductive biology is more than the development of techniques for helping with too little or too much breeding. While some of the relevant techniques are useful for individual species, technical developments have to be backed up by thorough biological understanding of the background behind the problems. This book is therefore threefold; (1) it provides a snapshot of the state of the art in terms of species-specific reproductive technologies, whether for individual animals or whole taxonomic groups; (2) it sets the reproductive problems in context and emphasizes the links between animal-based problems and the wider world, e.g. reproductive fitness and (3) it looks forward and presents realistic assessments of how effective some of the more recently developed techniques in reproductive technology might be at combating extinctions. This is a wide-ranging book that will be relevant to anyone involved in reproductive biology or in species conservation and provides provide them some useful perspectives about the real utility of current and emerging technologies. It has contributions from experts in reproduction and related fields.

This book provides an up-to-date overview of the various reproductive systems of a variety of aquatic animals, from invertebrates to fishes. While all terrestrial animals use internal fertilization, aquatic animals have diverse reproductive systems. Some are internal fertilizers with or without mating, but many perform external fertilization. Because of this diversity, the reproductive systems of aquatic animals represent excellent models for the study of adaptive evolution and the species specificity of fertilization. In addition, many aquatic animals, including fish, crustaceans, and mollusks, are important as fishery and aquaculture resources. In this book, up-and-coming researchers examine reproductive systems in representative aquatic animals, covering both the basic knowledge and late-breaking results. Reproduction in Aquatic Animals: From Basic Biology to Aquaculture Technology will be of interest to graduate and postgraduate students in biology and agricultural sciences, as well as to researchers and technicians in the fields of reproductive biology and fishery science and to non-academics.

Zoos, aquaria, and wildlife parks are vital centers of animal conservation and management. For nearly fifteen years, these institutions have relied on Wild Mammals in Captivity as the essential reference for their work. Now the book reemerges in a completely updated second edition. Wild Mammals in Captivity presents the most current thinking and practice in the care and management of wild mammals in zoos and other institutions. In one comprehensive volume, the editors have gathered the most current information from studies of animal behavior; advances in captive breeding; research in physiology, genetics, and nutrition; and new thinking in animal management and welfare. In this edition, more than three-quarters of the text is new, and information from more than seventy-five contributors is thoroughly updated. The standard text for all courses in zoo biology, Wild Mammals in Captivity will, in its new incarnation, continue to be used by zoo managers, animal caretakers, researchers, and anyone with an interest in how to manage animals in captive conditions.

Conservation physiology is a rapidly expanding, multidisciplinary field that utilizes physiological knowledge and tools to understand and solve conservation challenges. This novel text provides the first consolidated overview of its scope, purpose, and applications, with a focus on wildlife. It outlines the major avenues and advances by which conservation physiology is contributing to the monitoring, management, and restoration of wild animal populations. This book also defines opportunities for further growth in the field and identifies critical areas for future investigation. By using a series of global case studies, contributors illustrate how approaches from the conservation physiology toolbox can tackle a diverse range of conservation issues including the monitoring of environmental stress, predicting the impact of climate change, understanding disease dynamics, improving captive breeding, and reducing human-wildlife conflict. Moreover, by acting as practical road maps across a diversity of sub-disciplines, these case studies serve to increase the accessibility of this discipline to new researchers. The diversity of taxa, biological scales, and ecosystems highlighted illustrate the far-reaching nature of the discipline and allow readers to gain an appreciation for the purpose, value, applicability, and status of the field of conservation physiology. Conservation Physiology is an accessible supplementary textbook suitable for graduate students, researchers, and practitioners in the fields of conservation science, eco-physiology, evolutionary and comparative physiology, natural resources management, ecosystem health, veterinary medicine, animal physiology, and ecology.

This multi-disciplinary approach to conservation of endangered species in captivity is organized taxonomically and by scientific discipline. The seven taxonomic groups included are invertebrates; fish, reptiles and amphibians, birds, marine mammals, primates, and other mammals. Within each taxonomic group, four scientific disciplines are explored: conservation, reproductive physiology, behavior, and captive design. Conservation chapters summarize the status of the taxonomic group both in the wild and in captivity. Reviewed in the reproductive physiology chapters are anatomy, endocrinology and physiology for females and males of the taxonomic group. In the section on behavior the functions of captive animal research, the methods used, and the problems encountered are discussed. And, in examining captive design the authors provide a general historical outline of the philosophies, trends, and scientific issues for the targeted taxonomic group.