This Oxford dictionary describes itself as “an essential source of reference for anyone with an interest in animal behaviour”. It is aimed at both professionals in this field, and at the general reader – quite a wide scope for such a small book. It aims to cover terms used in animal behaviour, and also in related areas “such as ecology, psychology and physiology”.
Reading it, I feel that it would perhaps be more suitable for the amateur. The majority of terms in the book should already be known by anyone with some basic knowledge of the subject, and most will be adequately explained where they are used in other textbooks. In an attempt to cover all possible terms the author has perhaps been over‐inclusive – does anyone really need to be told that drinking is “taking in water by mouth to quench thirst” or that walking is “locomotion on legs”?
Due to the size of the book very few examples are given, which might be off‐putting to someone merely looking for general interest, although, as the author points out, these are adequately supplied elsewhere. Where examples are given, the author's insistence on giving the common name followed by the Latin name, while undoubtedly useful to students, renders the text a little awkward, and again might discourage the general reader. The lists of Societies and Further Reading at the back of the book are also somewhat disappointing, offering only two entries each. This does little to encourage further investigation by newcomers to the subject.
My only other source of irritation with this book, trivial though it is, is that each letter heading is accompanied by a picture of either a jaguar or a tree frog. I have no objection to either of these species, but a little more variety would have been nice.
This book does have the advantage over more detailed texts in that it is very cheap, meaning that for a small public library it might be worth buying.
