Animal Weapons

“Through personal stories, historical narrative, and detailed sketches, biologist Emlen charts the evolution of animal weapons so bizarre and gargantuan, it's amazing they even exist.”—Discover magazine

“Outstanding . . . Emlen's book on animal warfare reveals a world far more fascinating and intriguing than one we could summon with our imagination.”—The Seattle Times

“A fascinating account of how animal weaponry, both offensive (claws, horns, teeth) and defensive (armor, shelter, thorns, claws again) parallel human weaponry, both offensive (arrows, lances, swords, missiles, A-bombs) and defensive (armor, castles, spies). It's a compelling, fun, often scary analysis. And David Tuss's drawings, especially his animals, made me jealous.”—Robert Krulwich, science correspondent for NPR and cohost of Radiolab

“A great deal of the living world really is red in tooth and claw. That important principle has needed a real biologist to illustrate and explain it, now accomplished dramatically by Emlen.”—Edward O. Wilson, Pulitzer Prize–winning scientist, Harvard University

“Emlen's excellent writing will draw in readers intrigued by astonishingly powerful weapons, both in the wild and in the military, and how they have evolved owing to selective pressures.”—Library Journal (starred review)

“Absorbing . . . Throughout the book, Emlen's demonstrations of the many parallels between human and animal weapons are fascinating, even when the possibilities are frightening . . . Emlen is not a hurried or simplistic storyteller. He is a writer of nuance, and he traveled to many different environments to get the story.”—Kirkus Reviews

“Emlen infuses scientific explanations with entertaining anecdotes from his field research at the University of Montana. Each step of the way, he provides parallels with human weapon development and design, from ancient civilizations to weapons of mass destruction, and the evolutionary process of animals. While his conclusions about the human arms race are dire, it is his description of animal weaponry in action and in evolution that will captivate.”—Publishers Weekly