Short Synopsis
Douglas J. Emlen brings us the story behind the stunning, extreme weapons we see in the animal world—teeth and horns and claws—and what they can tell us about the way humans develop and use arms and other weapons.

Full Synopsis
In Animal Weapons, Douglas J. Emlen takes us outside the lab and deep into the forests and jungles to explain the processes behind the most intriguing and curious examples of extreme animal weapons—fish with mouths larger than their bodies and bugs whose heads are so packed with muscle they don’t have room for eyes.

As singular and strange as some of the weapons are, we learn that similar factors set their evolution in motion. Emlen looks at everything, from our armor and camouflage to the evolution of the rifle and the structures human populations have built across different regions and eras to protect their homes and communities.

Animal Weapons brings us the complete story of how weapons reach their most outsized, dramatic potential, and what the results we witness in the animal world can tell us about our own relationship with weapons of all kinds.

"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

"Animal Weapons is must read, especially those of us who are interested and concerned about human weapons development." ---Robert L. O'Connell, author of The Ghosts of Cannae

"Runnette's consistent tone clearly ties the book together and helps listeners understand the value in studying animal weaponry to better appreciate human weaponry." ---AudioFile

Library Journal Review