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STEPHENS, D. W., J. S. BROWN & R. C. YDENBERG, 2007. Foraging: Behaviour and Ecology. University of Chicago Press, xii + 608 p., 15 × 22 cm, hardcover, US$35.00, ISBN 978-0-226-77263-9.
Foraging, the act of searching for food and provision, is a central tenet in the understanding of animal behavior and ecology. Although the definition is simple, all processes involved for the energy transfer through predation, herbivory and/or provisioning are in fact complex to understand and demonstrate; it is only in 1966 that the first theoretical papers have tried to develop research on this issue (e.g., Emlen, 1966; MacArthur & Pianka, 1966).
Nearly 21 years ago, a milestone was set for the understanding of animal foraging; Dave Stephens and John Krebs has just released their famous book Foraging Theory. Since this key review on foraging models, research has expanded a wide-range of theoretical tools but also discovered many strategies that animal use to find and consume resources. Then, how is it possible to embrace all facets of a rich discipline that has developed exponentially during the past two decades? By bringing together twenty-two experts from throughout the field, Stephens et al., have undertaken an impressive synthesis to depict what we can call a "modern foraging theory". First rank researchers like Kenneth A. Schmidt, Robert D. Holt, Ronald C. Ydenberg give the readers a...