Living paleontology: Review of At the foot of the Himalayas. Paleontology and ecosystem dynamics of the Siwalik record and The Rise of Mammals in Africa

Two books (Badgley C., Morgan M. E. & Pilbeam D. (eds) 2025. — At the foot of the Himalayas. Paleontology and ecosystem dynamics of the Siwalik record. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, xv + 553 p.); and Gheerbrant E. 2025. — The Rise of Mammals in Africa (illustrated by C. Letenneur and A. Lethiers). Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, xvi + 265 p.) are reviewed. They are, each in their own way, fine illustrations of the vitality of an ancient science, palaeontology. They are very different. The first is a collective work on the evolution of Miocene faunas of the Siwaliks, written by specialists for specialists. The second is an introduction to the evolution of placental mammals and the role played by the African continent.