An illustrated, informative tribute to 103 species that have perished in the last 500 years. Not surprisingly, islands are well represented, including (famously) the dodo which once roamed the forests of Mauritius and many birds and mammals from New Zealand. Flannery and Schouten, who visited museums around the world to see specimens and collect information, focus on animals that could be realistically re-created. The paintings, which are spectacular, were all drawn at life size in the original. Organized by date of extinction from the Upland Moa (1500), Dodo (1681) and Steller's Sea Cow (1768) to the Passenger Pigeon (1914), Darwin's Rice Rat (1929) and Guam Flying-fox (1974).  (SCI55, $34.95)