A definitive guide to the depth and breadth of the ecological sciences, revised and updated
The revised and updated fifth edition of Ecology: From Individuals to Ecosystems - now in full colour - offers students and practitioners a review of the ecological sciences.
The previous editions of this book earned the authors the prestigious ‘Exceptional Life-time Achievement Award’ of the British Ecological Society - the aim for the fifth edition is not only to maintain standards but indeed to enhance its coverage of Ecology.
In the first edition, 34 years ago, it seemed acceptable for ecologists to hold a comfortable, objective, not to say aloof position, from which the ecological communities around us were simply material for which we sought a scientific understanding. Now, we must accept the immediacy of the many environmental problems that threaten us and the responsibility of ecologists to play their full part in addressing these problems. This fifth edition addresses this challenge, with several chapters devoted entirely to applied topics, and examples of how ecological principles have been applied to problems facing us highlighted throughout the remaining nineteen chapters.
Nonetheless, the authors remain wedded to the belief that environmental action can only ever be as sound as the ecological principles on which it is based. Hence, while trying harder than ever to help improve preparedness for addressing the environmental problems of the years ahead, the book remains, in its essence, an exposition of the science of ecology. This new edition incorporates the results from more than a thousand recent studies into a fully up-to-date text.
Written for students of ecology, researchers and practitioners, the fifth edition of Ecology: From Individuals to Ecosystems is anessential reference to all aspects of ecology and addresses environmental problems of the future.
Table of Contents
Preface ix
Introduction: Ecology and its Domain xii
1 Organisms in their Environments: the Evolutionary Backdrop 1
2 Conditions 32
3 Resources 65
4 Matters of Life and Death 102
5 Intraspecific Competition 132
6 Movement and Metapopulations 169
7 Life History Ecology and Evolution 206
8 Interspecific Competition 240
9 The Nature of Predation 284
10 The Population Dynamics of Predation 320
11 Decomposers and Detritivores 357
12 Parasitism and Disease 378
13 Facilitation: Mutualism and Commensalism 416
14 Abundance 453
15 Pest Control Harvesting and Conservation 477
16 Community Modules and the Structure of Ecological Communities 522
17 Food Webs 544
18 Patterns in Community Composition in Space and Time 572
19 Patterns in Biodiversity and their Conservation 603
20 The Flux of Energy through Ecosystems 647
21 The Flux of Matter through Ecosystems 678
22 Ecology in a Changing World 708
References 743
Organism Index 798
Subject Index 812
