Forest Ecology
Forest Ecology
An Evidence-Based Approach
Forest ecology is the science that deals with everything in forests, including plants and animals (and their interactions), the features of the environment that affect plants and animals, and the interactions of humans and forests. All of these components of forests interact across scales of space and time. Some interactions are constrained, deterministic, and predictable; but most are indeterminant, contingent, and only broadly predictable.
Forest Ecology: An Evidence-Based Approach examines the features common to all forests, and those unique cases that illustrate the importance of site-specific factors in determining the structure, function, and future of a forest. The author emphasizes the role of evidence in forest ecology, because appealing, simple stories often lead to misunderstandings about how forests work. A reliance on evidence is central to distinguishing between appealing stories and stories that actually fit real forests.
The evidence-based approach emphasizes the importance of real-world, observable science in forests. Classical approaches to ecology in the twentieth century often over-emphasized appealing concepts that were not sufficiently based on real forests. The vast amount of information now available on forests allows a more complete coverage of forest ecology that relies on a strong, empirical foundation.
Forest Ecology: An Evidence-Based Approach is the ideal companion text for the teaching of upper-level undergraduate and graduate courses in forest ecology.
Forest Ecology
An Evidence-Based Approach
Forest ecology is the science that deals with everything in forests, including plants and animals (and their interactions), the features of the environment that affect plants and animals, and the interactions of humans and forests. All of these components of forests interact across scales of space and time. Some interactions are constrained, deterministic, and predictable; but most are indeterminant, contingent, and only broadly predictable.
Forest Ecology: An Evidence-Based Approach examines the features common to all forests, and those unique cases that illustrate the importance of site-specific factors in determining the structure, function, and future of a forest. The author emphasizes the role of evidence in forest ecology, because appealing, simple stories often lead to misunderstandings about how forests work. A reliance on evidence is central to distinguishing between appealing stories and stories that actually fit real forests.
The evidence-based approach emphasizes the importance of real-world, observable science in forests. Classical approaches to ecology in the twentieth century often over-emphasized appealing concepts that were not sufficiently based on real forests. The vast amount of information now available on forests allows a more complete coverage of forest ecology that relies on a strong, empirical foundation.
Forest Ecology: An Evidence-Based Approach is the ideal companion text for the teaching of upper-level undergraduate and graduate courses in forest ecology.
Table of Contents
Dedication
Acknowledgements
Preface
Chapter 1: The nature of forest
Chapter 2: Forest environments
Chapter 3: Evolution and adaptation in forests
Chapter 4: Physiology and life history of trees
Chapter 5: Ecology of wildlife in forests
Chapter 6: Forest soils, nutrient cycling, and hydrology
Chapter 7: Ecology of growth of trees and forests
Chapter 8: Forests across space
Chapter 9: Forests through time
Chapter 10: Events in forests: winds, insects and diseases
Chapter 11: Events in forests: fire
Chapter 12: Events in forests: management
Chapter 13: Conservation, sustainability and restoration of forests
Chapter 14: Forests of the future
References
Index
