Ecosystem Ecology: A New Synthesis (Ecological Reviews)
Cambridge University Press, 3/4/2010
EAN 9780521735032, ISBN10: 0521735033
Paperback, 174 pages, 24.4 x 17 x 1 cm
Language: English
What can ecological science contribute to the sustainable management and conservation of the natural systems that underpin human well-being? Bridging the natural, physical and social sciences, this book shows how ecosystem ecology can inform the ecosystem services approach to environmental management. The authors recognise that ecosystems are rich in linkages between biophysical and social elements that generate powerful intrinsic dynamics. Unlike traditional reductionist approaches, the holistic perspective adopted here is able to explain the increasing range of scientific studies that have highlighted unexpected consequences of human activity, such as the lack of recovery of cod populations on the Grand Banks despite nearly two decades of fishery closures, or the degradation of Australia's fertile land through salt intrusion. Written primarily for researchers and graduate students in ecology and environmental management, it provides an accessible discussion of some of the most important aspects of ecosystem ecology and the potential relationships between them.
List of contributors
Preface
1. The evolution of ecosystem ecology David G. Raffaelli and Christopher L. J. Frid
2. Linking population, community and ecosystem ecology within mainstream ecology Andy Fenton and Matthew Spencer
3. Thermodynamic approaches to ecosystem behaviour
fundamental principles with case studies from forest succession and management Paul C. Stoy
4. Ecosystem health Piran C. L. White, James C. R. Smart, Anna R. Renwick and David G. Raffaelli
5. Interdisciplinarity in ecosystems research
developing social robustness in environmental science Kevin Edson Jones and Odette A. L. Paramor
6. The links between biodiversity, ecosystem services and human well-being Roy Haines-Young and Marion Potschin
7. Ecosystem ecology and environmental management Christopher L. J. Frid and David G. Raffaelli
Index.