Buy a book... 
| Essentials of Ecology | Buy a book...
|
| Author(s): | C. R. Townsend, M. Begon and J. L. Harper |
| Publisher: | Blackwell Publishing |
| ISBN: | 9781405156585 |
| Format: | softback |
| 510pp | |
| Price: | £29.99 |
| Review Date: | 20 August 2008 |
| Review: | This book is aimed at students taking a one-semester beginners course in the essentials of ecology. It is divided into four sections. The first section what ecology is, and what ecologists do, and shows how ecologists need to understand evolutionary biology in order to make sense of the patterns and processes of nature. The second section deals with conditions and resources both in terms of how they influence individual species and by looking at the consequences for the composition and distribution of multispecies communities, like those in deserts, rain forests, rivers, lakes and oceans. Section 3, the main part of the book, deals systematically with the ecology of individual organisms, populations, communities and ecosystems. Finally, the last part looks at the applications of ecology: looking at sustainability, habitat and conservation. |