Tropical dry forests are the most exploited and endangered ecosystems in the world. A combination of climatic and human factors often reduce these forests to patches of dry scrubs or savannas. Because these ecosystems experience a more arduous and less anticipated environment, they are more prone to environmental stress as plant communities are developed. Therefore, urgent research is necessary to understand both the detrimental issues and problem-solving approaches to conserving these important forests. The Handbook of Research on the Conservation and Restoration of Tropical Dry Forests is a pivotal reference source that combines theory and practice on the current trends and issues in this important ecological subject and discusses future challenges towards conservation strategies of these tropical dry forests. While highlighting topics such as forest management, natural regeneration, and silviculture, this publication examines the anthropogenic impacts on tropical dry forests and the necessity to rebuild their ecosystems. This book is ideally designed for state forest agency professionals, resource managers, non-governmental organization agents, ecologists, botanists, environmentalists, students, and researchers seeking current research on the threats to these forests.

Though seasonally dry tropical forests are equally as important to global biodiversity as tropical rainforests, and are one of the most representative and highly endangered ecosystems in Latin America, knowledge about them remains limited because of the relative paucity of attention paid to them by scientists and researchers and a lack of published information on the subject. Seasonally Dry Tropical Forests seeks to address this shortcoming by bringing together a range of experts in diverse fields including biology, ecology, biogeography, and biogeochemistry, to review, synthesize, and explain the current state of our collective knowledge on the ecology and conservation of seasonally dry tropical forests. The book offers a synthetic and cross-disciplinary review of recent work with an expansive scope, including sections on distribution, diversity, ecosystem function, and human impacts. Throughout, contributors emphasize conservation issues, particularly emerging threats and promising solutions, with key chapters on climate change, fragmentation, restoration, ecosystem services, and sustainable use. Seasonally dry tropical forests are extremely rich in biodiversity, and are seriously threatened. They represent scientific terrain that is poorly explored, and there is an urgent need for increased understanding of the system's basic ecology. Seasonally Dry Tropical Forests represents an important step in bringing together the most current scientific information about this vital ecosystem and disseminating it to the scientific and conservation communities.

Under threat from natural and human disturbance, tropical dry forests are the most endangered ecosystem in the tropics, yet they rarely receive the scientific or conservation attention they deserve. In a comprehensive overview, Tropical Dry Forests in the Americas: Ecology, Conservation, and Management examines new approaches for data sampling and analysis using remote sensing technology, discusses new ecological and econometric methods, and critically evaluates the socio-economic pressures that these forest are facing at the continental and national levels. The book includes studies from Mexico, Costa Rica, Colombia, Venezuela, and Brazil that provide in-depth knowledge about the function, status, and conservation efforts of these endangered forests. It presents key elements of synthesis from standardized work conducted across all sites. This unique contribution provides new light in terms of these forests compared to each other not only from an ecological perspective but also in terms of the pressures that they are facing, and their respective responses. Written by experts from a diversity of fields, this reference brings together the many facets of function, use, heritage, and future potential of these forests. It presents an important and exciting synthesis of many years of work across countries, disciplines, and cultures. By standardizing approaches for data sampling and analysis, the book gives readers comparison information that cannot be found anywhere else given the high level of disparity that exists in the current literature.

This discussion paper assesses the state of knowledge on tropical dry forests as it relates to CIFOR’s strategy and identifies research opportunities that align with CIFOR’s strategic goals. Over the past two decades, CIFOR has accumulated a substantial body of work on dry forests, with a particular focus on African dry forests. This paper is intended to build on that work, by gathering wider research from around the world, as CIFOR seeks to widen the geographic scope of its research on dry forests. The present assessment explores five themes: climate change mitigation and adaptation; food security and livelihoods; demand for energy; sustainable management of dry forests; and policies and institutional support for sustainable management. These themes emerged as priority areas during discussions on dry forest research priorities held at CIFOR’s Dry Forests Symposium in South Africa in 2011. Research on these themes should be considered a priority, given the importance of dry forests to people and ecosystems around the world and the threats posed to them.

Plants in tropical regions are coping with enormous challenges of physiological stresses owing to changing environmental and climatic conditions. Rapid growth of human population and rampant exploitation of fossil fuels and other developmental activities are actively contributing to such perturbations. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has projected a sustained increase in carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and thereby a rise in global temperature in the coming decades. The resultant changes in precipitation patterns are now evident across the globe due to intensication of hydrological cycle. Moreover, gaseous and particulate pollutants are also an immense challenge for tropical plants. Such vagaries in environmental conditions have signicant impacts on the ecophysiological traits of plants, resulting from altered interactions of tropical plants with each other, as well as other biotic and abiotic components within the ecosystem. Books available in the market that particularly focus on ecophysiological responses of tropical plants to abiotic and biotic environmental factors under climate change are limited. This book intends to fill this knowledge gap and provides a detailed analysis on ecophysiological responses of tropical plants to these environmental challenges, as well as suggesting some approachable measures for plant adaptations to these challenges. The book is equally applicable to undergraduate and postgraduate students, researchers, teachers and forest managers, and policy makers. Salient features of the book are: 1. A comprehensive discussion on adaptive mechanisms of plants through their ecophysiological responses to various biotic and abiotic stresses. 2. Elaboration on the recent techniques involved in ecophysiological research. 3. A detailed account of evolutionary responses of plants to changing climate. 4. Discussion of recent research results and some pointers to future advancements in ecophysiological research. 5. Presentation of information in a way that is accessible for students, researchers, and teachers practicing in plant physiology and ecology.

In today’s rapidly evolving world, it has never been more critical to consider key environmental issues such as climate change, pollution, and endangered species. Society faces an unknown future where the fate of the environment is continuously in flux based on current preservation initiatives that governments develop. In order to ensure the world is protected moving forward, further study on the importance of securing environments, ecosystems, and species is necessary to successfully implement change. The Research Anthology on Ecosystem Conservation and Preserving Biodiversity considers the best practices and strategies for protecting our current ecosystems as well as the potential ramifications of failing to implement policies. Society is at a crossroads where if we continue to ignore the danger and warning signs brought about by environmental issues, we will be unable to maintain a healthy environment. Covering essential topics such as extinction, climate change, and pollution, this major reference work is ideal for scientists, industry professionals, researchers, academicians, policymakers, scholars, practitioners, instructors, and students.

Climate change is an issue that has been generating a significant amount of discussion, research, and debate in recent years. Climate change continues to evolve at a rapid rate and continues to have a wide array of effects on everything from temperature to plant life. Beyond the negative environmental impacts, climate change is also proving to be a detriment to society with increasingly violent natural disasters and human health effects. It is essential to stay up to date on the latest in emerging research within this field as it continues to develop. The Research Anthology on Environmental and Societal Impacts of Climate Change discusses the varied effects of climate change throughout all areas of life and provides a comprehensive dive into the latest research on key elements of society that are affected by the rapidly increasing clime. Covering a range of topics including reproduction, plants and animals, and energy demand, it is ideal for environmentalists, policymakers, environmental engineers, scientists, disaster and crisis management personnel, professionals, government officials, practitioners, upper-level students, and academics interested in emerging research on the numerous impacts of climate change.