Covering the complexities and interconnected nature of the world, as well as the impact of mankind on the environment, this interdisciplinary book presents a holistic view of ecosystem function and is designed to help students understand and predict the environmental future of the Earth. The authors provide a complete view of the environment--from the Taiga Forests of interior Alaska to the desert plains of the Serengeti. While retaining the previous edition's basic four-part structure, the authors have reviewed every topic (and consulted the recent literature in each case) in order to present the most complete and accurate picture of the state of ecosystem studies today.

Features review questions at the end of each chapter; Includes suggestions for recommended reading; Provides a glossary of ecological terms; Has a wide audience as a textbook for advanced undergraduate students, graduate students and as a reference for practicing scientists from a wide array of disciplines

Features review questions at the end of each chapter; Includes suggestions for recommended reading; Provides a glossary of ecological terms; Has a wide audience as a textbook for advanced undergraduate students, graduate students and as a reference for practicing scientists from a wide array of disciplines

This book examines the impacts of global change on terrestrial ecosystems. Emphasis is placed on impacts of atmospheric, climate and land use change, and the book discusses the future challenges and the scientific frameworks to address them. Finally, the book explores fundamental new research developments and the need for stronger integration of natural and human dimensions in addressing the challenge of global change.

Breathtaking in scope, this is the first survey of the entire ecological history of life on land—from the earliest traces of terrestrial organisms over 400 million years ago to the beginning of human agriculture. By providing myriad insights into the unique ecological information contained in the fossil record, it establishes a new and ambitious basis for the study of evolutionary paleoecology of land ecosystems. A joint undertaking of the Evolution of Terrestrial Ecosystems Consortium at the National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, and twenty-six additional researchers, this book begins with four chapters that lay out the theoretical background and methodology of the science of evolutionary paleoecology. Included are a comprehensive review of the taphonomy and paleoenvironmental settings of fossil deposits as well as guidelines for developing ecological characterizations of extinct organisms and the communities in which they lived. The remaining three chapters treat the history of terrestrial ecosystems through geological time, emphasizing how ecological interactions have changed, the rate and tempo of ecosystem change, the role of exogenous "forcing factors" in generating ecological change, and the effect of ecological factors on the evolution of biological diversity. The six principal authors of this volume are all associated with the Evolution of Terrestrial Ecosystems program at the National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution.

Nitrogen is a key element in ecosystem processes. Aspects of local and global changes in nitrogen in both undisturbed and disturbed conditions are discussed. Environmental changes caused by pollution from nitrogenous compounds and changes in landuse are also described. Organisms, plants, animals and microorganisms are all affecting nitrogen supply. Emphasis is placed on natural and anthropogenic transfer of nitrogen between ecosystems and also on the interaction of nitrogen with other bioelements.