Ecology of a Changing Planet - Softcover

Bush, Mark B.

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7 ratings by Goodreads

9780133729627: Ecology of a Changing Planet

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0133729621 ISBN 13: 9780133729627

Publisher: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1997

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This text is ideal for either an ecology course with a strong environmental emphasis or an environmental science course that focuses heavily on ecological principles

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From the Publisher:

The first introductory text to outline the fundamental ecological principles which serve as a foundation to understand environmental issues. This text is ideal for either an ecology course with a strong environmental emphasis or an environmenta l science course that focuses heavily on ecological principles. The text uses a strong framework of applied ecology and explores specific environmental issues including habitat fragmentation, acid deposition, and the emergence of new human diseases.

From the Inside Flap:

Preface

My goal has been to write an introductory applied ecology text that centers on how ecology relates to environmental issues. This edition contains two entirely new chapters that reflect some of the fastest growing fields in applied ecology: wetland science and fishery management. A number of chapters, such as those on climate, habitat fragmentation, conservation biology, disease, and the future have been completely rewritten. In many areas of the book, ideas have been rearranged to improve the flow of information and make the book more usable. Inevitably the book has grown, though this has been minimized by eliminating some text (always a hard decision). The end of each chapter has some recommended readings. These are not meant to be exhaustive, but they contain a mix of classic papers, conflicting viewpoints, and accessible summaries of related ideas. Many students may have missed the availability of a Web-site that accompanied the first edition, as the only reference to it was buried in the Preface. In this edition, each chapter ends with a reminder to visit the Web-site to find further information. My Web-site is organized around the chapters in the book. You will find self-grading quizzes and a set of hotlinks to Web pages that I have found useful and accurate. The hotlinks access the Web sites of select governments, universities, and reputable organizations. If you find more that should be included (or ones that no longer exist), please let me know at mbush@fit. Please remember that these sites are not refereed and should not be given the same credence as the primary literature. Teachers will also have access to 75 overhead transparencies of key figures from the text. I have learned much as I researched these chapters, frequently heading from the keyboard into the classroom to try out a new line of thinking on my students. I hope that some of my enthusiasm shines through in the text. A textbook is no substitute for an effective teacher, but it should be a valuable ally to teacher and student alike, providing a common baseline of knowledge. I believe that a textbook should be topical, relevant, and interesting to read. Although scientists must learn facts, I have tried to emphasize the concepts and examples of applied ecology, rather than produce an encyclopedia of indigestible statistics.

Although many teaching variations are possible, I have written the material in the sequence that I teach it. The first half of the book establishes a strong framework of applied ecology. The second half of the book develops environmental issues such as habitat fragmentation, acid deposition, and the emergence of new human diseases. Each topic is investigated from a scientific rather than an activist viewpoint and is written to stand alone. This book is meant for students who have had a college-level introductory biology class and want to pursue biology, ecology, or environmental science to the next level.

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