Synopsis
Reflecting the recent surge of activity in food web research fueled by new empirical data, this authoritative volume successfully spans and integrates the areas of theory, basic empirical research, applications, and resource problems. Written by recognized leaders from various branches of ecological research, this work provides an in-depth treatment of the most recent advances in the field and examines the complexity and variability of food webs through reviews, new research, and syntheses of the major issues in food web research. Food Webs features material on the role of nutrients, detritus and microbes in food webs, indirect effects in food webs, the interaction of productivity and consumption, linking cause and effect in food webs, temporal and spatial scales of food web dynamics, applications of food webs to pest management, fisheries, and ecosystem stress. Three comprehensive chapters synthesize important information on the role of indirect effects, productivity and consumer regulation, and temporal, spatial and life history influences on food webs. In addition, numerous tables, figures, and mathematical equations found nowhere else in related literature are presented in this outstanding work. Food Webs offers researchers and graduate students in various branches of ecology an extensive examination of the subject. Ecologists interested in food webs or community ecology will also find this book an invaluable tool for understanding the current state of knowledge of food web research.
Review
...this important book..is not a ramshackle compilation of idiosyncratic articles, incomprehensible to those outside the field. - Trends in Ecology and Evolution; ...well written and edited volume is substantial and stimulating. I believe it will be an important reference point in the field and I would strongly recommend it to anyone working in community ecology. - Endeavour; The study of these food web proceses is one of the most fundamental concerns of ecology, and this book represents a fascinating summary of current food web research that should interest a wide range of ecologists. - Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 7/97; Just a few of the book's many interesting points could whet the appetite of a student of ecology. - Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 7/97
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