Wetland ecology : principles and conservation
"Wetlands are among the most productive and biologically diverse ecosystems on Earth. Their very diversity has confounded ecologists and produced a fragmented area of study where each wetland type has tended to be considered in isolation. The discipline has been further compartmentalized by narrow focus on specific organisms and geographic regions. This book, in contrast, provides a synthesis of the existing field of wetland ecology, using a few central themes. These themes include basic characteristics of wetlands, key environmental factors that produce wetland community types and some unifying problems such as assembly rules, restoration and conservation
Print Book, English, 2000
Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, 2000
Book
xiv, 614 pages : illustrations, maps ; 24 cm.
9780521780018, 9780521783675, 0521780012, 0521783674
42429276
Properties of wetlands : Wetlands: an overview : Definitions and distributions ; Causal factors in wetland ecology ; Wetland classification ; Plants, stress and wetland types ; Wetland functions ; The Pantanal
Zonation and succession: shorelines as a prism : Shorelines as a model system for the study of wetlands ; Mechanisms of zonation ; Some relevant theory: ecological and physiological response curves ; Empirical studies of zonation ; On the nature and existence of communities ; General lessons from analysis of zonation ; Conclusions
Diversity : Dominance and diversity ; Factors controlling the number of species in wetlands ; Biomass and diversity: a general model for herbaceous plant communities ; Species pools and biodiversity ; Conservation of biological diversity ; Conclusions
Factors controlling properties of wetlands : Hydrology : Gilgamesh ; Some biological consequences of changing water levels ; The general relationship between wetlands and water level fluctuations ; The ubiquity of water level fluctuations ; Reservoirs, dams and floodplains: the consequences of altered hydrology ; A predictive model: changes in shoreline wetlands ; A summary model: frequency and intensity of flooding ; Back to reality: the Amazon river basin
Fertility : Fertility and primary production ; Fertility gradients ; Evolution along fertility gradients ; Mycorrhizae ; Animals and fertility ; Eutrophication: too much of a good thing ; Effect of eutrophication ; Hydrology, fertility and wetlands
Disturbance : Four properties of disturbance ; Regeneration from buried seeds after disturbance ; Examples of disturbance ; Disturbance and gap dynamics in wetlands ; Measuring the effects of disturbance ; Comparing disturbances
Competition : Testing for competition ; Competition and field distributions ; Mechanisms of competition: exploitation vs. interference ; Constraints upon competition: three relevant models ; Competition and co-operation ; Conclusions
Herbivory : Field observations on wildlife diets ; Comparative studies ; Empirical relationships ; Field experiments ; Some relevant theory ; Conclusions
Burial : Rates of sedimentation ; Effects of burial ; Sedimentation and hydrosere succession ; A simulation model for sediment production ; Importance of time scale: sedimentation, emergence and marsh dynamics ; Conclusions
The path forward : Wetland restoration: assembly rules in the service of conservation : Some background to restoration ; Assembly rules as a foundation for restoration ; The experimental assembly of wetlands ; Response rules ; Some methodological considerations ; Problems and prospects for restoration
A functional approach : Introduction ; The strategy of simplification ; Functional classification of wetland plants ; A general procedure for constructing functional groups ; Functional groups in marsh plants ; Functional types of wetlands ; Conclusions
Wetland conservation, management and research : Change in wetlands ; Two perspectives on conservation ; Priorities for action ; Indicators: setting goals and measuring performance ; Another perspective on ecosystem management ; Goal, tactics and strategies for wetland scientists: a personal perspective ; Summary