From Populations to Ecosystems
eBook - ePub

From Populations to Ecosystems

Theoretical Foundations for a New Ecological Synthesis

  1. 320 pages
  2. English
  3. ePUB (mobile friendly)
  4. Available on iOS & Android
eBook - ePub

From Populations to Ecosystems

Theoretical Foundations for a New Ecological Synthesis

About this book

The major subdisciplines of ecology--population ecology, community ecology, ecosystem ecology, and evolutionary ecology--have diverged increasingly in recent decades. What is critically needed today is an integrated, real-world approach to ecology that reflects the interdependency of biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. From Populations to Ecosystems proposes an innovative theoretical synthesis that will enable us to advance our fundamental understanding of ecological systems and help us to respond to today's emerging global ecological crisis.


Michel Loreau begins by explaining how the principles of population dynamics and ecosystem functioning can be merged. He then addresses key issues in the study of biodiversity and ecosystems, such as functional complementarity, food webs, stability and complexity, material cycling, and metacommunities. Loreau describes the most recent theoretical advances that link the properties of individual populations to the aggregate properties of communities, and the properties of functional groups or trophic levels to the functioning of whole ecosystems, placing special emphasis on the relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. Finally, he turns his attention to the controversial issue of the evolution of entire ecosystems and their properties, laying the theoretical foundations for a genuine evolutionary ecosystem ecology.



From Populations to Ecosystems points the way to a much-needed synthesis in ecology, one that offers a fuller understanding of ecosystem processes in the natural world.

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Yes, you can access From Populations to Ecosystems by Michel Loreau in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in Biological Sciences & Ecology. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Title Page
  3. Copyright
  4. Contents
  5. Acknowledgments
  6. Preface : On Unifying Approaches in Ecology
  7. Chapter 1 - Population and Ecosystem Approaches in Ecology
  8. Chapter 2 - The Maintenance and Functional Consequences of Species Diversity
  9. Chapter 3 - Biodiversity and Ecosystem Functioning
  10. Chapter 4 - Food Webs, Interaction Webs, and Ecosystem Functioning
  11. Chapter 5 - Stability and Complexity of Ecosystems: New Perspectives on an Old Debate
  12. Chapter 6 - Material Cycling and the Overall Functioning of Ecosystems
  13. Chapter 7 - Spatial Dynamics of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Functioning: Metacommunities and Metaecosystems
  14. Chapter 8 - Evolution of Ecosystems and Ecosystem Properties
  15. Chapter 9 - Postface: Toward an Integrated, Predictive Ecology
  16. References
  17. Index