Environmental Biogeography

By Paul Ganderton & Paddy Coker
December 2005
Pearson Education / Prentice Hall
ISBN: 0582318297
291 pages, Illustrated, 7 5/16 x 9 5/8”
$72.50 paper original

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Environmental Biogeography provides a detailed overview of the major topics within biogeography. Divided into three parts the text looks at basic biological and physical processes underlying species distribution, methods and analyses of distribution and human impact on past and present landscapes. By creating a clear framework, the book enables readers to understand how each topic is related to the overall situation, illustrated through a wide range of examples taken from around the world.

CONTENTS:
Part one Theoretical aspects of biogeography
1 What is biogeography?
2 Issues in biogeography
3 The physical environment
4 The biological environment
5 Putting it together: classification, biodiversity and ecosystems
6 Global patterns in biogeography

Part two Biogeography in practice
7 Studying and describing vegetation
8 Studying animals and their distributions
9 Responding to conditions: environmental factors and gradients
10 Quantitative and statistical methods - an introduction
11 Modelling

Part three The human dimension in biogeography
12 Environments under threat: the biogeography of change
13 Fragile environments: the biogeography of existence
14 Looking at the past - human impact on biogeography
15 Environmental change and conservation
16 Looking forward - prospects for biogeography

Features
• Biogeography has grown greatly in the last 20 years. Rather than attempt to cover every single element it creates a framework, an overview used to develop confidence in the subject and appreciate where individual elements fit in to the wider picture
• The text is closely tied in with a website devoted to showcasing the latest research and providing links and commentaries to papers and other publications
• Three parts cover theory, measurement and application, each showing a vital area of the topic as it is used today.
• A wide range of pedagogical features helps to clarify, extend and apply students’ understanding of the fundamental issues – these include chapter overviews, boxed features which look at material in greater depth, chapter summaries, review questions, links to both further reading and key websites

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