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An examination of nature's extraordinary biological diversity and the human activities that threaten it.

Life on Earth: An Encyclopedia of Biodiversity, Ecology, and Evolution tackles the critical issue for humanity in the 21st century--our ever more menacing impact on the environment. This two-volume, illustrated set, edited by American Museum of Natural History curator Niles Eldredge, begins with biodiversity, the complex planetary web of life that has emerged through three billion years of evolution. How does it work? And why is its continued health critical to the planet and to ourselves?

More than 50 top scholars examine every form of life from amoebae to elephants, from plankton to whales. But Life on Earth is more than a catalog of species. An A-Z survey explores the myriad ways humanity is diminishing that biodiversity, from industrialization to natural habitat destruction, from overpopulation in the developing world to an unsustainable consumer lifestyle in the West. Life on Earth is the essential reference work for anyone curious about our planet's extraordinary diversity of life and the unprecedented threats it faces.

200+ A-Z detailed entries on Earth's ecosystems, major groups of organisms, threats to biodiversity, and academic disciplines related to the study of biodiversity Contributions from 50 recognized authorities from the fields of anthropology, biology, botany, earth science, ecology, evolution, and more 150 photographs of key people, animals, and organisms; line drawings; tables, charts, and graphs including the major families of birds, the effects of agricultural intensity on biodiversity, and the number of years needed to add each billion to the world's population Four major overview essays explaining what biodiversity is, why it is important, how it is threatened, and the Sixth Global Extinction

Tabla de contenidos provista por Syndetics

• Volume 1
• Contributors(p. ix)
• Introduction(p. xiii)
• What Is Biodiversity?(p. 1)
• Why Is Biodiversity Important?(p. 31)
• Threats to Biodiversity(p. 49)
• Stemming the Tide of the Sixth Global Extinction Event: What We Can Do(p. 73)
• Abyssal Floor(p. 87)
• Adaptation(p. 87)
• Adaptive Radiation(p. 91)
• Agricultural Ecology(p. 93)
• Agriculture and Biodiversity Loss: Genetic Engineering and the Second Agricultural Revolution(p. 96)
• Agriculture and Biodiversity Loss: Industrial Agriculture(p. 99)
• Agriculture: Benefits of Biodiversity to(p. 105)
• Agriculture, Origin of(p. 107)
• Alien Species(p. 114)
• Amphibians(p. 118)
• Angiosperms(p. 126)
• Annelida--The Segmented Worms(p. 132)
• Anthropology(p. 135)
• Archaebacteria(p. 140)
• Archaeology and Sustainable Development(p. 142)
• Arthropods, Marine(p. 144)
• Arthropods, Terrestrial(p. 149)
• Artiodactyls(p. 157)
• Atmosphere(p. 160)
• Atmospheric Cycles(p. 162)
• Atolls(p. 163)
• Avian Malaria and the Extinction of Hawaiian Birds(p. 164)
• Bacteria(p. 167)
• Barrier Islands(p. 171)
• Beaches(p. 173)
• Beauty of Nature, Biophilia and Ethics(p. 174)
• Benthos(p. 178)
• Biogeography(p. 178)
• Birds(p. 181)
• Birds of Guam and the Brown Tree Snake(p. 188)
• Black Rhinoceros(p. 190)
• Bluebuck(p. 191)
• Bony Fishes(p. 192)
• Botany(p. 197)
• Brachiopods(p. 200)
• Bryophytes(p. 202)
• Bryozoa(p. 205)
• Carbon Cycle(p. 207)
• Carnivora(p. 208)
• Carolina Parakeet(p. 212)
• Cetacea (Whales, Dolphins, Porpoises)(p. 216)
• Chiroptera (Bats)(p. 219)
• Chondrichthyes (Sharks, Rays, Chimaeras)(p. 220)
• Chordates (Nonvertebrate)(p. 224)
• Classification, Biological(p. 226)
• Climatology(p. 229)
• Cnidarians (Sea Anemones, Corals, and Jellyfish)(p. 232)
• Coastal Wetlands(p. 234)
• Coevolution(p. 235)
• Coloniality(p. 237)
• Communities(p. 238)
• Conservation Biology(p. 243)
• Conservation, Definition and History(p. 246)
• Continental Shelf(p. 249)
• Continental Slope and Rise(p. 250)
• Convergence and Parallelism(p. 251)
• Coral Reefs(p. 252)
• Cretaceous-Tertiary Extinction(p. 259)
• Cultural Survival, Revival, and Preservation(p. 263)
• Dams(p. 267)
• Darwin, Charles(p. 269)
• Deep-Sea Hydrothermal Vent Faunas(p. 273)
• Deposition(p. 274)
• Deserts and Semiarid Scrublands(p. 276)
• Draining of Wetlands(p. 278)
• Earthquakes(p. 281)
• Echinoderms(p. 282)
• Ecological Niches(p. 287)
• Ecological Status of Modern Humans(p. 291)
• Ecology(p. 292)
• Economics(p. 299)
• Ecosystems(p. 300)
• Embryology(p. 308)
• Endangered Species(p. 312)
• Erosion(p. 315)
• Estuaries(p. 318)
• Ethics of Conservation(p. 320)
• Ethnology(p. 324)
• Ethnoscience(p. 329)
• Evolution(p. 335)
• Evolutionary Biodiversity(p. 342)
• Evolutionary Genetics(p. 347)
• Extinction, Direct Causes of(p. 352)
• Five Kingdoms of Nature(p. 357)
• Flabellidium Spinosum(p. 361)
• Food Webs and Food Pyramids(p. 362)
• Freshwater(p. 365)
• Fungi(p. 367)
• Galapagos Islands and Darwin's Finches(p. 373)
• Geological Time Scale(p. 378)
• Geology, Geomorphology, and Geography(p. 382)
• Giant, Flightless Island Birds(p. 385)
• Giant Ground Sloth(p. 388)
• Glaciation(p. 390)
• Global Climate Change(p. 393)
• Great Apes(p. 397)
• Gymnosperms(p. 399)
• Volume 2
• Habitat Tracking(p. 405)
• Haplochromine Cichlids of Lake Victoria(p. 407)
• Herbivory(p. 411)
• Hole in the Ozone Layer(p. 412)
• Holocene(p. 413)
• Homo Sapiens(p. 416)
• Human Evolution(p. 418)
• Humans and Biodiversity: Examples from the Hoofed Mammals(p. 424)
• Hutton, James(p. 430)
• Hydrologic Cycle(p. 432)
• Ice Caps and Glaciers(p. 433)
• Indigenous Conservation(p. 436)
• Industrial Revolution/Industrialization(p. 439)
• Interior Wetlands(p. 443)
• International Trade and Biodiversity(p. 448)
• Intertidal Zone(p. 449)
• Lagomorpha(p. 451)
• Lagoons(p. 453)
• Lakes(p. 454)
• Land Use(p. 456)
• Late Devonian Extinction(p. 459)
• Late Ordovician Extinction(p. 462)
• Late Triassic Extinction(p. 465)
• Lemurs and Other Lower Primates(p. 467)
• Lichens(p. 469)
• Linguistic Diversity(p. 471)
• Linnaean Hierarchy(p. 475)
• Lyell, Charles(p. 479)
• Mammalia(p. 483)
• Mass Extinction(p. 486)
• Medicine, The Benefits of Biodiversity to(p. 488)
• Meteorology(p. 493)
• Microbiology(p. 496)
• Mining(p. 498)
• Molecular Biology and Biodiversity(p. 500)
• Mollusca(p. 502)
• Monkeys(p. 507)
• Mountains(p. 511)
• Museums and Biodiversity(p. 514)
• Natural Selection(p. 519)
• Nitrogen Cycle(p. 522)
• Nurseries(p. 523)
• Nutrient/Energy Cycling(p. 524)
• Oceanic Trenches(p. 527)
• Oceans(p. 528)
• Order Uranotheria(p. 531)
• Organizations in Biodiversity, The Role of(p. 535)
• Oxygen, History of Presence in the Atmosphere(p. 543)
• Paleontology(p. 545)
• Palestinian Painted Frog(p. 549)
• Perissodactyls(p. 551)
• Permo-Triassic Extinction(p. 553)
• Phylogeny(p. 556)
• Physical Anthropology(p. 558)
• Plankton(p. 561)
• Plate Tectonics(p. 569)
• Pleistocene Epoch(p. 571)
• Pollination(p. 574)
• Pollution(p. 577)
• Population Growth, Human(p. 582)
• Population, Human, Curbs to Growth(p. 586)
• Positive Interactions(p. 591)
• Preservation of Habitats(p. 594)
• Preservation of Species(p. 601)
• Primates(p. 607)
• Protoctists(p. 610)
• Pteridophytes(p. 617)
• Punctuated Equilibria(p. 620)
• Reptiles(p. 625)
• Rivers and Streams(p. 636)
• Rodents(p. 640)
• Sandalwood Tree(p. 645)
• Seamounts(p. 646)
• Sixth Extinction(p. 648)
• Smallpox(p. 650)
• Snowball Earth(p. 652)
• Soil(p. 654)
• Speciation(p. 657)
• Species(p. 659)
• Sponges(p. 664)
• Subsistence(p. 667)
• Succession and Successionlike Processes(p. 671)
• Sustainable Development(p. 677)
• Systematics(p. 681)
• Thylacine(p. 689)
• Tides(p. 691)
• Topsoil Formation(p. 692)
• Topsoil, Loss of(p. 693)
• Tourism, Ecotourism, and Biodiversity(p. 695)
• Tropical Rain Forests(p. 701)
• Urbanization(p. 707)
• Valuing Biodiversity(p. 711)
• Viruses(p. 714)
• Volcanoes(p. 717)
• Wallace, Alfred Russel(p. 719)
• Xenarthrans (Edentates)(p. 723)
• Zoology(p. 727)
• Selected Bibliography(p. 729)
• Index(p. 749)
• About the Editor(p. 793)

Reseñas proporcionadas por Syndetics

CHOICE Review

An excellent addition to the growing literature of biodiversity and its relationship to both ecology and the effect of human interaction on the environment, this subject encyclopedia offers articles that are scholarly but can be understood by general readers. It complements the more extensive Encyclopedia of Biodiversity, ed. by S.A. Levin (CH, Apr'01), The Encyclopedia of Global Change: Environmental Change and Human Society, ed. by A.S. Goudie (CH, Apr'02), and Life Counts: Cataloging Life on Earth, by Michael Gleich et al. (CH, Jan'03). Eldredge, widely published, is a curator at the American Museum of Natural History. Entries, written by 60 contributors, including Eldredge, are signed. The four preliminary essays on biodiversity explain what it is, why it is important, human causes of the loss of many species, and what can be done to stop this loss. The rest of the two volumes are arranged alphabetically, with entries ranging from one to six pages. Entry titles are sometimes confusing; e.g., there is no entry for "wetlands," but there are articles entitled "Coastal Wetlands," "Drainage of Wetlands," and "Interior Wetlands," which do not cross-reference one another but can be found in the index under "Wetlands." Nontraditional terms ("Archaeology and Sustainable Ecology," "Cultural Survival, Revival and Presentation," "Valuing Biodiversity") have separate entries. A large number of articles deal with evolution (in keeping with Eldredge's expertise), ecosystems, and habitat destruction. The entries are clear and well organized, with some illustrations and charts interspersed through the two volumes. The index is essential for identifying the wide range of topics. Each entry has cross-references and a bibliography. An impressive 18-page bibliography cites primarily books but includes some journal articles, including many from 2001, some from 2002, and one from 2003. ^BSumming Up: Recommended. General readers and academics, undergraduates through faculty. N. Kobzina University of California, Berkeley

Booklist Review

Life on Earthis intended to introduce "younger generations" to biological diversity, "the variety of life on Earth at all its levels, from genes to biogeographic regions, and the ecological and evolutionary processes that sustain it." The encyclopedia'sactivist perspective and conversational style will appeal to high-school and beginning college students, especially those writing position papers. Eldredge is curator of paleontology at the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), and a number of the 60 contributors are AMNH scientists. Most other contributors are associated with major universities and research institutions in the U.S. Four introductory essays outline the definition, importance, and preservation of biodiversity. Many of the 194 articles are about specific phyla or species (Annelida--the segmented worm, Giant ground sloth, Lagomorpha) or important concepts (Botany, Human evolution, Meteorology, Soil). Others address issues that will appeal to students and general readers (Ethics of conservation; Medicine, the benefits of biodiversity to; Tourism, ecotourism, and biodiversity). Essays and articles incorporate many tables with sources cited, line drawings, and unremarkable black-and-white photographs. Articles are clearly written, usually define specialized terms, and include bibliographies of books and popular and scholarly periodical articles. An index leads readers to topics mentioned within articles (e.g., deep ecology, ecofeminism, urban sprawl). Rachel Carson is listed in the index as Louise Carson. The five-volume Encyclopedia of Biodiversity(Academic Press, 2001) set the standard for academic reference works on biodiversity. Life on Earth is an alternate choice for high-school or smaller college and public libraries that cannot afford Encyclopedia of Biodiversity or need a more accessible source. RBB.

Notas de autor provistas por Syndetics

Niles Eldredge is Chair, Committee on Evolutionary Processes, and Curator, Division of Paleontology, at the American Museum of Natural History