Although the discipline continues to march forward at a pace, enough of this ambitious volume is sufficiently timeless to ensure that it becomes an instant classic-an essential addition to the (wooden or electronic) bookshelf of freshwater ecologists from undergraduates onwards-and remains a key point of reference for many years to come.
Alan Hildrew is Professor Emeritus of Ecology at Queen Mary London and Honorary Research Fellow of the Freshwater Biological Association. He was Chairman of the Council of the Freshwater Biological Association from 1999 to 2010, and its President 2010-2011. He was Editor in Chief of the journal Freshwater Biology for 32 years (1982-2014). His research focusses on the ecology of stream organisms, ecosystem processes, and related fields. His approach is based on natural history, having published taxonomic keys and life-history of invertebrates, but his long-term observations have been used to test general ecological theory and application.
Paul Giller is Professor Emeritus of Zoology and Ecology at University College Cork, Republic of Ireland. His research specialises in community ecology, freshwater biology, and biodiversity and ecosystem functioning in freshwater and terrestrial habitats. He was admitted to the Royal Irish Academy in 2018.