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Biogeography may be defined simply as the study of the geographical distribution of organisms, but this simple definition hides the great complexity of the subject. Biogeography transcends classical subject areas and involves a range of scientific disciplines that includes geogra- phy, geology and biology. Not surprisingly, therefore, it means rather different things to different people. Historically, the study of biogeogra- phy has been concentrated into compartments at separate points along a spatio-temporal gradient. At one end of the gradient, ecological biogeography is concerned with...

This book covers the proceedings of a life sciences seminar held in 1995. The first section groups together papers concerned with processes of disturbance and recovery. These span natural processes such as floods and grazing competition from introduced species, and artificial processes caused by pollution, deforestation and aquaculture. The second section is concerned with restoration and management of disturbed ecosystems. A range of subject areas such as sea floor dredging, river drainage and mine tip restoration are dealt with. Practical management goals are proposed for issues such as...

During the past two decades, there has been a gradual change of emphasis in ecological studies directed at unravelling the complexity of natural communities. Initially, the population approach was used, where interest lay in the way individual populations change and in the identification of factors af- fecting these changes. A good understanding of the dynamics of single populations is now emerging, but this has not been a very fruitful approach at the community level. In the natural world, few species can be treated as isolated populations, as most single species are the interacting parts of...