Tropical areas present ecological, cultural and political problems that demand analysis that is distinct from general ecological analysis. The tropical environment is special in many ways, from the lack of a biological down season (winter), to generally poor soil conditions, to a reliance on traditional methods of agriculture in an undeveloped society. At a time when the sustainability of natural resource use in the tropics has become a very big issue Tropical Agroecosystems provides a critical scientific foundation for developing a sustainable agriculture component within this process....