Plant Life of the Dolomites

The Human Habitat.- Natural Forests and Meadows on the Valley Floor and in the Montane Habitat.- The Subalpine Habitat: The Coniferous Forest Belt.- Alpine Vegetation on Granite, Porphyry, and Volcanic Rock.- The Ascent toward the Cliffs: The Screes.- Alpine Vegetation on Dolomite and Limestones.- Synthesis, Data Interpretation and Statistical Calculations.- Conclusions.- Appendix: The Plant Associations of the Dolomites in the Traditional Phytosociological Classification.- Glossary.

Erika Pignatti's main research interest is phytosociology. Among her various publications are those on the vegetation of the Austrian Alpines and the Mediterranean type vegetation in Australia and Chile. Sandro Pignatti is the author of the famous Flora d'Italia, a botany standard work. The data presented in "Plant life of the Dolomites" is based on the authors' combined botanical research, which consists of thousands of surveys throughout the entire region of the Dolomites.

From the book reviews:

"This book aims to be more than simply a phytosociological description of the vegetation of the Dolomites. ... Each habitat chapter begins with a general introduction, including highly detailed descriptions with excellent illustrations, of the ecological and environmental conditions associated with that habitat. ... Each vegetation description, and indeed each chapter, is illustrated with excellent photographs and distribution maps, and overall the book is a beautiful object ... . it is simply a lovely book." (Rob Brooker, Mountain Research and Development (MRD), Vol. 35 (1), February, 2015)

"The book represents an extraordinary wealth of information. The layout with numerous beautiful colour photographs, instructive tables, maps, diagrams and flow charts ... is not only nice but also makes the information easily accessible and comparable. ... The book is the first comprehensive modern vegetation overview of a larger region, both within Italy and for the Alps in general, and hopefully will inspire others to follow this pioneer work." (Jürgen Dengler, Bulletin of the European Dry Grassland Group, Issue 24-25, November, 2014)"The amount of information held here is absolutely colossal, written by enthusiasts who know the area well. Whether you're interested in individual plant species, or in seeing how the communities fit within the wider landscape, there will be something here for you. The love of the area comes through in the writing and there are even three suggested itineraries 'for getting to know the flora of the Dolomites'. A wonderful book to become lost in." (Peter Thomas, The Bulletin, Vol. 45, August, 2014)