Ecology

Preface

Introduction

Part 1. ORGANISMS

1. Organisms in their environments: the evolutionary backdrop

2. Conditions

3. Resources

4. Life, death and life histories

5. Intraspecific competition

6. Dispersal, dormancy and metapopulations

7. Ecological applications at the level of organisms and single-species populations Part 2. SPECIES INTERACTIONS

8. Interspecific competition

9. The nature of predation

10. The population dynamics of predation

11. Decomposers and detritivores

12. Parasitism and disease

13. Symbiosis and mutualism

14. Abundance

15. Ecological applications at the level of population interactions Part 3. COMMUNITIES AND ECOSYSTEMS

16. The nature of the community

17. The flux of energy through ecosystems

18. The flux of matter through ecosystems

19. The influence of population interactions on community structure

20. Food webs

21. Patterns in species richness

22. Ecological applications at the level of communities and ecosystems

References

Organism Index

Subject Index

Born in London in 1951 and a student at the University of Leeds, Mike Begon has spent his whole scientific career at the University of Liverpool, where he is now Professor of Ecology, specializing in the population and community ecology of infectious diseases in wildlife.Colin Townsend obtained his DPhil at the University of Sussex before taking up teaching positions at Oxford University and the University of East Anglia. In 1989 he moved from the UK to New Zealand to the University of Otago where he was chair of the Zoology Department, and is now Director of the Ecology, Conservation and Biodiversity Research Group. He was elected to the Fellowship of the Royal Society of New Zealand in 1997.John Harper is an award-winning biologist and a leading figure in plant population biology. He has served as a council member of the fellowship of the Royal Society and received the Darwin Award in 1990. He is also the author of Population Biology of Plants and co-author of Essentials of Ecology.

"Begon, Townsend and Harper has been the standard advanced textbook in ecology for nearly 20 years. I greatly welcome this fourth edition, which maintains the book's position at the forefront of the discipline."

Professor Sir John Lawton, Chairman, Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution, and formerly Chief Executive of the UK Natural Environment Research Council

"Now in its fourth edition, this text will continue to be recognized as a forerunner in the science of ecology; it is very comprehensive, exploring ecological concepts with relevant field and laboratory studies, enriched by clear examples and illustrations."

Journal of Biological Education

"With remarkable clarity and insight, these gifted authors lay the evolutionary foundation of the discipline and then build the superstructure of Ecology, layer by layer. This is a complete reworking of the earlier version, a lucid synthesis sprinkled with clear examples. My colleagues and I have used this text to teach ecology for more than 20 years, and not surprisingly it has been recognized as the leading text in the field; this new version guarantees it will remain in pole position for many years to come."

Peter Hudson, Pennsylvania State University

"Begon, Townsend and Harper's Ecology has been the cornerstone text for teaching ecology for almost two decades. Its comprehensive breadth and depth provides details on ecological concepts supplemented with relevant field and laboratory studies. Ecology will remain an essential text for students and practioners alike for many years to come."

Michael Bonsall, Oxford University

"Ecology: From Individual, to Ecosystems is unparalleled among ecology texts for its breadth of coverage of contemporary ecology and for its clear presentation of even the more complex topics. The coverage of population ecology is superb, and the presentation of all topics is enriched both by extremely clear illustrations and a rich use of examples of human relationships

"Begon, Townsend and Harper has been the standard advanced textbook in ecology for nearly 20 years. I greatly welcome this fourth edition, which maintains the book's position at the forefront of the discipline."Professor Sir John Lawton, Chairman, Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution, and formerly Chief Executive of the UK Natural Environment Research Council"Now in its fourth edition, this text will continue to be recognized as a forerunner in the science of ecology; it is very comprehensive, exploring ecological concepts with relevant field and laboratory studies, enriched by clear examples and illustrations."Journal of Biological Education"With remarkable clarity and insight, these gifted authors lay the evolutionary foundation of the discipline and then build the superstructure of Ecology, layer by layer. This is a complete reworking of the earlier version, a lucid synthesis sprinkled with clear examples. My colleagues and I have used this text to teach ecology for more than 20 years, and not surprisingly it has been recognized as the leading text in the field; this new version guarantees it will remain in pole position for many years to come."Peter Hudson, Pennsylvania State University"Begon, Townsend and Harper's Ecology has been the cornerstone text for teaching ecology for almost two decades. Its comprehensive breadth and depth provides details on ecological concepts supplemented with relevant field and laboratory studies. Ecology will remain an essential text for students and practioners alike for many years to come."Michael Bonsall, Oxford University"Ecology: From Individual, to Ecosystems is unparalleled among ecology texts for its breadth of coverage of contemporary ecology and for its clear presentation of even the more complex topics. The coverage of population ecology is superb, and the presentation of all topics is enriched both by extremely clear illustrations and a rich use of examples of human relationships with the environment. It should