Antarctic Communities
Species, Structure and Survival

An up-to-the-minute overview of community studies in an area covering ten per cent of the Earth's surface.

Bruno Battaglia (Edited by), Jose Valencia (Edited by), David Walton (Edited by)

9780521111799, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 11 June 2009

484 pages, 226 b/w illus. 95 tables
29.7 x 21 x 2.4 cm, 1.1 kg

"This volume presents an impressive array of biological research carried out in the Antarctic region. ...of high quality.... ...the editors of this book have been successful in drawing together a diverse and impressive summary of the state of our knowledge concerning Antarctic ecosystems, which should attract a wide audience of biologists." Knut Kielland, The Quarterly Review of Biology

Conservation of biodiversity is best achieved through the management of natural communities, but progress in increasing our understanding of communities remains slow. The study of Antarctic communities can provide a valuable step forward in investigating the control of community development, the utilisation of habitats and the interaction between species in both species-rich and species-poor communities. This book contains chapters characterising the current approaches to both aquatic and terrestrial communities in the Antarctic. From biodiversity to trophic flows, from ecophysiological strategies to the impacts of environmental change and the effects of human disturbance, this volume provides an up-to-the-minute overview of community studies in an area covering ten per cent of the Earth's surface.

Part I. Biodiversity
Part II. Community Structure and Function
Part III. Survival Mechanisms
Part IV. Adaptive Mechanisms
Part V. Human Impact and Environmental Change
Introduction
47. Climatic change and the recent climatic record W. Karlén
48. Ecological variability in Antarctic coastal environments
Part VI. Postscript.

Subject Areas: Applied ecology [RNC], Ecological science, the Biosphere [PSAF]