Invasion Biology and Ecological Theory
Insights from a Continent in Transformation

A critical appraisal of ecosystem theory using case studies of plant and animal invasions in Australasia.

Herbert H. T. Prins (Edited by), Iain J. Gordon (Edited by)

9781107035812, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 23 January 2014

540 pages, 61 b/w illus. 27 tables
25.3 x 18 x 3.3 cm, 1.11 kg

'This book is both a reasoned call to action and a healthy antidote to hubris. Prins and Gordon assembled a team of authors to examine the history of biological invasions in Australia and undertake a bold test of what we think we know about invasion biology. They distilled that body of theory into eleven hypotheses about invasions in general, and each author tested the hypotheses independently using different historical and recent examples. Have a stiff drink ready for when you finish this book because it will shake your confidence in the idea that conservationists can or even should try to make predictions based on ecological theory. This is not as nihilistic a conclusion as might be assumed though because they also found the fate of invasive biota likely does not seem to simply be determined by chance either.' Conservation Biology

Many conservationists argue that invasive species form one of the most important threats to ecosystems the world over, often spreading quickly through their new environments and jeopardising the conservation of native species. As such, it is important that reliable predictions can be made regarding the effects of new species on particular habitats. This book provides a critical appraisal of ecosystem theory using case studies of biological invasions in Australasia. Each chapter is built around a set of eleven central hypotheses from community ecology, which were mainly developed in North American or European contexts. The authors examine the hypotheses in the light of evidence from their particular species, testing their power in explaining the success or failure of invasion and accepting or rejecting each hypothesis as appropriate. The conclusions have far-reaching consequences for the utility of community ecology, suggesting a rejection of its predictive powers and a positive reappraisal of natural history.

List of contributors
Foreword Charles J. Krebs
1. Testing hypotheses about biological invasions and Charles Darwin's two-creators rumination Herbert H. T. Prins and Iain J. Gordon
Part I. Ancient Invaders: 2. Australia's Acacia: unrecognized convergent evolution Joseph T. Miller and Martin Burd
3. The mixed success of Mimosoideae clades invading into Australia Kyle W. Tomlinson
4. Perspectives from parrots on biological invasions Leo Joseph
5. Invasion ecology of honeyeaters Janette A. Norman and Leslie Christidis
6. The invasion of terrestrial fauna into marine habitat: birds in mangroves David Luther
7. Biological invasions of Sirenia in relation to ecosystem theory Hans H. de Iongh and Daryl P. Domning
8. Flying-foxes and drifting continents David A. Westcott and Adam McKeown
9. Invasion ecology of Australasian marsupials Christopher R. Dickman
10. Murine rodents - late but highly successful invaders Ken Aplin and Fred Ford
11. Drift of a continent - broken connections Carol Ann Stannard
12. The development of a climate - an arid continent with wet fringes Sandra McLaren, Malcolm W. Wallace, Stephen J. Gallagher, Barbara E. Wagstaff and Anne-Marie P. Tosolini
Part II. Modern Invaders: 13. Invasion of woody shrubs and trees Kris French, Ben Gooden and Tanya Mason
14. Modern tree colonisers from Australia into the rest of the world Trevor H. Booth
15. Failed introductions - finches from outside Australia Jan Komdeur and Martijn Hammers
16. The skylark Judit K. Szabo
17. Why Northern Hemisphere waders did not colonise the south Ken Kraaijeveld
18. Weak migratory interchange by birds between Australia and Asia David Roshier and Leo Joseph
19. Introducing a new top predator, the dingo Christopher N. Johnson and Mike Letnic
20. The European rabbit - Australia's worst mammalian invader Steven R. McLeod and Glen Saunders
21. The rise and fall of the Asian water buffalo in the monsoonal tropics of Northern Australia Patricia A. Werner
22. A critique of community ecology and a salute to natural history Herbert H. T. Prins and Iain J. Gordon
Index.

Subject Areas: Environmental management [RNF], Applied ecology [RNC], Biology, life sciences [PS]