This book provides a comprehensive, global exploration of the scale, scope, threats, and drivers of wildlife trafficking from a criminological perspective. Building on the first edition, it takes into account the significant changes in the international context surrounding these issues since 2013. It provides new examples, updated statistics, and discusses the potential changes arising as a result of COVID-19 and the IPBES 2019 report. It also discusses the shift in trafficking 'hotspots' and the recent projects that have challenged responses to wildlife trafficking. It undertakes a distinctive exploration of who the victims and offenders of wildlife trafficking are as well as analysing the stakeholders who are involved in collaborative efforts to end this devastating green crime. It unpacks the security implications of wildlife trade and trafficking and possible responses and ways to combat it. It provides useful and timely information for social and environmental/life scientists, law enforcement, NGOs, and policy makers.

Centring on South Africa's Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park, this book synthesizes a century of insights from the ecology and conservation management of one of Africa's oldest protected wildlife areas. The park provides important lessons for conservation management, as it has maintained conservation values rivalling those of much larger parks sometimes through, and sometimes despite, strong management interventions, including the rescue of the white rhino from extinction. In addition, the book highlights the ecological science produced in the park, much of which has become widely influential, including the megaherbivore concept, new functional approaches to understanding biomes, and new understandings about the role of consumers in shaping ecosystems. The volume is ideal for researchers and policymakers interested in the conservation of relatively small, isolated and protected areas.

The species-area relationship (SAR) describes a range of related phenomena that are fundamental to the study of biogeography, macroecology and community ecology. While the subject of ongoing debate for a century, surprisingly, no previous book has focused specifically on the SAR. This volume addresses this shortfall by providing a synthesis of the development of SAR typologies and theory, as well as empirical research and application to biodiversity conservation problems. It also includes a compilation of recent advances in SAR research, comprising novel SAR-related theories and findings from the leading authors in the field. The chapters feature specific knowledge relating to terrestrial, marine and freshwater realms, ensuring a comprehensive volume relevant to a wide range of fields, with a mix of review and novel material and with clear recommendations for further research and application.

How to decelerate loss of global biodiversity is one of the greatest challenges of our generation. Reproductive technologies have enormous potential to assist the recovery of species by enhancing reproductive output, facilitating genetic management, and supporting reintroduction of threatened species. Of particular value are cryopreservation technologies coupled with the establishment of global gene banks to conserve, in perpetuity, the remaining extant genetic diversity of threatened amphibians. Reproductive Technologies and Biobanking for the Conservation of Amphibians brings together leading experts in the field to provide a comprehensive overview of current best practices, summarise technological advancements, and present a framework for facilitating the integration of reproductive technologies and biobanking into conservation breeding programs for threatened amphibians. It is an invaluable reference for the next generation of conservation practitioners: captive breeding facilities, researchers, and policy-makers involved with biodiversity conservation

Cryptic species are organisms which look identical, but which represent distinct evolutionary lineages. They are an emerging trend in organismal biology across all groups, from flatworms, insects, amphibians, primates, to vascular plants. This book critically evaluates the phenomenon of cryptic species and demonstrates how they can play a valuable role in improving our understanding of evolution, in particular of morphological stasis. It also explores how the recognition of cryptic species is intrinsically linked to the so-called 'species problem', the lack of a unifying species concept in biology, and suggests alternative approaches. Bringing together a range of perspectives from practicing taxonomists, the book presents case studies of cryptic species across a range of animal and plant groups. It will be an invaluable text for all biologists interested in species and their delimitation, definition, and purpose, including undergraduate and graduate students and researchers.

Ever since Darwin, science has enshrined competition as biology's brutal architect. But this revelatory new book argues that our narrow view of evolution has caused us to ignore the generosity and cooperation that exist around us, from the soil to the sky. In Sweet in Tooth and Claw, Kristin Ohlson explores the subtle ways in which nature is in constant collaboration to the betterment of all species. From the bear that discards the remainders of his salmon dinner on the forest ground, to the bright coral reefs of Cuba, she shows readers not only the connectivity lying beneath the surface in natural ecosystems, but why it's vital for humans to incorporate that understanding into our interactions with nature, and also with each other. Much of the damage that humans have done to our natural environment stems from our ignorance of these dense webs of connection. As we struggle to cope with the environmental hazards that our behaviour has unleashed, it's more important than ever to understand nature's billions of cooperative interactions. This way, we can stop disrupting them and instead rely on them to renew ecosystems. In reporting from the frontlines of scientific research, regenerative agriculture, and urban conservation, Ohlson shows that a shift from focusing on competition to collaboration can heal not only our relationships with the natural world, but also with each other.

Swathes of the human world are covered in ornamental grass lawns; they are the single most commonly encountered horticultural feature on the planet. Unfortunately, they are now often viewed as resource-draining green deserts due to the lack of plant and animal diversity, the need for frequent mowing and watering, and addition of lawn greening products to keep them looking at their best. It is a venerable horticultural feature that is essentially frozen in time, and with few alternatives to whet the appetite, the lawn has languished in its current grass-only format for decades. Until now. Tapestry lawns are a new, practically researched and timely development of the ornamental lawn format that integrates both horticultural practice and ecological science and re-determines the potential of a lawn. Mown barely a handful of times a year and with no need for fertilisers or scarifying, tapestry lawns are substantially richer in their diversity of plant and animal life compared to traditional grass-only lawns and see the return of flowers and colour to a format from which they are usually purposefully excluded. Tapestry Lawns: Freed from Grass and Full of Flowers traces the changes in the lawn format from its origins to the modern day and offers information on how and why the tapestry lawn construct is now achievable. It provides guidance on how to create and maintain a tapestry lawn of your own and champions the potential benefits for wildlife that can follow. Features Accessible and informative to all types of readers from academic to amateur Includes a refined and tested set of useful tapestry lawn plants Contains step-by-step instructions for creation and management methods of grass-free lawns Illustrated in full colour If you have ever thought about mowing your lawn much less, making it much more colourful and wildlife friendly, then this book will inform and guide you to create a perfect, grass-free lawn.

This book presents the outcomes of the 2017 national workshop and international conference organized by CEENR of ISEC, Bengaluru and Assam University Silchar. Addressing the threats to biodiversity and sustainable development resulting from the impacts of human induced pressures on ecosystems and global-warming-driven climate change is a major challenge. It requires increased knowledge and an enhanced information base in order to devise local policies to improve the adaptive capacity of vulnerable socio-ecological systems in developing countries. In this context, the book presents research that has the potential to benefit the environment and empower communities. It appeals to researchers investigating diverse aspects of socio-ecological-biological systems to create strategies for resource use, conservation and management to ensure sustainability.

The fragmenting of habitats is endangering animal populations and degrading or destroying many plant populations throughout the world. To address this problem, conservationists have increasingly turned to biological corridors, areas of land set aside to facilitate the movement of species and ecological processes. However, while hundreds of corridor initiatives are under way worldwide, there is little practical information to guide their design, location, and management. "Applying Nature's Design" offers a comprehensive overview of current knowledge on corridors, their design, and their implementation. Anthony B. Anderson and Clinton N. Jenkins examine a variety of conceptual and practical issues associated with corridors and provide detailed case studies from around the world. Their work considers how to manage and govern corridors, how to build support among various interest groups for corridors, and the obstacles to implementation. In addition to assessing various environmental and ecological challenges, the authors are the first to consider the importance of socioeconomic and political issues in creating and maintaining corridors.

This book simulates a historical walk through nature, teaching readers about the biodiversity on Earth in various eras with a focus on past terrestrial environments. Geared towards a student audience, using simple terms and avoiding long complex explanations, the book discusses the plants and animals that lived on land, the evolution of natural systems, and how these biological systems changed over time in geological and paleontological contexts. With easy-to-understand and scientifically accurate and up-to-date information, readers will be guided through major biological events from the Earth's past. The topics in the book represent a broad paleoenvironmental spectrum of interests and educational modules, allowing for virtual visits to rich geological times. Eras and events that are discussed include, but are not limited to, the much varied Quaternary environments, the evolution of plants and animals during the Cenozoic, the rise of angiosperms, vertebrate evolution and ecosystems in the Mesozoic, the Permian mass extinction, the late Paleozoic glaciation, and the origin of the first trees and land plants in the Devonian-Ordovician. With state-of-the art expert scientific instruction on these topics and up-to-date and scientifically accurate illustrations, this book can serve as an international course for students, teachers, and other interested individuals.

After years of discord, peace in the Middle East now seems close at hand. But the hope of a settlement stands on much shakier ground than the participants suspect, says scientist Daniel Hillel. What they don't see, and what most observers overlook, is that the severely wounded environment of the region threatens to undercut any long-lasting accord. The widespread destruction of vegetation and natural habitats, the erosion of uplands, the desertification of semiarid areas, waterlogging and salinization of valleys, and, most of all, the depletion and pollution of precious water resources--no political formula will promote lasting peace in the Middle East, argues Hillel, unless it addresses these ills.
In Rivers of Eden, Hillel examines this natural crisis and explores its crucial role in the political and economic future of this troubled region. He shows how environmental degradation, exacerbated by an uncontrolled explosion of population, is itself a cause of strife in the area, dislocating and disorienting countless people and fomenting despair and extremism. And yet, he adds, since no one country in the region can solve its water problem alone, the very cause of conflict is also an inducement for promoting peace. This hope illuminates Rivers of Eden as it traces the vital issue of water in the Middle East, ranging from its first appearance in folklore and religion to the present. As Hillel shows, the history of civilization in the Middle East is in many ways the story of how societies in this arid environment managed or mismanaged their land and water resources. Here we see how this history plays out from intertribal rivalty (for instance, the legendary "War of Basoos," begun over the errant trespass of a thirsty camel), to the choking of the mighty Nile at Aswan and the slow, salt-poisoned death of Mesopotamia. From the historical and scientific circumstances of the region's water resources, Hillel turns to conflicts brewing even now over the waters of the Euphrates-Tigris, the Nile, the Jordan, and several groundwater aquifers. The future welfare of the Middle East, as of many economies around the world, depends on timely action to resolve these issues. This book offers hope for such a resolution.
A world renowned environmental scientist, Hillel has worked throughout the Middle East, as consultant to the governments of Israel, Pakistan, the Sudan, Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, and elsewhere, and as an advisor to the World Bank. He brings first-hand insight to his account and an urgent concern for the degraded Fertile Crescent, which he believes can and must be rehabilitated. Comprehensive, penetrating, and clear, his book compels the attention of anyone interested in the future of the Middle East and of the environment at large.

Examining globally invasive alien birds, the first part of this book provides an account of 32 global avian invasive species (as listed by the Invasive Species Specialist Group, ISSG). It acts as a one stop reference volume; it assesses current invasive status for each bird species, including details of physical description, diet, introduction and invasion pathways, breeding behaviour, natural habitat. It also looks at the environmental impact of each species, as well as current and future control methods. Full colour photographs assist with species identification and global distribution maps give a visual representation of the current known distributions of these species. The second part of the book discusses the biogeographical aspects of avian invasions, highlighting current and emerging invasive species across different regions of the world. The third section considers the impact of invasive species on native communities, problems associated with invasive bird management and the use of citizen science in the study of invasive birds.

The vegetation addressed in this book is, biologically, one of the most diverse on Earth, with many characteristic taxa offering refuge and food sources for many resident and migratory animals. Yet the forests of Las Yungas remain poorly known from a floristic and vegetation point of view. This book seeks to fill that gap by studying the distribution of forest along an altitudinal but also a bioclimatic gradient. The richness in species demonstrates that these forests are substantially more diverse than other subtropical mountain woodlands. 103 diagnostic (characteristic or indicator) species were selected, of which 29 are dominant, 67 are exclusive, selective, preferential or differential, and 7 are stenoic. In addition, 13 communities were identified and characterized. These forests can be attributed to the Bolivian-Tucuman biogeographical province (South-Andean Region, Neotropical Sub-Kingdom). They are seasonal, semi-deciduous or evergreen micro- and mesowoodlands growing on foothills, hillsides, ravines, gorges and the edges of mountain ranges (terrestrial communities), as well as river terraces and beaches (riparian communities). Thanks to the range of new findings, the content presented here will benefit experts in related fields such as geographers, ecologists and botanists, but also teachers, nature guides, those involved in the management of forest or conservation areas, and policymakers.

A Translation of Luigi Paolucci's On Birdsong is the first English translation of a groundbreaking memoir on birdsong by the Italian naturalist Luigi Paolucci. It is accompanied by extensive annotations and an introductory essay by the translator, Paolo Palmieri, that examines the scientific and philosophical questions raised by birdsong in relation to the history and philosophy of science, phenomenology, and the theoretical problems of the demarcation of the human and non-human animal. Paolucci's memoir focuses on firsthand ecological research and offers a fundamental theory of birdsong as language and music. Paolucci studies songbird species and behavior by bringing to bear linguistics, music and sound theory, and the debate on evolutionary theory and animal cognition. In the introductory essay, Paolo Palmieri adopts a phenomenological approach in order to investigate the problem of animal suffering and ethics, animal reasoning and will, the neurophysiology of hearing in humans and birds, and the relation between birdsong and laughter. This book will appeal to a large audience of philosophers, post-humanists, historians of science, animal cognition theorists, birdsong scientists and naturalists, and students. This book will also be valuable to the general public who is interested in the ethical debates on the presence of non-human animals in our society.

Socio-environmental crises are currently transforming the conditions for life on this planet, from climate change, to resource depletion, biodiversity loss and long-term pollutants. The vast scale of these changes, affecting land, sea and air have prompted calls for the 'ecologicalisation' of knowledge. This book adopts a much needed 'more-than-human' framework to grasp these complexities and challenges. It contains multidisciplinary insights and diverse methodological approaches to question how to revise, reshape and invent methods in order to work with non-humans in participatory ways. The book offers a framework for thinking critically about the promises and potentialities of participation from within a more-than-human paradigm, and opens up trajectories for its future development. It will be of interest to those working in the environmental humanities, animal studies, science and technology studies, ecology, and anthropology.

This book identifies all valid species belonging to the superfamily Mactroidea living in American waters, distributed across fourteen biogeographical provinces. It also provides an updated classification of the widely occurring Mactroidea superfamily, which comprises eight subfamilies grouped into four families: Mactridae (Lamarck, 1809); Anatinellidae (Deshayes, J.Gray 1853); Cardiliidae (Fischer, 1887) and Mesodesmatidae (J. Gray, 1840). The species included in this superfamily are known to have existed in North America since the Early Cretaceous.

This book presents current meta-ecosystem models and their derivation from classical ecosystem and metapopulation theories. Specifically, it reviews recent modelling efforts that have emphasized the role of nonlinear dynamics on spatial and food web networks, and which have cast their implications within the context of spatial synchrony and ecological stoichiometry. It suggests that these recent advances naturally lead to a generalization of meta-ecosystem theories to spatial fluxes of matter that have both a trophic and non-trophic impact on species. Ecosystem dynamics refers to the cycling of matter and energy across ecological compartments through processes such as consumption and recycling. Spatial dynamics established its ecological roots with metapopulation theories and focuses on scaling up local ecological processes through the limited movement of individuals and matter. Over the last 15 years, theories integrating ecosystem and spatial dynamics have quickly coalesced into meta-ecosystem theories, the focus of this book. The book will be of interest to graduate students and researchers who wish to learn more about the synthesis of ecosystem and spatial dynamics, which form the foundation of the theory of meta-ecosystems.

Results of regular monitoring of the species diversity and structure of plant communities is used by conservation biologists to help understand impacts of perturbations caused by humans and other environmental factors on ecosystems worldwide. Changes in plant communities can, for example, be a reflection of increased levels of pollution, a response to long-term climate change, or the result of shifts in land-use practices by the human population. This book presents a series of essays on the application of plant biodiversity monitoring and assessment to help prevent species extinction, ecosystem collapse, and solve problems in biodiversity conservation. It has been written by a large international team of researchers and uses case studies and examples from all over the world, and from a broad range of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. The book is aimed at any graduate students and researchers with a strong interest in plant biodiversity monitoring and assessment, plant community ecology, biodiversity conservation, and the environmental impacts of human activities on ecosystems.

This book considers the principle of 'sustainable development' which is currently facing a growing environmental crisis. A new mode of thinking and positioning the ecological imperative is the major input of this volume. The prism of co-viability is not the economics of political agencies that carry the ideology of the dominant/conventional economic schools, but rather an opening of innovation perspectives through science. This volume, through its four parts, more than 40 chapters and a hundred authors, gives birth to a paradigm which crystallizes within a concept that will support in overcoming the ecological emergency deadlock.

This book provides insights into various aspects of medicinal plant-associated microbes, known to be a unique source of biological active compounds, including their biotechnological uses and their potential in pharmaceutical, agricultural and industrial applications. Featuring review papers and original research by leading experts in the field, it discusses medicinal plants and their interactions with the environment; medicinal plants as a source of biologically active compounds; medicinal plant-associated microbes (diversity and metabolites); their pharmaceutical, agricultural and industrial applications as well as their potential applications as plant growth stimulators and biocontrol agents. As such the book offers a valuable, up-to-date overview of the current research on medicinal plants, their ecology, biochemistry and associated biomes.

The aim of this book is to offer information about the Pharmacological Properties of Native Plants from Argentina to students, researchers and graduates interested in the fields of Ethnobotany, Pharmacognosy, Phytochemistry, Pharmacy, and Medicine. The book includes summary information about the native plants from Argentina with medical activity comprising their botanical characteristics, distribution, characteristics of the regions where they grow, ethnobotanical information, chemical data, biological activity, establishment of in vitro cultures, toxicity, and legal status.

Biodiversity may refer to the diversity of genes, species or ecosystems in general. These varying concepts of biodiversity occasionally lead to conflicts among researchers and policy makers, as each of them require a customized type of protection strategy. This book addresses the questions surrounding the merits of conserving an existing situation, evolutionary development or the intentional substitution of one genome, species or ecosystem for another. Any practical steps towards the protection of biodiversity demand a definition of that which is to be protected and, in turn, the motivations for protecting biodiversity. Is biodiversity a necessary model which is also useful, or does it carry intrinsic value? Debates like this are particularly complex when interested parties address it from different conceptual and moral perspectives. Comprised of three parts, each complemented by a short introductory paragraph, this collection presents a variety of approaches to this challenge. The chapters cover the perspectives of environmental scientists with expertise in evolutionary, environmental biology, systematic zoology and botany, as well as those of researchers with expertise in philosophy, ethics, politics, law and economics. This combination facilitates a truly interdisciplinary debate by highlighting hitherto unacknowledged implications that inform current academic and political debates on biodiversity and its protection. The book should be of interest to students and researchers of environment studies, biodiversity, environmental philosophy, ethics and management.

This book concentrates on the marine mammalian group of Odontocetes, the toothed whales, dolphins, and porpoises. In 23 chapters, a total of 40 authors describe general patterns of ethological concepts of odontocetes in their natural environments, with a strong bent towards behavioral ecology. Examples are given of particularly well-studied species and species groups for which enough data exist, especially from the past 15 years. The aim is to give a modern flavor of present knowledge of ethology and behavior of generally large-brained behaviorally flexible mammals that have evolved quite separately from social mammals on land. As well, the plight of populations and species due to humans is described in multiple chapters, with the goal that an understanding of behavior can help to solve or alleviate at least some human-made problems.

This volume comprehensively reviews recent advances in our understanding of the diversity of microbes in various types of terrestrial ecosystems, such as caves, deserts and cultivated fields. It is written by leading experts, and highlights the culturable microbes identified using conventional approaches, as well as non-culturable ones unveiled with metagenomic and microbiomic approaches. It discusses the role of microbes in ecosystem sustainability and their potential biotechnological applications. The book further discusses the diversity and utility of ectomycorrhizal and entomopathogenic fungi and yeasts that dwell on grapes, it examines the biotechnological applications of specific microbes such as lichens, xylan- and cellulose-saccharifying bacteria and archaea, chitinolytic bacteria, methanogenic archaea and pathogenic yeasts.

Aquatic ecosystems are rich in biodiversity and home to a diverse array of species and habitats, providing a wide variety of benefits to human beings. Many of these valuable ecosystems are at risk of being irreversibly damaged by human activities and pressures, including pollution, contamination, invasive species, overfishing and climate change. Such pressures threaten the sustainability of these ecosystems, their provision of ecosystem services and ultimately human well-being. Ecosystem-based management (EBM) is now widely considered the most promising paradigm for balancing sustainable development and biodiversity protection, and various international strategies and conventions have championed the EBM cause and the inclusion of ecosystem services in decision-making. This open access book introduces the essential concepts and principles required to implement ecosystem-based management, detailing tools and techniques, and describing the application of these concepts and tools to a broad range of aquatic ecosystems, from the shores of Lough Erne in Northern Ireland to the estuaries of the US Pacific Northwest and the tropical Mekong Delta.