Specifically designed for ease of use and implementation. Written by an award-winning team of climate change mitigation experts. Easy to capture key information. There is an executive summary included in each chapter, plus detailed figure on how to implement the suggested climate change mitigation. Can be used across all different types of organisation and at all levels.

'Full of wonder and forensic intelligence' Isabella Tree, author of Wilding A moving account of Madagascar told by a researcher who has spent over fifty years investigating the mysteries of this remarkable island. Madagascar is a place of change. A biodiversity hotspot and the fourth largest island on the planet, it has been home to a spectacular parade of animals, from giant flightless birds and giant tortoises on the ground, to agile lemurs leaping through the treetops. Some species live on; many have vanished in the distant or recent past. Over vast stretches of time, Madagascar's forests have expanded and contracted in response to shifting climates, and the hand of people is clear in changes during the last thousand years or so. Today, Madagascar is a microcosm of global trends. What happens there in the decades ahead can, perhaps, suggest ways to help turn the tide on the environmental crisis now sweeping the world. The Sloth Lemur's Song is a far-reaching account of Madagascar's past and present, led by an expert guide who has immersed herself in research and conservation activities with village communities on the island for nearly fifty years. Alison Richard accompanies the reader on a journey through space and time-from Madagascar's ancient origins as a landlocked region of Gondwana and its emergence as an island to the modern-day developments that make the survival of its array of plants and animals increasingly uncertain. Weaving together scientific evidence with Richard's own experiences and exploring the power of stories to shape our understanding of events, this book captures the magic as well as the tensions that swirl around this island nation.

Many traditional approaches to rural land management are strictly sectoral, with a rigid introspective focus. Consequently the impact of silo-driven change on other land users they can often be overlooked or not appreciated. This book critically reviews why there has yet to be a clear route to upland resource management and provides insight and options for integrated transdisciplinary land management solutions for rural areas, specifically uplands. It considers the problem in order to derive appropriate solutions enhanced by a number of in-depth case studies by resource management professionals and the use of many examples of contemporary good practice from different uplands, organisations, projects and programmes.The overarching approach of the book is to provide a tool kit for those individuals, groups or organisations looking to manage the upland resource for the benefit of all. Readers are provided with a range of practical options to develop their own solutions. The book is written in such a way that readers can dip in and out of sections to plug knowledge gaps or read in its entirety for those experiencing a first foray into the complexities of upland resource management.Increasingly, rural areas are becoming recognised as a wider resource beyond traditional food, fibre and water, leading to inevitable management tensions. Goal setting, vision and strategy development, management planning, aims, objectives and prescription (actions) are considered and some of the new agendas for resource use in uplands which may be worth consideration for individual projects are explored. This comprehensive book deals with the implementation, advantages and disadvantages of a range of traditional and contemporary resource management approaches which are then expanded upon by a range of resource management professionals based on their own experiences. These case studies demonstrate the development of more effective projects and the book concludes by considering how work can be monitored and evaluated before ideas are synthesised for best practice.

Most of the world's population lives on or near the coasts. Every nation not completely landlocked has used the sea as its supposedly self-cleansing garbage dump. Now the effects are being felt. There is not a coast in the world which is not dangerously polluted. Sewage, oil, plastics, industrial effluents, radioactive waste have been added to ungoverned development, all of which are busily destroying otherwise robust inshore eco-systems. Hinrichsen, basing his work on United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) research and his own extensive travels, has described the situation in the Mediterranean, the Gulf, the Indian Ocean, the South-East Asian Seas and the Eastern Pacific. He covers both the disasters and the growing successes in dealing with them, and he points the way to the sort of international deal needed to rescue a vast resource in danger of complete destruction. His book is both a call to action and a sign of hope. Originally published in 1990

Many mushrooms - or the 'fruits of fungi' - are extremely valuable, wild-gathered products which are utilised for both their medicinal properties and as food. In many of the world's tropical and temperate forests, they are the primary source of income for the people who live there. These forests range from temperate woodlands and small forests to high altitude forests in the Himalaya and tropical miombo woodlands in south-central Africa. In south-west China, over 200 species of wild fungi in 64 genera are commercially traded while in Europe and North America, woodlands and small forests are the source of many highly-prized mushrooms and an essential resource for many small enterprises and collectors. Yet the increased demand for timber has resulted in the rapid expansion of forestry, which in turn has destroyed the natural habitat of many fungi, unbalancing both forest economics and ecology. Despite the economic, social and cultural values of fungi, there is a general lack of understanding of their importance to local livelihoods and forest ecology. This book aims to fill this gap and extends the People and Plants Conservation Series beyond the plant kingdom into the related world of fungi and mushrooms. It demonstrates the crucial roles that fungi play in maintaining forest ecosystems and the livelihoods of rural people throughout the world while providing good practice guidelines for the sustainable management of this resource and an assessment of economic value. It brings together the perspectives of biologists, anthropologists and forest and woodland managers to provide a unique inter-disciplinary and international overview of the key issues.

The book synthesizes knowledge on the arthropod taxon Oribatida, a suborder of Acari (the mites and ticks), that are a key group in soil ecology and biodiversity studies for Canada and Alaska but also worldwide. This book is unparalleled in the comprehensive nature of the information provided on this key biotic group. It is presented by two leading global experts for this group. There is no competing text in English. Reviewers were unanimous in their view that there is an "unquestionable" need for this book. The book provides highly reliable set of data, well prepared from a content and methodological point of view, bringing much interesting information on the subject and a valuable contribution to the knowledge of ecology of the group of invertebrates.

Agriculture and food production have a large footprint on the landscape globally and compete for space with land for nature conservation. This book explores the competition between the food needs of a growing human population and the conservation of biodiversity as intensified by the emerging use of crops for energy production. As concern about the impact of greenhouse gas emissions on climate grows and oil prices increase, energy production from agricultural crops has become a significant industry. At the same time, growth in food demand due to population growth has been accelerated by growing affluence associated with economic growth in major developing countries increasing per capita consumption. Consumers are concerned that the price of food will continue to increase sharply as a result of this competition but a loss of biodiversity may be another major outcome. Drawing on his expertise in plant conservation genetics, the author provides a balanced appraisal of the potential for developing new or improved crops for food or bioenergy production in the context of climate change, while at the same time protecting biodiversity.

If you are responsible for oak management, Managing Oak Forests in the Eastern United States is for you. It is the definitive practical guide for anyone interested in improving stewardship of eastern oak forests. Organized into three sections, the first section, "Background and Biology: Setting the Stage," helps you establish a solid understanding of the history and ecology of eastern oak ecosystems. It examines the question "Why do we manage oaks?" and looks at some of the challenges faced in oak management such as fire, wildlife management, and oak regeneration. It also provides a description and distribution of oak forests across the eastern United States and discusses the biology of oaks. The second section, "Silviculture: What Is in the Tool Box," gives you a practical understanding of how management can be implemented in eastern oak forests. It covers natural regeneration, artificial regeneration, and use of prescribed fires, competition control, and intermediate treatments. The third and final section, "Managing Oaks: How Do I Make It Work for Me?" helps you clarify your objectives and chart a course to bring about the desired outcomes for the forests you are managing. This section assists you in evaluating your progress in managing your oaks and what changes you will need to make. It provides details on management objectives for upland oaks, woodlands and savannahs, and bottomland oaks. It also gives you guidance on managing deer impacts on oak forests. The last chapter is specifically designed to help you get started.

The idea that nature provides services to people is one of the most powerful concepts to have emerged over the last two decades. It is shaping our understanding of the role that biodiverse ecosystems play in the environment and their benefits for humankind. As a result, there is a growing interest in operational and methodological issues surrounding ecosystem services amongst environmental managers, and many institutions are now developing teaching programmes to equip the next generation with the skills needed to apply the concepts more effectively. This handbook provides a comprehensive reference text on ecosystem services, integrating natural and social science (including economics). Collectively the chapters, written by the world's leading authorities, demonstrate the importance of biodiversity for people, policy and practice. They also show how the value of ecosystems to society can be expressed in monetary and non-monetary terms, so that the environment can be better taken into account in decision making. The significance of the ecosystem service paradigm is that it helps us redefine and better communicate the relationships between people and nature. It is shown how these are essential to resolving challenges such as sustainable development and poverty reduction, and the creation of a green economy in developing and developed world contexts.

Biology and Management of Invasive Quagga and Zebra Mussels in the Western United States is a synthesis of the biology and management of invasive mussels from scientists and managers working on invasive quagga and zebra mussels in the western United States. Invasive dreissenid mussels have spread throughout southwestern United States at unprecedented speeds, and present a unique threat to native ecosystems. This book documents the efforts, both successful and unsuccessful, of individuals and agencies after dreissenid mussels invaded the West. Although the book is designed specifically for scientists and managers fighting invasive mussels in western waterbodies, it offers an opportunity for scientists and lake managers worldwide to compare successful strategies relevant to their unique situation. It includes guidance documents and protocols related to early detection, prevention, regulation, monitoring, and control of these invasive pests in the West. It compares quagga and zebra mussels in the western United States with those mussels colonizing the Great Lakes and European waters.

The field of ecohydraulics integrates hydrodynamic and eco-dynamic processes. While hydrodynamic processes are usually well described by partial differential equations (PDE's) based on physical conservation principles, ecosystem dynamics often involve specific interactions at the local scale. Because of this, Cellular Automata (CA) are a viable paradigm in ecosystem modelling. All cells in a CA system update their states synchronously at discrete steps according to simple local rules. The classical CA configuration consists of uniformly distributed cells on a structured grid. But in the field of hydrodynamics, the use of unstructured grids has become more and more popular due to its flexibility to handle arbitrary geometries. The main objective of this research is to identify whether the CA paradigm can be extended to unstructured grids. To that end the concept of Unstructured Cellular Automata (UCA) is developed and various UCA configurations are explored and their performance investigated. The influence of cell size was analyzed in analogy with the Finite Volume Method. A characteristic parameter -min distance of UCA- was put forward and tested by numerical experiments. Special attention was paid to exploring the analogies and differences between the discrete CA paradigm and discrete numerical approximations for solving PDE's. The practical applicability of UCA in ecohydraulics modelling is explored through a number of case studies and compared with field measurements.

Covers all the main aspects of crustacean biology and ecology. Explains the main ethology issues also in view of applicative purposes. Is oriented to aquaculture, biofouling and parasitology biotechnologies. Covers both theoretical and practical issues. Is authored by a select list of outstanding world experts.

Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) region is exceptionally biodiverse. It contains about half of the world s remaining tropical forests, nearly one-fifth of its coastal habitats, and some of its most productive agricultural and marine areas. But agriculture, fishing and other human activities linked to rapid population and economic growth increasingly threaten that biodiversity. Moreover, poverty, weak regulatory capacity, and limited political will hamper conservation.

Given this dilemma, it is critically important to design conservation strategies on the basis of the best available information about both biodiversity and the track records of the various policies that have been used to protect it. This rigorously researched book has three key aims. It describes the status of biodiversity in LAC, the main threats to this biodiversity, and the drivers of these threats. It identifies the main policies being used to conserve biodiversity and assesses their effectiveness and potential for further implementation.

It proposes five specific lines of practical action for conserving LAC biodiversity, based on: green agriculture; strengthening terrestrial protected areas and co-management; improving environmental governance; strengthening coastal and marine resource management; and improving biodiversity data and policy evaluation."

Biodiversity loss in terrestrial environments associated with human activities has been appreciated as a major issue for some years now. What is less well documented is the effect of such activities, including climate change, on marine biodiversity. This pioneering book is the first to address this important but neglected topic, which is likely to be the key challenge for marine scientists in the near future. Using a multidisciplinary and a holistic approach, the book reveals how climatic variability controls biodiversity at time scales ranging from synoptic meteorological events to millions of years and at spatial scales ranging from local sites to the whole ocean. It shows how global change, including anthropogenic climate change, ocean acidification and more direct human influences such as exploitation, pollution and eutrophication may alter biodiversity, ecosystem functioning and regulating and provisioning services. The author proposes a theory termed the 'macroecological theory on the arrangement of life', which explains how biodiversity is organized and how it responds to climatic variability and anthropogenic climate change. The book concludes with recommendations for further research and theoretical development to identify oceanic areas in need of observation and gaps in current scientific knowledge. Many references and comparisons with the terrestrial realm are included in all chapters to better understand the universality of the relationships between biodiversity, climate and the environment. The book will serve as a textbook for all students and researchers of marine science and environmental change, but will also be accessible to the more general reader.

explores and examines a wide range of fauna across different terrains and habitats in India reveals key issues and concerns for biodiversity conservation, with a particular emphasis on the impact of humans and climate change examine human-wildlife interactions, dealing with issues such as the impact of urbanization, the establishment of nature reserves and competition for resources will be of great interest to students and scholars of wildlife ecology, conservation biology, biodiversity conservation and the environmental sciences more broadly.

Effective marine biodiversity conservation is dependent upon a clear scientific rationale for practical interventions. This book is intended to provide knowledge and tools for marine conservation practitioners and to identify issues and mechanisms for upper-level undergraduate and Masters students. It also provides sound guidance for marine biology field course work and professionals.

The main focus is on benthic species living on or in the seabed and immediately above, rather than on commercial fisheries or highly mobile vertebrates. Such species, including algae and invertebrates, are fundamental to a stable and sustainable marine ecosystem. The book is a practical guide based on a clear exposition of the principles of marine ecology and species biology to demonstrate how marine conservation issues and mechanisms have been tackled worldwide and especially the criteria, structures and decision trees that practitioners and managers will find useful. Well illustrated with conceptual diagrams and flow charts, the book includes case study examples from both temperate and tropical marine environments.

Effective marine biodiversity conservation is dependent upon a clear scientific rationale for practical interventions. This book is intended to provide knowledge and tools for marine conservation practitioners and to identify issues and mechanisms for upper-level undergraduate and Masters students. It also provides sound guidance for marine biology field course work and professionals.

The main focus is on benthic species living on or in the seabed and immediately above, rather than on commercial fisheries or highly mobile vertebrates. Such species, including algae and invertebrates, are fundamental to a stable and sustainable marine ecosystem. The book is a practical guide based on a clear exposition of the principles of marine ecology and species biology to demonstrate how marine conservation issues and mechanisms have been tackled worldwide and especially the criteria, structures and decision trees that practitioners and managers will find useful. Well illustrated with conceptual diagrams and flow charts, the book includes case study examples from both temperate and tropical marine environments.

This book addresses the question of the double exposure of marine ecosystems, i.e. to both global climate changes and economic globalization. This book contains a short, but self sufficient mathematical introduction, the formalization in the context of Network economics of global commodity chains, with both trophic and economic processes, and a series of cases studies, going from the re-addressing of fundamental ecological questions such as Gause's exclusion principles to practical studies such as the representation of the global supply chain for tuna.

An important first step in studying the demography of wild animals is to identify the animals uniquely through applying markings, such as rings, tags, and bands. Once the animals are encountered again, researchers can study different forms of capture-recapture data to estimate features, such as the mortality and size of the populations. Capture-recapture methods are also used in other areas, including epidemiology and sociology. With an emphasis on ecology, Analysis of Capture-Recapture Data covers many modern developments of capture-recapture and related models and methods and places them in the historical context of research from the past 100 years. The book presents both classical and Bayesian methods. A range of real data sets motivates and illustrates the material and many examples illustrate biometry and applied statistics at work. In particular, the authors demonstrate several of the modeling approaches using one substantial data set from a population of great cormorants. The book also discusses which computer programs to use for implementing the models and contains 130 exercises that extend the main material. The data sets, computer programs, and other ancillaries are available at www.capturerecapture.co.uk. The book is accessible to advanced undergraduate and higher-level students, quantitative ecologists, and statisticians. It helps readers understand model formulation and applications, including the technicalities of model diagnostics and checking.

The establishment of the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) points to the crucial role attributed to science and knowledge for the successful implementation of biodiversity politics by both scientists and policy-makers. With the increased importance of biodiversity in international politics, and in part inspired by the success the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has had in raising awareness of global warming, the call for an 'IPCC for Biodiversity' was successful. The Politics of Knowledge and Global Biodiversity gives a full overview of the process of its implementation as finalised in 2013 and proposes an innovative conceptual framework that puts this specific case into a more general perspective of international politics and relations. It provides a detailed empirical analysis of the knowledge politics associated with the establishment of IPBES and its conceptual framework and methodological approach is grounded in a theoretical perspective. This pioneering work is the first to examine IPBES in this way and is essential reading for researchers and scholars of International Relations, Environmental and Biodiversity Politics, Science-Policy Interfaces and Global Environmental Governance. It will also be of interest to political scientists and social scientists.

Snakes of the World: A Catalogue of Living and Extinct Species the first catalogue of its kind covers all living and fossil snakes described between 1758 and 2012, comprising 3,509 living and 274 extinct species allocated to 539 living and 112 extinct genera. Also included are 54 genera and 302 species that are dubious or invalid, resulting in recognition of 705 genera and 4,085 species.
Features:

• Alphabetical listings by genus and species
• Individual accounts for each genus and species
• Detailed data on type specimens and type localities
• All subspecies, synonyms, and proposed snake names
• Distribution of species by country, province, and elevation
• Distribution of fossils by country and geological periods
• Major taxonomic references for each genus and species
• Appendix with major references for each country
• Complete bibliography of all references cited in text and appendix
• Index of 12,500 primary snake names

The data on type specimens includes museum and catalog number, length and sex, and collector and date. The listed type localities include restrictions and corrections. The bibliography provides complete citations of all references cited in the text and appendix, and taxonomic comments are given in the remarks sections. This standard reference supplies a scientific, academic, and professional treatment of snakes appealing to conservationists and herpetologists as well as zoologists, naturalists, hobbyists, researchers, and teachers."

The introduction and rapid spread of two Eurasian mussel species, "Dreissena polymorpha "(zebra mussel) and "Dreissena rostriformis bugensis "(quagga mussel), in waters of North America has caused great concern among industrial and recreational water users. These invasive species can create substantial problems for raw water users such as water treatment facilities and power plants, and they can have other negative impacts by altering aquatic environments. In the 20 years since the first edition of this book was published, zebra mussels have continued to spread, and quagga mussels have become the greater threat in the Great Lakes, in deep regions of large lakes, and in the southwestern Unites States. Quagga mussels have also expanded greatly in eastern and western Europe since the first book edition was published.
Quagga and Zebra Mussels: Biology, Impacts, and Control, Second Edition provides a broad view of the zebra/quagga mussel issue, offering a historic perspective and up-to-date information on mussel research. Comprising 48 chapters, this second edition includes reviews of mussel morphology, physiology, and behavior. It details mussel distribution and spread in Europe and across North America, and examines policy and regulatory responses, management strategies, and mitigation efforts.
In addition, this book provides extensive coverage of the impact of invasive mussel species on freshwater ecosystems, including effects on water clarity, phytoplankton, water quality, food web changes, and consequences to other aquatic fauna. It also reviews and offers new insights on how zebra and quagga mussels respond and adapt to varying environmental conditions. This new edition includes seven video clips that complement chapter text and, through visual documentation, provide a greater understanding of mussel behavior and distribution.

The ONLY textbook available on marine mammal physiology, a core topic in Marine Science undergrad teaching Builds on the unique overall theme 'How would you design a marine mammal?' which focuses on what an undergrad student would actually want to know. What would they ask? So rather than "What are the biochemical differences between marine and terrestrial mammals?" the book addresses "How can marine mammals dive for such a long time?" or "How do they stay warm in such cold water?" Organises the Table of Contents into common 'real' student questions. The book thus centres around the point of view of the student. This makes it accessible and student-focused. Consistency across all chapters Provides consistent Power Point slides that teachers can use when they don't know the field well AND that students can use as study guides. Offers Study Questions and future thinking/implications questions. A Driving Question for each chapter is highlighted in a box. A concluding chapter ties up loose ends and consolidates the driving questions from the individual chapters. Contains the contributions of well-respected, prominent scientists in the field. Author bios for each chapter showcase diversity in contributor pool. Focuses on physiological adaptations of marine mammals and connects them with the ecological context, including anthropogenic impacts. Discusses differences that might exist by type of marine mammal, development questions, and behavioral issues.

The book offers a comprehensive review of the advances in conservation and the reintroduction of rare and endangered plants in China. It systematically discusses plant diversity, in situ and ex situ protection and plant reintroduction in China, including the reintroduction species list and orchid plant reintroduction up to November 2019. A useful reference resource for students, instructors and scientific researchers in the field of wild plant protection, botany, biodiversity protection, and natural land protection and management, the book also provides valuable insights for government departments involved in plant management.