Global temperatures and seawater levels rise; the world's smallest porpoise species looms at the edge of extinction; and a tiny emerald beetle from Japan flourishes in North America--but why does it matter? Who cares? With this concise, accessible, and up-to-date book, Charles J. Krebs answers critics and enlightens students and environmental advocates alike, revealing not why phenomena like these deserve our attention, but why they demand it. Highlighting key principles in ecology--from species extinction to the sun's role in powering ecosystems--each chapter introduces a general question, illustrates that question with real-world examples, and links it to pressing ecological issues in which humans play a central role, such as the spread of invasive species, climate change, overfishing, and biodiversity conservation. While other introductions to ecology are rooted in complex theory, math, or practice and relegate discussions of human environmental impacts and their societal implications to sidebars and appendices, Why Ecology Matters interweaves these important discussions throughout. It is a book rooted in our contemporary world, delving into ecological issues that are perennial, timeless, but could not be more timely.

Changing Climate and Resource Use Efficiency in Plants reviews the efficiencies for resource use by crop plants under different climatic conditions. This book focuses on the challenges and potential remediation methods for a variety of resource factors. Chapters deal with the effects of different climatic conditions on agriculture, radiation use efficiency under various climatic conditions, the efficiency of water and its impact on harvest production under restricted soil moisture conditions, nitrogen and phosphorus use efficiency, nitrogen use efficiency in different environmental conditions under the influence of climate change, and various aspects of improving phosphorus use efficiency. The book provides guidance for researchers engaged in plant science studies, particularly Plant/Crop Physiology, Agronomy, Plant Breeding and Molecular Breeding. In addition, it provides valuable insights for policymakers, administrators, plant-based companies and agribusiness companies.

Marine Pollution: Sources, Fate and Effects of Pollutants in Coastal Ecosystems bring together the theoretical background on common and emerging marine pollutants and their effects on organisms (ecotoxicology). Written by a renowned expert in the field who is a researcher, teacher and advisor of national and international institutions on issues such as oil spills, water quality assessment and plastic pollution, this book offers a thorough account of the effects of pollutants on marine organisms, the relevant environmental regulations, and the public health implications, along with the biological tools advocated by the international institutions for marine pollution monitoring. Marine Pollution: Sources, Fate and Effects of Pollutants in Coastal Ecosystems presents information in a detailed and didactic manner, reviewing the latest scientific knowledge alongside examples of practical applications.

Although Charles Darwin's theory of evolution laid the foundations of modern biology, it did not tell the whole story. Most remarkably, "The Origin of Species" said very little about, of all things, the origins of species. Darwin and his modern successors have shown very convincingly how inherited variations are naturally selected, but they leave unanswered how variant organisms come to be in the first place.In "Symbiotic Planet," renowned scientist Lynn Margulis shows that symbiosis, which simply means members of different species living in physical contact with each other, is crucial to the origins of evolutionary novelty. Ranging from bacteria, the smallest kinds of life, to the largest--the living Earth itself--Margulis explains the symbiotic origins of many of evolution's most important innovations. The very cells we're made of started as symbiotic unions of different kinds of bacteria. Sex--and its inevitable corollary, death--arose when failed attempts at cannibalism resulted in seasonally repeated mergers of some of our tiniest ancestors. Dry land became forested only after symbioses of algae and fungi evolved into plants. Since all living things are bathed by the same waters and atmosphere, all the inhabitants of Earth belong to a symbiotic union. Gaia, the finely tuned largest ecosystem of the Earth's surface, is just symbiosis as seen from space. Along the way, Margulis describes her initiation into the world of science and the early steps in the present revolution in evolutionary biology; the importance of species classification for how we think about the living world; and the way "academic apartheid" can block scientific advancement. Written with enthusiasm and authority, this is a book that could change the way you view our living Earth.

A derivative of the Encyclopedia of Inland Waters, River Ecosystem Ecology reviews the function of rivers and streams as ecosystems as well as the varied activities and interactions that occur among their abiotic and biotic components. Because the articles are drawn from an encyclopedia, the articles are easily accessible to interested members of the public, such as conservationists and environmental decision makers.

A derivative of the Encyclopedia of Inland Waters, Biogeochemistry of Inland Waters examines the transformation, flux and cycling of chemical compounds in aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, combining aspects of biology, ecology, geology, and chemistry. Because the articles are drawn from an encyclopedia, they are easily accessible to interested members of the public, such as conservationists and environmental decision makers.

Key Concepts in Environmental Chemistry provides a modern and concise introduction to environmental chemistry principles and the dynamic nature of environmental systems. It offers an intense, one-semester examination of selected concepts encountered in this field of study and provides integrated tools in explaining complex chemical problems of environmental importance. Principles typically covered in more comprehensive textbooks are well integrated into general chapter topics and application areas. The goal of this textbook is to provide students with a valuable resource for learning the basic concepts of environmental chemistry from an easy to follow, condensed, application and inquiry-based perspective. Additional statistical, sampling, modeling and data analysis concepts and exercises will be introduced for greater understanding of the underlying processes of complex environmental systems and fundamental chemical principles. Each chapter will have problem-oriented exercises (with examples throughout the body of the chapter) that stress the important concepts covered and research applications/case studies from experts in the field. Research applications will be directly tied to theoretical concepts covered in the chapter. Overall, this text provides a condensed and integrated tool for student learning and covers key concepts in the rapidly developing field of environmental chemistry.

Global Ecology focuses on the perception of the biosphere or the ecosphere as a unified cooperative system with numerous synergistic effects, which describe the distinctive properties of this sphere. This book is subdivided into five parts dealing with diverse aspects in global ecology. The first part of the book provides comprehensive description of the biosphere, including its unique characteristics and evolution. This part also describes various spheres in the biosphere, such as the hydrosphere, noosphere, and pedosphere as well as their composition. The next part focuses on the global cycles, including calcium, carbon, iron, microbial nitrogen, oxygen, phosphorus, sulfur, and water cycles. In addition, global balances and flows are explained. Presented in the third part are the results of the global cycles and flows as well as the patterns of the climatic factors and marine currents. There is also a part discussing the climate interactions, climatic changes, and its effect on the living organisms. The book concludes by covering the application of stoichiometry in the biosphere and in ecosystems. The book offers a comprehensive view of global ecology and ecological stoichiometry, which will aid in the processes of global ecology.