Contraceptive research has entered the new age of vaccines. Realistic prospects exist for the development of an entirely new battery of vaccines for use in human and veterinary medicine. Among them may be anti-fertility vaccines, based on physiological mechanisms applicable to either the female or male. This volume is a comprehensive review - a status report - of the subjects including fundamental work on the search for useful epitopes and ranging to applied vaccinology. One vaccine to prevent pregnancy, for use by women, has already been studied extensively. G.P. Talwar, the volume's editor and his colleagues in New Oelhi, India, published in 1976 a landmark series of papers describing the immunological properties of a preparation consisting of the alum-precipitated beta-subunit of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) chemically linked to tetanus toxoid. The principle of enhancing antigenicity of a self-protein by linkage of the epitope to a carrier protein was employed and tested clinically. These trials, carried out under the auspices of the Indian Council for Medical Research, were the first application of the carrier protein concept for a vaccine for human use. The encouraging results stimulated a wave of research not only on the use of hCG-based vaccines, but on other antigens as well.

The newest installment in this superb series presents descriptions of the latest DNA recombinants molecule technology. The text combines reports on basic research in genetics with discussions of specific new industrial applications (as well as refinements of older ones) that are likely to prove highly profitable in the years to come.

Atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration has increased globally from about 280 ppm before the Industrial Revolution (Pearman 1988) to about 353 ppm in 1990. That increase, and the continuing increase at a rate of about 1.5 ppm per annum, owing mainly to fossil fuel burning, is likely to cause change in climate, in primary productivity of terrestrial vegetation (managed and unmanaged), and in the degree of net sequestration of atmospheric CO into organic form. The quantitative role 2 of the latter in attenuating the increase in atmospheric CO concentration itself is 2 an important but uncertain element of the global carbon-cycle models that are required to predict future increases of atmospheric CO concentration. 2 In my experience in workshops and other multidisciplinary gatherings, argument arises in discussion of this topic among different groups of scientists such as bioclimatologists, plant physiologists, biogeochemists and ecologists. Plant concentration physiologists are often impressed by the positive effect of higher CO 2 on plant growth under experimental controlled environments and argue that this would be at least partly expressed in the field for many species and communities.

This book arose from a meeting held at the University of Washington, Seattle, in July of 1986. The meeting was a satellite symposium of the XXXth International Congress of Physiological Sciences which occurred in Vancouver, canada, at that time. 2 Adjustments in the cytoplasmic Ca ] concentration of cells occur in response to a variety of external signals. These fluctuations are a cen tral component of one mechanism by which cells adapt their activities to changes in the external environment and to the requirements of whole body 2 homeostatic mechanisms. It is now clear that redistribution of Ca + within 2 intracellular compartments, as well as changes in the rates of Ca + influx and extrusion at the whole cell level, occur during signal-dependent 2 changes in the cytoplasmic Ca + concentration. In summarizing current research in this area, this volume considers first the properties of indi vidual cation transporting activities located in various cell membranes. It then moves to the cellular level, where the consequence of individual transporting activities acting in concert is examined. l D.phasis is also 2 p1 aced on pa tho1 ogica1 conditions which resu1 t in loss of cell Ca + regu1 a tion as a part of the disease process. We hope that this approach will help the reader to integrate developments in this large and rapdi1y changing fie1 d."

The newest installment in this superb series presents descriptions of the latest DNA recombinants molecule technology. The text combines reports on basic research in genetics with discussions of specific new industrial applications (as well as refinements of older ones) that are likely to prove highly profitable in the years to come.

This volume is the proceedings of a symposium held on April 6-8, 1999, in San Francisco, CA, USA, and sponsored by the US Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Program (EMAP). EMAP is the primary program of the EPA's Office of Research and Development to advance the science of statistically-based ecosystem monitoring; and establish baseline conditions and trends of the nation's natural resources. The first volume in this series of EMAP-sponsored symposium proceedings addressed Monitoring Ecological Condition at Regional Scales' (1998). The current proceedings was the result of the EMAP Symposium on Western Ecological Systems' (1999), and presaged the new EMAP Western Pilot Study, which will include one third of the contiguous United States. The information found in these proceedings on the state of monitoring science, and existing monitoring programs undertaken by Federal and State agencies, academic institutions, tribal governments, and environmental protection interest groups helped to establish a starting point for embarking on the EMAP Western Pilot. This volume represents current scientific and management approaches, and the results of monitoring and assessment in the western US ecosystems. The chapter topics include regional assessments, approaches to database design, landscape considerations, water quality and land use, and focuses on watersheds, lakes and rivers, and marine coastal areas. Publication of these proceedings constitutes a sound starting point for the assessment of the ecological resources in the western US and will facilitate collaborative efforts in the development and application of sound approaches to monitoring and assessment of ecological resources in the US and abroad.

Professor Albert S. Perry passed away suddenly on February 18, 1992, leaving behind his grieving family, friends and colleagues. It was his aspiration to produce a comprehensive work on insecticides to summarize his lifelong dedication to the field of entomology and public health. On the day before his operation, he expressed his desire with the following words: . "1 am coming out of this surgery and will recuperate from it as soon as possible for the sake of my boy (then aged three) and the book." He also told me that he would like to add a chapter on IPM (Integrated Pest Management) and suggested that we write it together. The sad reality is that none of this took place the way he had planned and these became his last words. On my own, I found it difficult to proceed with the writing of the IPM chapter, since several chapters are required to cover. this subject and, in fact, several books. are already devoted to IPM. There was even an IPM article written in a journal (Awake 1983) for a general audience to which he commented that he would like to use it someday because it was well written for laymen, thus providing the readers a wide selection of journals and books to choose from."

2. 2. Plant materials 2. 3. Pregrowth conditions 2. 4. Cryoprotectant treatment 2. 5. Freezing 2. 5. 1. Slow freezing 2. 5. 2. Rapid freezing 2. 5. 3. Droplet freezing 2. 6. Storage 2. 7. Thawing 2. 8. Viability testing 2. 9. Post-thaw regrowth 3. EXAMPLES OF CRYOPRESERVATION OF WOODY PLANT MATERIAL 4. POTENTIAL APPLICATION OF CRYOPRESERVATION IN TREE IMPROVEMENT 17. NURSERY HANDLING OF PROPAGULES - J. A. Driver, and 320 G. R. L. Suttle 1. INTRODUCTION 2. COMMERCIAL NURSERY NEEDS VS. LABORATORY PRACTICE 3. SEASONALITY OF GROWTH AND PRODUCTION CYCLES 4. MICROPROPAGATION OPTIONS 4. 1. Trends in commercial micropropagation 4. 1. 1. Contract micropropagation 5. FACTORS AFFECTING SURVIVAL AND GROWTH 5. 1. Hardening of propagules in vitro 5. 2. Greenhouse considerationS------ 5. 3. Field planting 5. 4. New approaches: Direct field rooting 5. 4. 1. Pretreatment in vitro 5. 4. 2. Root induction 5. 4. 3. Field placement 18. MYCORRHIZAE - R. K. Dixon, and D. H. Marx 336 1. INTRODUCTION 2. ROLE OF MYCORRHIZAE IN TREE GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT 3. PRODUCTION AND APPLICATION OF ECTOMYCORRHIZAL FUNGUS INOCULUM 3. 1. Bareroot stock 3. 2. Container-grown stock 4. FIELD TRIALS WITH ECTOMYCORRHIZAL PLANTING STOCK 5. PRODUCTION AND APPLICATION OF ENDOMYCORRHIZAL INOCULUM 6. FIELD TRIALS WITH ENDOMYCORRHIZAL 7. RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES 8. SUMMARY 351 19. TISSUE CULTURE APPLICATIUN TO FOREST PATHOLOGY AND PEST CONTROL - A. M. Diner, and D. F. Karnosky 1. INTRODUCTION 2. HOST AND PATHOGEN: CULTURE AND CHALLENGE 2. 1.

Pork continues to occupy an important position as a food source in affluent societies as well as in developing countries with slower economic growth. The growth of the world swine population continues at a faster rate than that of the human population, a reflection of the sustained demand for pork in all parts of the world. The technical basis for commercial production of swine was presented in our two earlier textbooks-Swine Production in Temperate and Tropical Environ ments, by Pond and Maner, 1974, and Swine Production and Nutrition, by Pond and Maner, 1984. In view of rapidly advancing technology and an appreciation for the systems approach in industry and agriculture, this third book has been restructured to provide the student and practitioner with an integrated concept of pork production. We have attempted to blend the fundamental principles from genetics, physiology, nutrition, and biotechnology into the modern concepts of systems analysis and simulation modeling. The objective is to create a teaching approach which empha sizes the integrated synthesis of biological with physical and environmental sci ences and economics. This approach is expected to provide an overall pork pro duction systems view that individual producers can adapt to their specific resources, needs, and goals. Our new co-author, Dr. Dewey Harris, has used his expertise and perspective on interacting systems to change the complexion of the book to fulfill this objective. In addition, Dr."

Over the past three decades there has been a dramatic increase in theoretical and practical studies on insect natural enemies. The appeal of insect predators, and parasitoids in particular, as research animals derives from the relative ease with which many species may be cultured and experimented with in the laboratory, the simple life cycles of most parasitoids, and the increasing demand for biological pest control.

There is now a massive literature on insect natural enemies, so there is a great need for a general text that the enquiring student or research worker can use in deciding on approaches and techniques that are appropriate to the study and evaluation of such insects. This book fulfils that demand. A considerably updated and expanded version of a previous best-seller, it is an account of major aspects of the biology of predators and parasitoids, punctuated with information and advice on which experiments or observations to conduct, and how to carry them out. Guidance is provided, where necessary, on the literature that may need to be consulted on particular topics.

While researchers can now refer to several books on parasitoids and predators, Insects as Natural Enemies is unique in emphasising practicalities. It is aimed at students and professional working in universities and both government and commercial institutes in the fields of pest management, agriculture, horticulture and forestry.

An extraordinary development of the knowledge, concepts and biomedical applications has occurred during the past two decades in the biological sciences, including the Reticuloendothelial Sys- tem (RES). For example, it is now widely recognized that distinct classes of cells are involved in the recognition of "exogenous" invaders of the body such as microorganisms and other foreign an- tigens, as well as of "endogenous" parasites represented by trans- formed neoplastic cells and altered "self" antigens. Prominent among cell populations involved in such recognition of antigens and subsequent immune responses are those constituting the RES. In recent years, there has been much discussion and indeed contro- versy as to what constitutes such a system and even whether the term "RES" is appropriate. Some investigators feel that the phago- cytes are the most important cells of the RES as they playa major role in the defense mechanism of the host. Mononuclear phagocytes include tissue macrophages ~s well as circulating monocytes and their precursors. Although phagocytosis is a major functional ac- tivity, it is only one of their several functions. The important role of phagocytes and other mononuclear cells in antibody forma- tion, cell-mediated immunity, specific and non-specific resistance to microorganisms and tumor cells, as well as homeostatic adjust- ments in general has become the focus of attention for many inves- tigators.

The International Society of Root Research sponsored the Symposium "Root Demographics and Their Efficiencies in Sustainable Agriculture, GrassLands and Forest Ecosystems," July 14-18, 1996, at the Madren Conference Center, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina, USA. The conference was a continuation of a series of international symposiums on root research held every three to four years. Symposiums have also been held twice in Vienna, Austria, and once in Uppsala, Sweden, and Almaty, Kazahkstan prior to the meeting at Clemson University. The sponsoring society has made a particular effort in these symposia to include root scientists from the former Soviet Union because of the importance of exchanging information on a worldwide basis. This symposium continued and promoted that effort by providing travel grants to several scientists from that region; however, funds for that purpose were limited. Therefore, in compiling these proceedings, a number of papers from scientists from the former Soviet Union and former Warsaw Pack countries have been included even though the scientists were not actually present for the SymPOSIum.

Somatic hybrids through the fusion of plant protoplasts have widened the genetic variability of cultivated plants. As "Somatic Hybridization in Crop Improvement I," published in 1994, this volume describes how this discipline can contribute to the improvement of crops. It comprises 24 chapters dealing with interspecific and intergeneric somatic hybridization and cybridization. It is divided into four sections:
I. Cereals: Barley, rice, and wheat.
II. Vegetables and Fruits: "Arabidopsis," "Asparagus," "Brassica," chicory, "Citrus," "Cucumis," "Diospyros," "Ipomoea," and various Solanaceous species, e.g., tomato, potato, and eggplant.
III. Medicinal and Aromatic Plants: "Atropa," "Dianthus," "Nicotiana," and "Senecio."
IV. Legumes/Pasture Crops: Alfalfa.
This book is tailored to the needs of advanced students, teachers and researchers in the fields of plant breeding, genetic engineering, and plant tissue culture.

This book is a collection of chapters concerning the use of biomass for the sustainable production of energy and chemicals-an important goal that will help decrease the production of greenhouse gases to help mitigate global warming, provide energy security in the face of dwindling petroleum reserves, improve balance of payment problems and spur local economic development. Clearly there are ways to save energy that need to be encouraged more. These include more use of energy sources such as, among others, manure in anaerobic digesters, waste wood in forests as fuel or feedstock for cellulosic ethanol, and conservation reserve program (CRP) land crops that are presently unused in the US. The use of biofuels is not new; Rudolf Diesel used peanut oil as fuel in the ?rst engines he developed (Chap. 8), and ethanol was used in the early 1900s in the US as automobile fuel [Songstad et al. (2009) Historical perspective of biofuels: learning from the past to rediscover the future. In Vitro Cell Dev Biol Plant 45:189-192). Brazil now produces enough sugar cane ethanol to make up about 50% of its transportation fuel needs (Chap. 4). The next big thing will be cellulosic ethanol. At present, there is also the use of Miscanthus x giganteous as fuel for power plants in the UK (Chap. 2), bagasse (sugar cane waste) to power sugar cane mills (Chap. 4), and waste wood and sawdust to power sawmills (Chap. 7).

2 The role of Ca+ as an internal messenger in visual transduction of vertebrate and invertebrate organisms has been explored intensely in the recent past. Since the 2 early 1970s, calcium ions and cyclic GMP (whose levels are controlled by Ca+ in vertebrates) have been recognized as important second messengers. Particularly in 2 the last decade, however, the role of Ca+ in visual transduction has been re-evalu- ated and a proliferation of research has documented a multiplicity of roles. 2 It is now evident that Ca+ modulates phototransduction by acting at several 2 sites through a host of small Ca+ -binding proteins. For example, in phototransduction 2 of vertebrates, Ca+-free forms of guanylate cyclase activating proteins (GCAPs) activate guanylate cyclase, modulating levels of cOMP, a key event in the return of photoreceptors to pre-bleach conditions. Defects in genes encoding guanylate cy- clase or guanylate cyclase activating proteins lead to severe diseases of the retina (e. g. , Leber congenital amaurosis, rod/cone dystrophy, or cone dystrophy), thus em- phasizing the important role of these proteins in phototransduction. Similarly, mu- 2 tant genes encoding cation or Ca+ channels (cyclic nucleotide-gated cation chan- 2 nels located in the cell membrane and L-type voltage-gated Ca+ channels located at the synapse of photo receptors) lead to retinitis pigmentosa or congenital stationary night blindness. In phototransduction of invertebrate organisms (e. g. , Drosophila 2 and Limulus), the role of Ca+ is similarly central, but distinct, from that of vertebrates.

This book is intended as a general text for undergraduates studying the manage ment of forest insect pests. It is divided into four parts: insects, ecology, manage ment, and practice. Part I, Insects, contains two chapters. The first is intended to provide an overview of the general attributes of insects. Recognizing that it is impossible to adequately treat such a diverse and complex group of organisms in such a short space, I have attempted to highlight those insectan characteristics that make them difficult animals to combat. I have also tried to expose the insects' weak points, those attributes that make them vulnerable to manipulation by human actions. Even so, this first chapter will seem inadequate and sketchy to many of my colleagues. Ideally, this book should be used in conjunction with a laboratory manual covering insect anatomy, physiology, biology, behavior, and classifica tion in much greater depth-in fact, this is how I organize my forest entomology course. It is hoped that this first chapter will provide nonentomologists with a general feel for the insects and with a broad understanding of their strengths and weaknesses, while Chapter 2 will provide a brief overview of the diverse insect fauna that attacks the various parts of forest trees and their products."

One of the most fundamental aspects of the auditory system is its frequency selectivity - the ability to resolve a complex sound into frequency compOhents. This ability plays a role in many aspects of auditory perception, including: the masking of one sound by another; the perception of pitch for pure tones and complex tones; the perception of timbre; the perception of the relative phase of components in complex sounds; and the perception of loudness. Over the last decade, there have been considerable advances in our understanding of frequency selectivity, both at the physiological and psychophysical level, and rapid progress continues to be made. This book summarizes the proceedings of a NATO Advanced Research Workshop on Auditory Frequency Selectivity which was held in Wolfson College, Cambridge from June 23rd to 27th, 1986. The Workshop brought together leading researchers from all disciplines relevant to the topic, with the aim of reviewing and consolidating the latest research findings, and identifying areas of uncertainty or controversy where further research is needed. The book is aimed primarily at research scientists and research students in the fields of psychology, audiology, auditory physiology, biophysics, medicine, acoustical engineering, noise control, communication and speech science. It should also be useful for advanced undergraduates in these disciplines. A feature of the book is that it includes summaries of the discussions which followed the presentation of each paper at the Workshop.

Rice is the most important cereal crop which feeds more than half the population of the world. It is being grown in more than 144. 641 million ha with a production of over 468. 275 million tons (in 1988). Rice is attacked by a large number of pests and diseases which cause an enormous loss in its yield. Therefore, the major objectives in rice breeding are the development of disease resistance, tolerance to insects, adverse soil water, and drought; and improvement of quality including increased protein content. Tremendous efforts being made at the International Rice Research Institute have resulted in the release of improved varieties. It is estimated that the world's annual rice production must increase from 460 million tons (in 1987) to 560 million tons by the year 2000, and to 760 million tons by 2020 (a 65% increase) in order to keep up with the population growth (IRRI Rice Facts 1988). To achieve this gigantic goal, new strategies have to be evolved. Since the success of any crop improvement program de pends on the extent of genetic variability in the base population, new techniques need to be developed not only to generate the much needed variability but also for its conservation. In this regard the progress made in the biotechnology of rice during the last 5 years has amply demonstrated the immense value of innovative approaches for further improvement of this crop.

This fifth volume in the series The Plant Viruses, dealing with viruses with bipartite genomes, completes the coverage of viruses with isometric parti cles and genomes consisting of single-stranded, positive-sense RNA: viruses that have tripartite and monopartite genomes of this kind were dealt with in Volumes 1 and 3, respectively. How close are the affinities among the viruses within the groupings distinguished in this way? All those with tripartite genomes are considered to be sufficiently closely related to be included in the family Bromoviridae, whereas the monopartite-genome viruses covered in Volume 3 clearly are a much more diverse collection. Affinities among the viruses with bipartite genomes are considered in Chapter 1 of this volume, along with the possible origins, advantages, and disadvantages of these ge nomes. The conclusion reached from this assessment is that the bipartite genome viruses fall into four categories, those within each category having closer affinities with viruses not included in this book than with viruses in the other categories. No evidence was found that possession of a bipartite genome gives a virus overwhelming advantages over viruses of other sorts. More probably, any advantages are largely balanced by disadvantages, and bipartite genomes may be best considered simply as an alternative design for the hereditary material of a virus.

The International Energy Agency Bioenergy Agreement was initiated as the Forestry Energy Agreement in 1978. It was expanded in 1986 to form the Bioenergy Agreement. Since that time the Agreement has thrived with some fifteen countries (Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, United States and the CEC) currently being signatories. The objective of the Agreement is to establish increased programme and project cooperation between the participants in the field of bioenergy. The environmental consequences of intensive forest harvesting have been the subject of intense interest for the Agreement from its initiation. This interest was formulated as a Cooperative Project under the Forestry Energy Agreement in 1984. It developed further under each of the subsequent three-year Tasks of the Bioenergy Agreement (Task III, Activity 3 "Nutritional consequences of intensive forest harvesting on site productivity," Task VI, Activity 6 "Environmental impacts of harvesting" and more recently Task IX, Activity 4 "Environmental impacts of intensive harvesting." The work has been supported by five main countries from within the Bioenergy Agreement: Canada, New Zealand, Sweden, UK, and USA. The continued work has resulted in a significant network of scientists work ing together towards a common objective - that of generating a better under standing of the processes involved in nutrient cycling and the development of management regimes which will maintain or enhance long term site productivity."

Introduced to the technical aspects of forestry aerial spraying in the mid-1970's, we were immediately impressed by the complexity of the process of delivering pesticide to foliage. At that time, there was a vigorous public debate in New Brunswick about the ecological and public h~alth impacts of the annual spray program for the control of defoliation of spruce and fir trees by the spruce budworm. The forest industry is important to the province and changes to the established procedures of budworm control could have major economic implications. A rational debate required reliable information about the mechanics of the spraying process. There was a need to supply missing information as to required pesticide application rates, atomizer performance, off-target drift and deposit, and the effects of weather and aircraft operating factors. We were invited to initiate a research program in this domain by New Brunswick forest management officials, and what follows in this book is a logical and quantitative description of the overall process based on our own research and that of others over the intervening years. After a short introduction to aerial spraying, we begin (Chapter 2) by describing forest stands in terms of their interaction with suspended atmospheric particulate material carried along by the wind and susceptible to deposition on foliage. We introduce foliage simulators and their use in measuring the deposit of sprayed pesticide on foliage, the "biological interface" between pest and pesticide.

The rapidly growing human population has increased the dependence on fossil fuel-based agrochemicals, such as fertilizers and pesticides, to produce the required agricultural and forestry products. This has exerted great pressure on non-renewable fossil fuel resources, which cannot last indefinitely. Not only do agrochemicals pollute the environment, but pests also become resistant to pesticides. Thus, present agricultural practices exploit natural resources, and damage fauna and flora and agroecosystems. One safe alternative to overcome these problems is the use of allelopathy to sustain development in agriculture and forestry and maintain a clean environment for future generations. This book is the Proceedings of the III International Congress on Allelopathy in Ecological Agriculture and Forestry, held on August 18-21, 1998, at the University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad, Karnataka, India, and provides an updated status of current allelopathy research in various leading countries, with the overall aim of developing new technologies for ecological agriculture and forestry in the 21st century. To date, no book on ecological agriculture has discussed these aspects, hence it is the first time that such information is available. The chapter contributors are leading specialists in their fields, and all chapters have been peer-reviewed by international referees. This book will be indispensable for agricultural scientists (agronomists, entomologists, nematologists, plant pathologists, horticulturists, plant breeders, agroforesters, foresters, soil scientists), bioscientists (biochemists, organic chemists, plant ecologists, microbiologists and limnologists), environmentalists, graduate students and farmers, as well as for organizations engaged in sustainable agriculture and organic agriculture.

This book was developed from the proceedings of the American Chemical Society, Division of Agricultural & Food Chemistry, subdivision of Natural Products Symposium "Biosynthesis and Metabolism of Secondary Natural Products" held in Atlanta, Georgia, April 1991. The objective of the conference was to bring together people from apparently diverse fields, ranging from biotechnology, metabolism, mechanistic organic chemistry, enzymology, fermentation, and biosynthesis, but who share a common interest in either the biosynthesis or the metabolism of natural products. It is our intention to help bridge the gap between the fields of mechanistic bio-organic chemistry and biotechnology. Our thanks go to Dr. Henry Yokoyama, co-organizer of the symposium, the authors who so kindly contributed chapters, the conference participants, and to those who assisted in the peer review process. We also thank the financial supporters of the symposium: ACS/AGFD, NIH General Medical Sciences, and the agricultural, pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and chromatography companies. A full list of the supporting corporations and institutions is given on the following page. Pharma-Tech and P.C., Inc. are manufacturers of instrumentation for high-speed countercurrent chromatography. We thank the Agricultural Research Service and the U. S. Department of Agriculture for granting me permission to co-organize the conference and for us to complete the book. Richard J. Petroski Susan P. McCormick USDA, ARS, National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research Peoria, IL 61604 June 10, 1992 vii CONTENTS ANTIBIOTICS Polyketide Synthetases: Enzyme Complexes and Multifunctional Proteins Directing the Biosynthesis of Bacterial Metabolites from Fatty Acids. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 . . . . . . . . . . .

This book is the synthesis of research on the and preparation of the book. Professor J. B. Falinski and his co-workers substantially helped dynamics of vegetation conducted in the Bialo- in organizing the study area and providing finan- wieia Primeval Forest (North-Eastern Poland), following the first book on this subject published cial support in the course of field work. in 1986 by Dr W. Junk Publishers as volume 8 in I gratefully thank Professor K. Zarzycki for his the Geobotany series [Falinski J. B. (with the unfailing support and help in these long-term assistance of K. Faliriska), Vegatation Dynamics in studies and for financing the studies with the Temperate Lowland Primeval Forests. Ecological grant, CPBP 04.04.B. The final stages of prepara- Studies in Bialowieia ForestJ. Like the first book, tion of this book (graphics and translations) were this one resulted from the work of the Bialowieza financed by the grant CPBP 04.10.07. I am grate- Geobotanical Station of Warsaw University and ful to Professors A. Szujecki and R. Andrzejewski for the administering of the grant.