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The frontier images of America embrace endless horizons, majestic
herds of native ungulates, and romanticized life-styles of nomadie
peoples. The images were mere reflections of vertebrates living in
harmony in an ecosystem driven by the unpre dictable local and
regional effects of drought, frre, and grazing. Those effects,
often referred to as ecological "disturbanees," are rather the
driving forces on which species depended to create the spatial and
temporal heterogeneity that favored ecological prerequisites for
survival. Alandscape viewed by European descendants as monotony
interrupted only by extremes in weather and commonly referred to as
the "Great American Desert," this country was to be rushed through
and cursed, a barrier that hindered access to the deep soils of the
Oregon country, the rich minerals of California and Colorado, and
the religious freedom sought in Utah. Those who stayed (for lack of
resources or stamina) spent a century trying to moderate the
ecological dynamics of Great Plains prairies by suppressing fires,
planting trees and exotic grasses, poisoning rodents, diverting
waters, and homogenizing the dynamies of grazing with endless
fences-all creating bound an otherwise boundless vista. aries in
Historically, travelers and settlers referred to the area of
tallgrasses along the western edge of the deciduous forest and
extending midway across Kansas as the "True Prairie. " The grasses
thlnned and became shorter to the west, an area known then as the
Great Plains."
The frontier images of America embrace endless horizons, majestic
herds of native ungulates, and romanticized life-styles of nomadie
peoples. The images were mere reflections of vertebrates living in
harmony in an ecosystem driven by the unpre dictable local and
regional effects of drought, frre, and grazing. Those effects,
often referred to as ecological "disturbanees," are rather the
driving forces on which species depended to create the spatial and
temporal heterogeneity that favored ecological prerequisites for
survival. Alandscape viewed by European descendants as monotony
interrupted only by extremes in weather and commonly referred to as
the "Great American Desert," this country was to be rushed through
and cursed, a barrier that hindered access to the deep soils of the
Oregon country, the rich minerals of California and Colorado, and
the religious freedom sought in Utah. Those who stayed (for lack of
resources or stamina) spent a century trying to moderate the
ecological dynamics of Great Plains prairies by suppressing fires,
planting trees and exotic grasses, poisoning rodents, diverting
waters, and homogenizing the dynamies of grazing with endless
fences-all creating bound an otherwise boundless vista. aries in
Historically, travelers and settlers referred to the area of
tallgrasses along the western edge of the deciduous forest and
extending midway across Kansas as the "True Prairie. " The grasses
thlnned and became shorter to the west, an area known then as the
Great Plains."
processes; (3) ensure the integrity of ecosys- The theory and
practice of ecosystem manage- tems; and (4) advocate the
sustainable use of ment is pivotal to the debate over how to
sustain the health and productivity of our envi- natural resources.
In this book, each of these ronment. In particular, the role of
ecosystems four topics is addressed by a set of eight key in
preserving biological diversity, their contri- journal articles.
The first article in each section bution to economic growth, and
their influence provides an overview, followed by case histo- ries
and a concluding paper which is a commen- on human well-being is
highly controversial tary on the difficulty of the issue or
assesses its (Lubchenco et al. 1991). Traditional resource
management does not protect natural values future direction. An
article by Risser provides a (Sax 1993) or provide for the
sustainable pro- closing synthesis to this collection. duction of
goods and services (Barnes 1993). The authors of the articles in
Part 1-Under- Yet a number of researchers and managers stand
Diversity - speak to the current problems further question the
ability of science to pro- and directions in the conservation of
biological vide sufficiently powerful tools for the under-
diversity. Tilman and Downing argue that standing and
implementation of ecosystem preservation of native biodiversity is
essential management (Clark 1996).
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