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Des Menschen Werk auf Erden kann vergehen, Doch Leben stets im
Wandel wird bestehen. Heinrich Walter The importance of ecology for
the fate of mankind is receiving ever wider recognition. A
syncretic-holistic approach to ecology was recently given
unexpected support by the well-known atomic physicist and pupil of
Heisenberg, Fritjov Capra. In his book The Turning Point, published
in 1982 in the U.S.A., Capra comments critically, from the
viewpoint of the latest findings of subatomic physics, on the
mechanical-analytical ap proach which still predominates in the
biological sciences, and adds some philosophical reflections. The
following quotations are important ecolo gically and may be of
interest to biologists in general: "It is now becoming apparent
that overemphasis on the scientific method and on rational,
analytic thinking has led to attitudes that are profoundly
anti-ecological. In truth, the understanding of ecosystems is
hindered by the very nature of the rational mind. Rational thinking
is linear, whereas ecological awareness arises from an intuition of
non-linear systems .... The Cartesian view of the universe as a
mechanical system provided a 'scientific' sanction for the
manipulation and exploitation of nature that has become typical of
Western culture .... The problem is that scientists, encouraged by
their success in treating living organisms as machines, tend to
believe that they are nothing but machines .... Modern physics can
show the other sciences that scientific thinking does not
necessarily have to be reductionist and mechanistic, that holistic
and ecological views are also scientifically sound ...."
In Volume 1 of this four-volume series, ecological problems of a
general nature were discussed from a global point of view.
Familiarity with this is essential for a full understanding of the
more specialized treatment in this and subsequent volumes, for no
similar approach is to be found in other ecological handbooks for
beginners. This present volume deals in detail with the special
ecological relation ships of the tropical and subtropical
zonobiomes I to III. Most ecologists proceed from the basis of
their experience in the temperate zones of the northern hemisphere.
As a result, many ecological writings show a certain one-sidedness
and there is a danger that generalizations made will not be broadly
applicable. To avoid this, particular emphasis is laid, in this vol
urne, on the special ecological features and the characteristics of
the trop ical and subtropical regions. More specifically, we deal
not only with the relationship of the euclimatope to zonal soils
and zonal vegetation, but also pay attention to azonal conditions
shown in pedobiomes and in the altitudinal belts of mountains, the
orobiomes. In this and the subsequent volumes the same simple
scheme is followed in treating each zonobiome: 1. climate; 2.
soils; 3. producers; 4. consum ers; 5. decomposers; 6. ecosystems;
7. sub division into biomes; 8. oro biomes; 9. pedobiomes and 10.
zonoecotones. Where it has appeared expedient, however, we have
occasionally deviated from this scheme (see Deserts D, F, G and
H)."
By the end of the last century, the only region in all of Europe
where the natural vegetation remained untouched over large expanses
was Eastern Europe. Information on the vegetation of this region
however, remained mostly unavailable to western scientists although
the ecological approach to botanical research originated in Eastern
Europe. Heinrich Walter was born in Russia, studied Natural
Sciences - with emphasis on botany - in Odessa and is familiar with
all relevant Russian literature on ecology. This volume thus offers
scientists worldwide a unique and comprehensive survey of "all"
relevant research, including the mostly unknown literature
published in Russian.
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