Community Ecology / Edition 2

by Gary G. Mittelbach, Brian J. McGill

Overview

Community ecology has undergone a transformation in recent years, from a discipline largely focused on processes occurring within a local area to a discipline encompassing a much richer domain of study, including the linkages between communities separated in space (metacommunity dynamics), niche and neutral theory, the interplay between ecology and evolution (eco-evolutionary dynamics), and the influence of historical and regional processes in shaping patterns of biodiversity. To fully understand these new developments, however, students continue to need a strong foundation in the study of species interactions and how these interactions are assembled into food webs and other ecological networks. This new edition fulfils the book's original aims, both as a much-needed up-to-date and accessible introduction to modern community ecology, and in identifying the important questions that are yet to be answered. This research-driven textbook introduces state-of-the-art community ecology to a new generation of students, adopting reasoned and balanced perspectives on as-yet-unresolved issues.

Community Ecology is suitable for advanced undergraduates, graduate students, and researchers seeking a broad, up-to-date coverage of ecological concepts at the community level.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780198835868
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	08/05/2019
Edition description:	2nd ed.
Pages:	432
Product dimensions:	7.40(w) x 9.60(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Gary G. Mittelbach, Professor Emeritus, Michigan State University, USA,Brian J. McGill, Professor, University of Maine, USA

Gary G. Mittelbach is Professor Emeritus at the Kellogg Biological Station and the Department of Integrative Biology at Michigan State University. He graduated with a B.A. from the University of Iowa (1974) and earned his Ph.D. at Michigan State University (1980). Dr. Mittelbach's research focuses on the evolution and maintenance of biodiversity, with research ranging from experimental studies of fish populations in local lakes to theoretical analyses of global patterns of species diversity. He is an elected Fellow of the Ecological Society of America, an original member of ISI's Highly Cited Researchers, and is the recipient of Michigan State's College of Natural Science Outstanding Faculty Award and the University's W. J. Beal Outstanding Faculty Award.


Brian J. McGill is a Professor at the University of Maine in the School of Biology and Ecology and the Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions. He graduated with a B.A. in mathematics from Harvard University (1988) and, after working in the information technology industry for 9 years, earned his PhD from the University of Arizona (2003). His work focuses on how human-caused global change is impacting biodiversity. His work also focus on large scales and ecoinformatics approaches. He is Editor-in-Chief of the journal Global Ecology and Biogeography.

Table of Contents

1. Community ecology's rootsPart IThe Big Picture: patterns, causes, and consequences of biodiversity2. Patterns of biological diversity3. Biodiversity and ecosystem functioningPart IIThe Nitty-Gritty: species interactions in simple modules4. Population growth and density dependence5. The fundamentals of predator-prey interactions6. Selective predators and responsive prey7. The fundamentals of competitive interactions8. Species coexistence and niche theory9. Beneficial interactions in communities: Mutualism and facilitationPart IIIPutting the Pieces Together: food webs, ecological networks and community assembly10. Species interactions in ecological networks11. Food chains and food webs: Controlling factors and cascading effects12. Community assembly and species traitsPart IVSpatial Ecology: metapopulations and metacommunities13. Patchy environments, metapopulations and fugitive species14. MetacommunitiesPart VSpecies in Changing Environments: ecology and evolution15. Species in variable environments16. Evolutionary community ecology17. Some concluding remarks and a look ahead

Editorial Reviews

"Mittelbach covers all the major topics in community ecology from a broad prospective and provides a text that is easily usable for an advanced ecology course. I particularly like the use of the pictures and graphics throughout the text, as they provide the crucial visuals that students need to visualize advanced concepts."
-Deanna Soper, University of Dallas

"I particularly like the reflective tone, the engaging voice, the emphasis on the evolution of ideas, and that, when appropriate, the book highlights competing perspectives on as-yet-unresolved issues without attempting to codify them. I found that very helpful in getting students to appreciate that the field is dynamic, exciting, and constantly evolving, and that there is plenty of room left for people like them to make novel and important contributions."
—Robert M. Pringle, Princeton University

"This book is a much-needed up-to-date general-purpose text on community ecology. Community ecology went through a near-death experience in the late '80s and then a rebirth in a totally new direction in the '90s. This book is exciting primarily because it promises to be the first that bridges this divide and covers the new material at the same level of emphasis as the old. Author Mittelbach is one of only a handful of people who can claim to be a leading researcher in both the earlier and later paradigms of community ecology. The deep expertise and, more importantly, the sense of having been part of 'it' for both of the 'its' (early and late) exude through the pages of this manuscript. The perspective and excitement this brings set this book apart."
—Brian McGill, University of Maine

"The detail and review of the literature to support the concepts is excellent. It is clear that this textbook is driven by the research. I really like that the author makes clear the past and current arguments with regard to the theory. Further, identifying the important questions that are still to be answered is very helpful in getting students to consider that there is still work they can accomplish to contribute to our knowledge."
—Stephen Burton, Grand Valley State University

"I appreciate how Mittelbach brings a reasoned and balanced approach to presenting some issues that were once controversial, and emphasizing positive contributions to current understanding. The author takes good advantage of recent theoretical advances and presents a more rigorous synthesis of general patterns and questions."
—James P. Grover, University of Texas at Arlington

"This is an important book which fills an empty niche as a community ecology textbook that covers much of the recent literature at a fairly high level. Gary Mittelbach is one of the most influential ecologists in the US, and he has played a particularly important role in using meta-analyses to help understand large-scale patterns. As a whole, I think it is an excellent work that will introduce state-of-the-art community ecology to large numbers of students."
—Peter A. Abrams, University of Toronto

"The author does an excellent job of distilling the information and making it all clear and easy to follow, without losing the fun complexity of the topic."
—Dov F. Sax, Brown University

"I really like the ordering of topics from the Table of Contents, which follows my own thinking about a logical sequence to teach community ecology."
—Nancy E. McIntyre, Texas Tech University

From the Publisher