Principles of Thermal Ecology: Temperature, Energy and Life

by Andrew Clarke

Overview

Temperature affects everything. It influences all aspects of the physical environment and governs any process that involves a flow of energy, setting boundaries on what an organism can or cannot do. This novel textbook reveals the key principles behind the complex relationship between organisms and temperature, namely the science of thermal ecology. It starts by providing a rigorous framework for understanding the flow of energy in and out of the organism, before describing the influence of temperature on what organisms can do and how fast they can do it. With these fundamental principles covered, the bulk of the book explores thermal ecology itself, incorporating the important extra dimension of interactions with other organisms. An entire chapter is devoted to the crucially important subject of how organisms are responding to climate change. Indeed, the threat of rapid climatic change on a global scale is a stark reminder of the challenges that remain for evolutionary thermal biologists, and adds a sense of urgency to this book's mission.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780199551675
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	09/27/2017
Pages:	478
Sales rank:	929,346
Product dimensions:	9.60(w) x 7.40(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Andrew Clarke, British Antarctic Survey, Cambridge, UK

Andrew Clarke studied zoology and geology at Cambridge University, spending the summer of 1968 supporting geological fieldwork in Svalbard. After graduating from Cambridge University in 1970 he joined the British Antarctic Survey and spent the next 40 years working in South Georgia, the South Orkney Islands, the Antarctic Peninsula, and the Antarctic continent with the occasional return trip to Svalbard, and retired in 2010. His main ecological interests centre on how animals and plants relate to temperature. He has worked primarily with marine invertebrates and fish, but also on birds, mammals, and most recently dinosaurs. He has written over 180 scientific papers.

Table of Contents

1. Introduction2. Energy and heat3. Temperature and its measurement4. Energy flow in organisms5. Water6. Freezing7. Temperature and reaction rate8. Metabolism9. Temperature regulation10. Endothermy11. Torpor and hibernation12. The Metabolic Theory of Ecology13. Temperature, growth and size14. Global temperature and life15. Temperature and diversity16. Global climate change and its ecological consequences17. Ten principles of thermal ecology

Editorial Reviews

"This volume provides a foundation of knowledge for thermal ecologists, particularly those just entering the field." — The Quarterly Review of Biology

"This thoroughly researched and documented volume is the product of a life's work supports more student-friendly gee-whiz texts of physiology and ecology... There is no better way for getting comfortable with the arcane details than this. Highly recommended." — G. C. Stevens, CHOICE

From the Publisher