BiodiversityThis important book for scientists and nonscientists alike calls attention to a most urgent global problem: the rapidly accelerating loss of plant and animal species to increasing human population pressure and the demands of economic development. Based on a major conference sponsored by the National Academy of Sciences and the Smithsonian Institution, Biodiversity creates a systematic framework for analyzing the problem and searching for possible solutions. |
Contents
The Current State of Biological Diversity 3 | |
Going Going? 28 | |
Ecological Diversity in Coastal Zones and Oceans 36 | |
Diversity Crises in the Geological Past 51 | |
Estimating Reductions in the Diversity of Tropical Forest 58 | |
Challenges to Biological Diversity in Urban Areas 71 | |
Deep Ecology Meets the Developing World 79 | |
What 98 | |
Intensive Technology in the Care of Ex Situ Populations of Vanishing Species 289 | |
Cryobiology Embryo Transfer and Artificial Insemina tion in Ex Situ Animal Conservation Programs 296 | |
CAN WE RECOVER | |
Restoration of Degraded Lands in the Amazon Basin Christopher Uhl 326 | |
Increasing Diversity by Restoring Damaged Ecosystems John Cairns Jr 333 | |
The Search for a Social and Eco nomic Context 344 | |
ALTERNATIVES TO DESTRUCTION | |
Biological Engineering for Sustainable Biomass Produc tion 377 | |
The Outlook for New Agricultural and Industrial Prod ucts from the Tropics 106 | |
TROPICAL FORESTS | |
THE GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE | |
THE VALUE OF BIODIVERSITY | |
CONTENTS xi | |
The Rise of the Global Exchange Economy and the Loss of Biological Diversity 206 | |
Why Put a Value on Biodiversity? David Ehrenfeld 212 | |
Monitoring Biological Diversity for Setting Priorities in Conservation 227 | |
HOW CAN THEY | |
POLICIES TO PROTECT DIVERSITY | |
Recent Progress and New Initiatives 403 | |
International Development and the Protection of Biologi cal Diversity 409 | |
PRESENT PROBLEMS AND FUTURE PROSPECTS | |
A Major New Opportunity to Finance the Preservation of Biodiversity 437 | |
And Today Were Going To Talk About Biodiversity Thats Right Biodiversity 446 | |
WAYS OF SEEING THE BIOSPHERE | |
EPILOGUE | |
Other editions - View all
Biodiversity E.O. Wilson,National Academy of Sciences (U.S.),Smithsonian Institution Snippet view - 1988 |
Common terms and phrases
Africa agricultural alien Amazon Amazonia animals artificial insemination biodiversity biogeographic biological diversity BIOLOGICAL INVASIONS biologists biota birds botanical Brazil breeding canopy CHAPTER COASTAL ZONES communities conservation countries crop deep ecology deforestation destruction drugs dry forest economic economists ecosystems effects Ehrlich embryo transfer endangered species endemic environmental environments estimates example exotic extinction rates fauna flora fynbos gene genetic resources global grasslands habitat Hawaii human important increase insects islands Kayapo land loss Madagascar major mammals marine mass extinctions MEDICINES Mediterranean-climate million species National Park native natural number of species old-growth organisms Phanerozoic plant species populations potential prairie preservation Press primates problems production programs reduced regions restoration Science secondary forests seed South South America species diversity species extinction species richness square kilometers survival temperate terrestrial trees tropical forests U.S. Department University vegetation Washington wetlands wild wildlife Yanomami York ZONES AND OCEANS