Title Details

Michael Begon is Professor of Ecology in the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Liverpool. He has authored several books in addition to Ecology and around 150 research articles. His current research interests are focused on the population ecology of pathogens in wildlife populations.

John L. Harper is an award-winning biologist and a leading figure in plant population biology. He has served as a council member of the Fellowship of the Royal Society and received the Darwin Arward in 1990. He is also the author of Population Biology of Plants and a co-author of Ecology.

Full contents vi

Preface x

Acknowledgments xii

Part I Introduction 1

1 Ecology and how to do it 3

2 Ecology's evolutionary backdrop 36

Part II Conditions and Resources 67

3 Physical conditions and the availability of resources 69

4 Conditions, resources and the world’s communities 110

Part III Individuals, Populations, Communities and Ecosystems 143

5 Birth, death and movement 145

6 Interspecific competition 182

7 Predation, grazing and disease 217

8 Evolutionary ecology 251

9 From populations to communities 281

10 Patterns in species richness 323

11 The flux of energy and matter through ecosystems 357

Part IV Applied Issues in Ecology 387

12 Sustainability 389

13 Habitat degradation 423

14 Conservation 455

References 483

Index 495

"The new edition also features new artwork and an enhanced design, making Essentials of Ecology as attractive as it is up-to-date and relevant." (Biotechnologie, Agronomie Societe et Environment)