The Ecology of Invasions by Animals and Plants ||

Elton sought to articulate more explicitly his vision of an entire field of invasion science. The 1958 book, aimed at an educated lay audience, was almost wholly descriptive, dominated by striking examples of the nature and scope of particular invasions beginning with the seven examples detailed in Chapter 1. From the materials in the proof copy and other sources, we can imagine a new edition would also have targeted biologists and been somewhat more technical and prescriptive. In autobiographical notes he penned near the end of his life, Elton wrote regarding EIAP , “This whole subject has deep significance for the study of plant and animal communities and their balance (or unbalance),” 19 and indeed many of the reprints and notes refer to interactions among species and community-wide effects. Charles S. Elton's classic text Ecology of Invasions by Animals and Plants sounded an early warning about a human-driven global change that became widely appreciated among scientists and the public only decades later. "We must make no mistake", he wrote. "We are seeing one of the great historical convulsions of the world's fauna and flora." The enormous environmental consequences of this phenomenon are now well recognized. The past 60 years have seen an exponential rise in research on biological invasions, and Elton's original hypotheses are among those at the center of this research. In this new annotated edition, ecologists Daniel Simberloff and Anthony Ricciardi have provided forewords placing each chapter into historical scientific context. They assess the influence of Elton's ideas on the development of invasion ecology. Moreover, using the author's notes from the Elton archives at the University of Oxford, Simberloff and Ricciardi offer evidence that Elton was preparing the groundwork for a revised edition and discuss what additions and changes he intended to make. With clear language and copious examples, Ecology of Invasions is the first book to place invasions in a global context and is still the most cited work on the subject. It is an essential reference for students, researchers, and the general public who wish to understand an environmental phenomenon that has grown in magnitude and scope as a global issue for conservation and biosecurity "The Ecology of Invasions by Animals and Plants sounded an early warning about an environmental catastrophe that has become all too familiar today - the invasion of nonnative species. From kudzu to zebra mussels to Asian long-horned beetles, nonnative species are colonizing new habitats around the world at an alarming rate, thanks to accidental and deliberate human intervention. One of the leading causes of extinctions of native animals and plants, invasive species also wreak severe economic havoc, causing billions of dollars in damage each year in the United States alone.". "Elton explains the devastating effects that invasive species can have on local ecosystems in clear, concise language and with numerous examples. The first book on invasion biology, and still the most cited, Elton's masterpiece provides an accessible, engaging introduction to one of the most important environmental crises of our time."--BOOK JACKET. Preface New Introduction References Contents Illustrations 1 Foreword to Chapter One References 2 chapter one 3 Foreword to Chapter Two References 4 Chapter Two 5 Foreword to Chapter Three References 6 Chapter Three 7 Foreword to Chapter Four References 8 Chapter Four 9 Foreword to Chapter Five References 10 Chapter Five 11 Foreword to Chapter Six References 12 Chapter Six 13 Foreword to Chapter Seven References 14 Chapter Seven 15 Foreword to Chapter Eight References 16 Chapter Eight 17 Foreword to Chapter Nine References 18 Chapter Nine Conclusion References CHAPTER I CHAPTER II CHAPTER III CHAPTER IV CHAPTER V CHAPTER VI CHAPTER VII CHAPTER VIII CHAPTER IX Index Nowadays we live in a very explosive world, and while we may not know where or when the next outburst will be, we might hope to find ways of stopping it or at any rate damping down its force.