The Makhteshim Country – A Laboratory of Nature Geological and Ecological Studies in the Desert Region of Israel

About this book

Language: English

The present book is an outcome of 10 years of research by the Ramon Science Center staff and scientists from other institutes in Israel (Jacob Blaustein Institute for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev) and from abroad. The Makhteshim Country – A Laboratory of Nature is a comprehensive and richly illustrated survey of the geology and natural history of the Makhteshim Country, situated in the desert zone of Israel. The various topics of study, ranging from the tectonics and local geological parameters to plant and animal diversity and intervention of man in the past and present times. After a decade of operation of the Ramon Science Center, it may be concluded that the Makhteshim Country has indeed evolved into a Laboratory of Nature. The Makhteshim Country – A Laboratory of Nature is an indispensable treatise for specialists in geology and natural history of deserts as well as ecologists, nature conservationists and specialists in sustainable development, monitoring and landscape planning.

Contents

Prologue - Makhteshim country, Ramon science centre and nature laboratory

Part 1 Geology: past and present processes
- structure and landscape evolution of the Makhteshim country - interrelations between monoclines, truncation surfaces and the evolution of the Makhteshim
- relief structure and the quaternary history of the Makhteshim
- Makhtesh Hazera, the Zin Valley and the Dead Sea basin - evolutionary links
- applied archeoseismology - decoding earthquake parameters recorded in archeological ruins
- erosion as the main cause of ongoing desertification in the Makhteshim country

Part 2 Ecology: studying nature at work
- plant species diversity and population dynamics in Mkhtesh Ramon
- Tenebrionid beetles at Makhtesh Ramon - seasonality, diversity and community structure
- lizards of Makhtesh Ramon - habitat, distribution and spatial organization of communities
- rodents of Makhtesh Ramon - habitat distribution and temporal dynamics of the spatial organization of communities
- flea assemblages on rodents in Makhtesh Ramon - host-habitat mediation of host-parasite relationships
- ungulates of Makhtesh Ramon - Idynamics, behaviour, and their conservation implications

Part 3 science and nature conservation: plant sampling protocols for vegetation of arid zones
- a monitoring protocol for a nature reserve - a case study for the Ramon nature reserve
- lichen monitoring in the context of climate change
- millennia of sustained desert agriculture in the Central Negev versus highly preserved ecosystems inside the Makhteshim

Part 4 Science: applications and social relevance
- urban ecology - Mizpe Ramon as an example
- environmental education in Mizpe Ramon
- harmonizing Mizpe Ramon with the surrounding nature

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