Dynamics of Tropical Communities 37th Symposium of The British Ecological Society

About this book

Tropical communities are recognised as among the most species-rich and dynamic in the world. Yet far from existing as dynamic equilibria, large unpredictable disruptive events are seen as dominating the longer-term dynamics set against the background of global change. This volume challenges the dynamic equilibrium idea yet further, arguing for thinking on a timescale of decades to centuries, finding different ways to handle unpredictability and uniqueness, and evaluating species diversity and community change at different scales. The difficult search for robust generalizations and rules in tropical communities, which might allow better prescription through understanding rather than description is partly answered in this forward-looking book by the realization that an alternative framework and perspective is required for the tropics. This volume will continue to appeal to both researchers and advanced students of ecology.

First published in 1998.

Contents

Part I: Seeds And Fruits Of Tropical Rainforest Plants: Interpretation Of The Range In Seed Size, Degree Of Defence And Flesh/Seed Quotients Patterns In Post-Dispersal Seed Removal By Neotropical Rodents And Seed Fate In Relation With Seed Size; Disturbance, Phenology And Life-History Characteristics: Factors Influencing Distance/Density-Dependent Attack On Tropical Seeds And Seedlings Gap Size Niche Differentiation By Tropical Rain Forest Trees -A Testable Hypothesis Or A Broken Down Band-Wagon Differential Effects Of Small-Scale Fishing On Predatory And Prey Fishes On Fijian Reefs Architecture And Development In Rain Forest Trees: Responses To Light Variation Limits To Tree Species Distributions In Lowland Tropical Rain Forest Community Structure And The Demography Of Primary Species In Tropical Rain Forest Risk Spreading And Risk Reducing Tactics Of West African Anurans In An Unpredictably Changing And Stressful Environment Limits To Exploitation Of Serengeti Wildebeest And Implications For Its Management Part II: Phenology And Dynamics Of An African Rain Forest At Korup, Cameroon; Primates, Phenology And Frugivory: Present, Past And Future Patterns In The Lope Reserve, Gabon; Effects Of Habitat Fragmentation On Plant-Pollinator Interactions In The Tropics A Spatial Model Of Savannah Function And Dynamics: Model Description And Preliminary Results Evolution And Diversity In Amazonian Floodplain Communities Community Dynamics Of Aboral Insectivorous Birds In African Savannahs Species Richness Of African Grazer Assemblages: Toward A Functional Explanation Niche Specificity Among Tropical Trees: A Question Of Scales Disturbance And Succession On The Krakatau Islands, Indonesia; Major Disturbances In Tropical Rainforests The Impact Of Traditional And Modern Cultivation Practices, Including Forestry, On Lepidoptera Diversity In Malaysia And Indonesia Tropical Forests - Spatial Pattern And Change With Time, As Assessed By Remote Sensing

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