Ecological Methods

About this book

This classic text, whose First Edition one reviewer referred to as "the ecologists' bible," has been substantially revised and rewritten. Not only have the advances made in the field since the Second Edition been taken into account, but the scope has been explicitly extended to all macroscopic animals, with particular attention being paid to fish as well as other vertebrates.

Ecological Methods provides a unique synthesis of the methods and techniques available for the study of populations and ecosystems. Techniques used to obtain both absolute and relative population estimates are described, and approaches to the direct measurement of births, deaths, migration and the construction and interpretation of life tables are reviewed.

The text is extensively illustrated, clearly describing a wide range of equipment and methods of analysis. Comprehensive and up-to-date bibliographies to each chapter fully cover the relevant literature, and references are given to available computer programs and internet addresses. Ecological Methods has an active web site providing additional illustrations, details of equipment and programs, and references to work published since the revision was completed. Like the earlier editions, Ecological Methods will be an indispensable source of reference to researchers and students at all levels in the fields of ecology, entomology and zoology.

Contents

Prefaces

1. Introduction to the Study of Animal Populations
2. The Sampling Programme and the Measurement and Description of Dispersion
3. Absolute Population Estimates Using Capture-Recapture Experiments
4. Absolute Population Estimates by Sampling a Unit of Habitat: Air, Plants, Plant Products and Vertebrate Hosts
5. Absolute Population Estimates by Sampling a Unit of Aquatic Habitat
6. Absolute Population Estimates by Sampling a Unit of Soil or Litter Habitat: Extraction Techniques
7. Relative Methods of Population Measurement and the Derivation of Absolute Estimates
8. Estimates of Species Richness and Population Size Based on Signs, Products and Effects
9. Wildlife Population Estimates by Census and Distance Measuring Techniques
10. Observational and Experimental Methods for the Estimation of Natality, Mortality and Dispersal
11. The Construction, Description and Analysis of Age-Specific Life-Tables
12. Age-grouping, Time-Specific Life Tables and Predictive Population Models
13. Species Richness, Diversity and Packing
14. The Estimation of Productivity and the Construction of energy Budgets
15. Studies at large Spatial and Temporal Scales and the Classification of Habitats

References
Index

Customer Reviews