Download or read book Paleontology in Ecology and Conservation written by Julien Louys and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-04-25 with total page 277 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The fossil record contains unique long-term insights into how ecosystems form and function which cannot be determined simply by examining modern systems. It also provides a record of endangered species through time, which allow us to make conservation decisions based on thousands to millions of years of information. The aim of this book is to demonstrate how palaeontological data has been or could be incorporated into ecological or conservation scientific studies. This book will be written by palaeontologists for modern ecologists and conservation scientists. Manuscripts will fall into one (or a combination) of four broad categories: case studies, review articles, practical considerations and future directions. This book will serve as both a ‘how to guide’ and provide the current state of knowledge for this type of research. It will highlight the unique and critical insights that can be gained by the inclusion of palaeontological data into modern ecological or conservation studies.
Download or read book Conservation Paleobiology written by Gregory P. Dietl and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2017-11-17 with total page 329 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In conservation, perhaps no better example exists of the past informing the present than the return of the California condor to the Vermilion Cliffs of Arizona. Extinct in the region for nearly one hundred years, condors were successfully reintroduced starting in the 1990s in an effort informed by the fossil record—condor skeletal remains had been found in the area’s late-Pleistocene cave deposits. The potential benefits of applying such data to conservation initiatives are unquestionably great, yet integrating the relevant disciplines has proven challenging. Conservation Paleobiology gathers a remarkable array of scientists—from Jeremy B. C. Jackson to Geerat J. Vermeij—to provide an authoritative overview of how paleobiology can inform both the management of threatened species and larger conservation decisions. Studying endangered species is difficult. They are by definition rare, some exist only in captivity, and for those still in their native habitats any experimentation can potentially have a negative effect on survival. Moreover, a lack of long-term data makes it challenging to anticipate biotic responses to environmental conditions that are outside of our immediate experience. But in the fossil and prefossil records—from natural accumulations such as reefs, shell beds, and caves to human-made deposits like kitchen middens and archaeological sites—enlightening parallels to the Anthropocene can be found that might serve as a primer for present-day predicaments. Offering both deep-time and near-time perspectives and exploring a range of ecological and evolutionary dynamics and taxa from terrestrial as well as aquatic habitats, Conservation Paleobiology is a sterling demonstration of how the past can be used to manage for the future, giving new hope for the creation and implementation of successful conservation programs.
Download or read book Marine Conservation Paleobiology written by Carrie L. Tyler and published by Springer. This book was released on 2018-04-26 with total page 268 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume describes and explores the emerging discipline of conservation paleobiology, and addresses challenges faced by established and young Conservation Paleobiologist's alike. In addition, this volume includes applied research highlighting how conservation paleobiology can be used to understand ecosystem response to perturbation in near and deep time. Across 10 chapters, the book aims to (1) explore the goals of conservation paleoecology as a science, (2) highlight how conservation paleoecology can be used to understand ecosystems’ responses to crises, (3) provide case studies of applications to modern ecosystems, (4) develop novel applications of paleontological approaches to neontological data, and (5) present a range of ecosystem response and recovery through environmental crises, from high-resolution impacts on organism interactions to the broadest scale of responses of the entire marine biosphere to global change. The volume will be of interest to paleoecologists, paleobiologists, and conservation biologists.
Download or read book Integrating Conservation Biology and Paleobiology to Manage Biodiversity and Ecosystems in a Changing World written by G. Lynn Wingard and published by Frontiers Media SA. This book was released on with total page 349 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Policy makers and resource managers must make decisions that affect the resilience and sustainability of natural resources, including biodiversity and ecosystem services. However, these decisions are often based on evidence or theory derived from highly altered systems and over short time periods of low-magnitude environmental and climatic change. Because natural systems change and evolve across multiple timescales from instantaneous to millennial, long-term understanding of how past life has responded to perturbations can inform resource managers. By using these natural laboratories of the past, conservation paleobiology and paleoecology provide the framework necessary to anticipate and plan for future changes. The goal of this Research Topic is to heighten awareness among conservation and restoration practitioners to the value and applications of long-term perspectives provided by conservation paleobiology and paleoecology. Most conservation studies focus on systems already impacted by anthropogenic change; these studies would benefit from paleontological data through expanded temporal scales, identification of baselines, and an understanding of how organisms have responded to past changes. However, resource management decisions rarely include input from paleontologists, and paleoecological research is rarely incorporated into conservation decision-making. We seek to bridge this research-implementation gap by highlighting the application of paleoecological data to issues such as biodiversity dynamics, extinction risks, and resilience to perturbations, among other topics. We hope to foster new cross-disciplinary synergies by encouraging conservation scientists and managers to collaborate with paleontologists to improve conservation decision-making and by increasing awareness among paleontologists to the needs of the resource management community. This Research Topic will provide a forum for both the paleontological and resource management communities to exchange ideas that will enhance restoration and conservation decision-making. We invite papers on conceptual advances, reviews of specific topics to guide efforts in research or practice, case studies of successful applications, articles describing datasets with applied value, and perspective papers summarizing a body of paleontological research with relevance to the resource management community. Topics can include but are not limited to: • Responses of species, communities, and ecosystems to perturbations • Strategies to achieve the direct integration of paleobiology and paleoecology into on-ground resource management • Identifying baselines and reference conditions • Increasing the robustness of forecasting models through the incorporation of paleontological data • Identifying key species, interactions, and other phenomena as indicators of impending change • New methodologies, analytical tools, and/or proxies in the application of paleontological data to conservation and restoration practice Lynn Wingard, Damien Fordham, and Greg Dietl have no conflicts of interest. Chris Schneider has a potential conflict of interest where manuscripts pertain to stakeholders in the petroleum industry, as she is an independent contractor in the Alberta Oil Sands mining area.
Download or read book Shark Biology and Conservation written by Daniel C. Abel and published by JHU Press. This book was released on 2020-09-01 with total page 447 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Feed your fascination with sharks! This complete resource enlightens readers on the biology, ecology, and behavior of sharks with approachable explanations and more than 250 stunning color illustrations. Studies of shark biology have flourished over the last several decades. An explosion of new research methods is leading to a fascinating era of oceanic discovery. Shark Biology and Conservation is an up-to-date, comprehensive overview of the diversity, evolution, ecology, behavior, physiology, anatomy, and conservation of sharks. Written in a style that is detailed but not intimidating by world-renowned shark specialists Dan Abel and Dean Grubbs, it relays numerous stories and insights from their exciting experiences in the field. While explaining scientific concepts in terms that non-specialists and students can understand, Abel and Grubbs reveal secrets that will illuminate even the experts. The text provides readers with a robust and wide range of essential knowledge as it • introduces emerging as well as traditional techniques for classifying sharks, understanding their behavior, and unraveling the mysteries of their evolution; • draws on both established shark science and the latest breakthroughs in the field, from molecular approaches to tracking technologies; • highlights the often-neglected yet fascinating subject of shark physiology, including heart function, sensory biology, digestion, metabolic performance, and reproduction; • addresses big picture ecological questions like "Which habitats do sharks prefer?" and "Where do sharks migrate and for what purpose?"; • describes the astonishing diversity of sharks' adaptations to their environment; • discusses which shark conservation techniques do and don't work; and • comments on the use and misuse of science in the study of sharks. Enhanced by hundreds of original color photographs and beautifully detailed line drawings, Shark Biology and Conservation will appeal to anyone who is spellbound by this wondrous, ecologically important, and threatened group, including marine biologists, wildlife educators, students, and shark enthusiasts.
Download or read book Antelopes Deer and Relatives written by Elisabeth S. Vrba and published by . This book was released on 2000 with total page 341 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From the era of early cave paintings to the present time, ruminants - deer, antelopes, cattle, buffalo, goats, giraffes and their relatives - have captured the human imagination. Present on every continent except Australia and Antarctica, they have also been more important to human subsistence than any other mammalian group. This book is a discussion of the evolution, biology, relationships, and conservation of this fascinating and ecologically important group of mammals. Eminent authorities from around the world have contributed to this book on ruminants, integrating information from palaeontology, molecular and population genetics, anatomy, morphology, and field studies of behaviour, ecology, and the effects of climate change. Also covered are the genetics, morphology, and behaviour of the saola (one of several new species recently found in the Annamite Mountains between Laos and Vietnam) and other survivors from isolated and ancient branches on the ruminant family tree. Many of the living species are endangered, say the authors, and knowledge of their history, evolution, and basic biology is critical to their conservation.
Download or read book Paleoecology written by David J. Bottjer and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2016-02-09 with total page 232 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Paleoecology is a discipline that uses evidence from fossils to provide an understanding of ancient environments and the ecological history of life through geological time. This text covers the fundamental approaches that have provided the foundation for present paleoecological understanding, and outlines new research areas in paleoecology for managing future environmental and ecological change. Topics include the use of actualism in paleoecology, development of paleoecological models for paleoenvironmental reconstruction, taphonomy and exceptional fossil preservation, evolutionary paleoecology and ecological change through time, and conservation paleoecology. Data from studies of invertebrates, vertebrates, plants and microfossils, with added emphasis on bioturbation and microbial sedimentary structures, are discussed. Examples from marine and terrestrial environments are covered, with a particular focus on periods of great ecological change, such as the Precambrian-Cambrian transition and intervals of mass extinction. Readership: This book is designed for advanced undergraduates and beginning graduate students in the earth and biological sciences, as well as researchers and applied scientists in a range of related disciplines.
Download or read book Evolution of Fossil Ecosystems written by Paul Selden and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 2012-03-15 with total page 289 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Evolution of Fossil Ecosystems describes all of the main Fossil Lagerstätten (sites of exceptional fossil preservation) from around the world in a chronological order. It covers the history of research, stratigraphy and taphonomy, main faunal and floral elements, and the palaeoecology of each site and gives a comparison with coeval sites around the w
Download or read book Introducing Palaeontology written by Patrick Wyse Jackson and published by Liverpool University Press. This book was released on 2019 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Introducing Palaeontology provides a concise and accessible introduction to the science of palaeontology. The first part explains what a fossil is and how fossils came to be preserved. The second introduces the major fossil groups from algae and plants to the vertebrates and finally to man's ancestors. A glossary is provided.
Download or read book Ecology and Conservation of the Sirenia written by Helene Marsh and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2011-12 with total page 543 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A synthesis of the ecological and related knowledge pertinent to understanding the biology and conservation of dugongs and manatees.
Download or read book Devonian Paleoenvironments of Ohio written by Rituparna Bose and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-14 with total page 66 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Carbonate depositional systems in the Paleozoic geologic time represent fewer studies in paleoecological interactions than the siliciclastic systems. To evaluate this difference, the paleontology of the Middle Devonian Dundee Formation in Ohio has been explored. This geologic formation represents an important environment in the Michigan Basin of North America. Understanding biotic relationships such as mutualism, commensalism, parasitism and predation in an ecological community is important in unraveling the mystery of the fossil record. This research has contributed a large field collection which will be useful in documenting the fossil content of this unit for future workers. Rituparna Bose used new microscopic and imaging techniques in qualitatively analyzing the biotic interactions in small invertebrate shells. More importantly, she solved complex hypotheses in newly emerging problems in the field of geology and paleontology, such as the biodiversity crisis. Her study involved exploring the Devonian geology and paleontology of a geologic formation of a new unexplored quarry in Ohio, namely the Whitehouse Quarry in Lucas County, Ohio. She identified Devonian brachiopods to the genus level based on their morphology, and diagnosed paleoecological entities on host brachiopods and further measured episkeletobiont traces on hosts to understand the effects of environment and evolution on extinct species. Such studies have implications in predicting future biodiversity, ecosystem conservation and climate change. This research will also assist future workers to compare the ecology of brachiopod hosts of the Dundee Limestone with that of other Devonian brachiopods, from both carbonate and siliciclastic settings.
Download or read book Desert Puma written by Kenneth A. Logan and published by Island Press. This book was released on 2001-08-01 with total page 498 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Scientists and conservationists are beginning to understand the importance of top carnivores to the health and integrity of fully functioning ecosystems. As burgeoning human populations continue to impinge on natural landscapes, the need for understanding carnivore populations and how we affect them is becoming increasingly acute.Desert Puma represents one of the most detailed assessments ever produced of the biology and ecology of a top carnivore. The husband-and-wife team of Kenneth Logan and Linda Sweanor set forth extensive data gathered from their ten-year field study of pumas in the Chihuahua Desert of New Mexico, also drawing on other reliable scientific data gathered throughout the puma's geographic range. Chapters examine: the evolutionary and modern history of pumas, their taxonomy, and physical description a detailed description and history of the study area in the Chihuahua Desert field techniques that were used in the research puma population dynamics and life history strategies the implications of puma behavior and social organization the relationships of pumas and their preyThe authors provide important new information about both the biology of pumas and their evolutionary ecology -- not only what pumas do, but why they do it. Logan and Sweanor explain how an understanding of puma evolutionary ecology can, and must, inform long-term conservation strategies. They end the book with their ideas regarding strategies for puma management and conservation, along with a consideration of the future of pumas and humans. Desert Puma makes a significant and original contribution to the science not only of pumas in desert ecosystems but of the role of top predators in all environments. It is an essential contribution to the bookshelf of any wildlife biologist or conservationist involved in large-scale land management or wildlife management.
Download or read book The Oxford Handbook of Historical Ecology and Applied Archaeology written by Christian Isendahl and published by Oxford Handbooks. This book was released on 2019 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Historical ecology is based on the recognition that humans are not only capable of modifying their environments, but that all environments on earth have already been directly or indirectly modified. This Handbook provides examples of how people interact with their environments and presents outlines of the methods used to understand these changes.
Download or read book Palaeoecology written by Dr P J Brenchley and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 1998-12-18 with total page 432 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The first palaeoecology book to focus on evolutionary palaeoecology, in both marine and terrestrial environments. Discusses reconstruction of the past ecological world at population, community and biogeographic levels. A well-illustrated and substantial volume giving accessible coverage of the full range of subjects within palaeoecology. Reviews and summarises all the major mass extinctions.
Download or read book Introduction to Paleobiology and the Fossil Record written by Michael J. Benton and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2013-04-25 with total page 1001 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book presents a comprehensive overview of the science of the history of life. Paleobiologists bring many analytical tools to bear in interpreting the fossil record and the book introduces the latest techniques, from multivariate investigations of biogeography and biostratigraphy to engineering analysis of dinosaur skulls, and from homeobox genes to cladistics. All the well-known fossil groups are included, including microfossils and invertebrates, but an important feature is the thorough coverage of plants, vertebrates and trace fossils together with discussion of the origins of both life and the metazoans. All key related subjects are introduced, such as systematics, ecology, evolution and development, stratigraphy and their roles in understanding where life came from and how it evolved and diversified. Unique features of the book are the numerous case studies from current research that lead students to the primary literature, analytical and mathematical explanations and tools, together with associated problem sets and practical schedules for instructors and students. “..any serious student of geology who does not pick this book off the shelf will be putting themselves at a huge disadvantage. The material may be complex, but the text is extremely accessible and well organized, and the book ought to be essential reading for palaeontologists at undergraduate, postgraduate and more advanced levels—both in Britain as well as in North America.” Falcon-Lang, H., Proc. Geol. Assoc. 2010 “...this is an excellent introduction to palaeontology in general. It is well structured, accessibly written and pleasantly informative .....I would recommend this as a standard reference text to all my students without hesitation.” David Norman Geol Mag 2010 Companion website This book includes a companion website at: www.blackwellpublishing.com/paleobiology The website includes: · An ongoing database of additional Practical’s prepared by the authors · Figures from the text for downloading · Useful links for each chapter · Updates from the authors
Download or read book Basic Questions in Paleontology written by Otto H. Schindewolf and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 1993 with total page 528 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Now available in English for the first time, Basic Questions in Paleontology is a landmark work in twentieth-century evolution and paleontology. Originally published in German in 1950, Schindewolf's book was highly controversial for its thoroughgoing anti-Darwinism, but today his ideas are remarkably relevant to current research in evolutionary biology. "[This book] would rank number one on my list of items awaiting translation from the history of twentieth-century evolutionary theory."—Stephen Jay Gould
Download or read book Extreme Environmental Change and Evolution written by Ary A. Hoffmann and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 1997-07-10 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Most natural populations experience extremely stressful conditions. This book discusses how such conditions can cause periods of intense selection that increase both phenotypic and genetic variation, and allow organisms with novel characteristics to be first generated and then established in the population. Using evidence from the fossil record, the authors argue that stressful conditions can have a major impact on the environments. They also suggest that as a consequence, periods of stress must be taken into consideration when long term conservation strategies are planned, particularly as stressful conditions emerge as a result of human activities. This broad overview will be of great interest to students and researchers in the field of evolutionary biology, genetics, ecology, paleontology and conservation biology.
