From Coastal Wilderness to Fruited Plain

From Coastal Wilderness to Fruited Plain
Author: Gordon G. Whitney
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 492
Release: 1996-08-29
Genre: Nature
ISBN: 9780521576581

From Coastal Wilderness to Fruited Plain is an account of the making of a large part of the American landscape following European settlement. Drawing upon land survey records and early travellers' accounts, Dr Whitney reconstructs the 'virgin' forests and grasslands of the north-eastern and central United States during the pre-settlement period. He then documents successively the clearance and fragmentation of the region's woodlands, the harvest of the forest and its game, the ploughing of the prairies, and the draining of wetlands. The degree to which these activities altered the soil, climate, plant and animal communities, and water cycle are evaluated, and the sustainability of present-day ecosystems is brought into question in this account.

Global to Local: Ecological Land Classification

Global to Local: Ecological Land Classification
Author: Richard A. Sims
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 619
Release: 2012-12-06
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 9400916531

Ecological Land Classification (ELC) refers to the description of land resources at a range of spatial resolutions (i.e. global to local) and for a range of purposes or values. The emerging science of ELC is in fact a very carefully integrated blend of vegetation and earth sciences, climatology, cartography and ecology with a range of new technologies and methodologies including computer-based geographic information systems, remote sensing and simulation modelling. This publication defines the current `state-of-the-art' of ELC. It provides particular insight into the role of ELC in current and future forest resource planning and management, and emphasizes its application and usefulness at various spatial scales, for a variety of geographic locations, and under a range of management scenarios/constraints. The book is an invaluable and substantial reference source about the current trends in ELC and will be of particular value to ecologists, foresters, geographers, resource managers, wildlife biologists, GIS and remote sensing specialists, educators and students.

Applying Landscape Ecology in Biological Conservation

Applying Landscape Ecology in Biological Conservation
Author: Kevin Gutzwiller
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 536
Release: 2011-06-27
Genre: Science
ISBN: 1461300592

This book provides a current synthesis of principles and applications in landscape ecology and conservation biology. Bringing together insights from leaders in landscape ecology and conservation biology, it explains how principles of landscape ecology can help us understand, manage and maintain biodiversity. Gutzwiller also identifies gaps in current knowledge and provides research approaches to fill those voids.