Overview

This useful new book answers the need for data-driven estimates of recent (1600 onwards) extinction rates as a basis for more accurate projections of extinction rates for the centuries to come. This book provides a more wide-ranging and data-driven treatment of present and likely future rates of extinction than any text currently available. It is directed broadly at senior undergraduates, postgraduate students and research workers in the fields of ecology, conservation biology and the environmental sciences. The authors highlight apparent differences in extinction rates among taxonomic groups and places, aiming to identify unresolved issues and important questions.

Full Product Details

Author:   John H. Lawton (Professor of Community Ecology, Professor of Community Ecology, Imperial College) ,  Robert M. May (Royal Society Research Professor, Royal Society Research Professor, Oxford University and Imperial College)
Publisher:   Oxford University Press
Imprint:   Oxford University Press
Dimensions:   Width: 15.60cm , Height: 1.40cm , Length: 23.40cm
Weight:   0.380kg
ISBN:  

9780198548294

ISBN 10:   019854829
Pages:   246
Publication Date:   12 January 1995
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   To order  
Stock availability from the supplier is unknown. We will order it for you and ship this item to you once it is received by us.

Table of Contents

Preface 1: Assessing extinction rates 2: Extinctions in the fossil record 3: Constancy and change of life in the sea 4: Insect faunas in ice age environments: why so little extinction? 5: Bird extinctions in the Central Pacific 6: Extinctions in Mediterranean areas 7: Recent past and future extinctions in birds 8: Rates and patterns of extinction among British invertebrates 9: Assessing the risk of plant extinction due to pollinator and disperser failure 10: Population dynamic principles 11: Estimating extinction from molecular phylogenies 12: Biological models for monitoring species decline: the construction and use of databases 13: Classification of species and its role in conservation planning 14: The scale of the human enterprise and biodiversity loss Author index Subject index

Reviews

'EXTINCTION RATES is a breath of fresh air ... EXTINCTION RATES is a gold-mine of hard data and solid science which should be read by all with a serious interest in biodiversity -- past, present, and future.' David M. Raup, University of Chicago, Science `a well integrated set of 14 research articles and reviews that attempt to put the study of extinction rates on a more rigorous footing ... Extinction Rates is a gold mine of hard data and solid science that should be read by all with a serious interest in biodiversity - past, present and future.' David M. Raup, University of Chicago, Nature, Volume 375, June 1995 `The last book we looked at, Extinction Rates, is without doubt the cream of a bumper crop.' Joshua R. Ginsberg, Andrew Balmford, Zoological Society of London, TREE, vol. 10, no. 9, September 1995 `I would strongly recommend Extinction Rates to all those listed as being the target audience on the back cover (senior undergraduates, postgraduate students, and research workers in the general fields of ecology, conservation biology and the environmental sciences). It would make an extremely good basis for a final year undergraduate course, or for a graduate school discussion class. I suspect that a wider audience would also gain from reading it.' Chris D. Thomas, Journal of Animal Ecology, 65, 1996

This timely work derives from a 1993 conference that focused on the estimation of extinction rates. The papers are data-driven contributions that focus on all aspects of ongoing extinction rates without ignoring the fossil record. . . .Excellent chapters on how to assess extinction rates, the role of pollinator and disperser failure in plant extinctions, and extinction-rate estimation from molecular phylogenies add much-needed methodological background to the outer chapters. In general, the book is oriented towards a conservation-conscious audience, and it does its job well. --Choice<br>

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