Overview

Australian Deserts: Ecology and Landscapes is about the vast sweep of the Outback, a land of expanses making up three-quarters of the continent – the heart of Australia. Steve Morton brings his extensive first-hand knowledge and experience of arid Australia to this book, explaining how Australian deserts work ecologically. This book outlines why unpredictable rainfall and paucity of soil nutrients underpin the nature of desert ecosystems, while also describing how plants and animals came to be desert dwellers through evolutionary time. It shows how plants use uncertain rainfall to provide for persistence of their populations, alongside outlines of the dominant animals of the deserts and explanations of the features that help them succeed in the face of aridity and uncertainty. Richly illustrated with the photographs of Mike Gillam, this fascinating and accessible book will enhance your understanding of the nature of arid Australia. Winner, The Royal Zoological Society of NSW 2022 Whitley Medal

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9781486305995

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Reviews

The book is so rich with wondrous details that readers will likely develop their own catalogues. Morton has a gift for bringing to life what he calls the 'more patient and less dramatic lifestyles' of species that endure dry times. With its breadth and depth of ecological knowledge, enlivened by personal observation, Australian Deserts surely belongs among classics such as Finlayson's The Red Centre. -- Saskia Beudel * Australian Book Review #442 * This is an important book, in that it helps demystify the majority of the country, by area, in a clear and accessible way. It also manages to be very beautiful - did I mention that the photos are superb? And yes, I really do love this book. * Ian Fraser Natural History Reviews #30 * How do we learn to see the richness and diversity of this life? How do we read Country for its presences and absences? How do we fi ne-tune our capacity as humans to appreciate and understand the miracles that unfold at our feet and under the skies every day and night? These are beautiful, inspiring, exhilarating questions and they underpin this book, which is a glowing compendium of intelligent wonder. -- Tom Griffiths * Inside Story *

The book is so rich with wondrous details that readers will likely develop their own catalogues. Morton has a gift for bringing to life what he calls the 'more patient and less dramatic lifestyles' of species that endure dry times. With its breadth and depth of ecological knowledge, enlivened by personal observation, Australian Deserts surely belongs among classics such as Finlayson's The Red Centre. -- Saskia Beudel * Australian Book Review #442 * This is an important book, in that it helps demystify the majority of the country, by area, in a clear and accessible way. It also manages to be very beautiful - did I mention that the photos are superb? And yes, I really do love this book. * Ian Fraser Natural History Reviews #30 *

Author Information

Dr Steve Morton is an Honorary Professorial Fellow with Charles Darwin University. He is an ecologist who studied at the Universities of Melbourne, California and Sydney. He joined CSIRO in Alice Springs in 1984 to work in the desert environment that has long been his focus. From 2000 until 2010, based in Canberra and Melbourne, he helped lead CSIRO as Chief of Division and Executive Team member.

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