Overview

The most fascinating aspects of coral reefs relate to how corals and reef residents meet the challenges of survival and live together. The focus of this book is on how a coral reef functions -- the jobs of individual residents and how they collectively create a sustainable community. The author explores how solar energy powers the reef, how raw materials are used efficiently and waste is recycled, why biodiversity is security, and how everything is connected. There are also many insights into the more personal lives of reef residents -- some are as strange as any science fiction. By viewing coral reefs in the context of a human city, one can more easily appreciate the creative ways reef communities operate; they neither undermine their own survival nor that of other communities elsewhere. In other words, a variety of species collectively enhances the survival of the entire community. Dr Murphy sees reef communities existing in a dynamic equilibrium where forces of competition, destruction, and decay are balanced by co-operation, repair, and rejuvenation. There are lessons for those of us who are concerned about making our own communities more sustainable. The subject matter is serious, but it is not taken so seriously that it isn't fun. The most fascinating aspects of coral reefs relate to how corals and reef residents meet the challenges of survival and live together.

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9780878501380

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Reviews

Here is a scientist, like very few, who you can understand, who dazzles his audience with the fascinating world of the coral reef. -- Jean-Michel Cousteau, Ocean Futures Society. How pleased I am to see this marvelous work. -- Robert Ginsburg, Professor Of Marine Geology. ...is a gift to all generations who love nature and wish to preserve its beauty. -- Zale Parry, Ambassador of the Academy of Underwater Arts and Sciences. ...is the best illustrated and most informative book aimed at the general reader that I have read on the subject. -- Dr Gregor Hodgson, UCLA. ...photographs are consistently exquisite...fascinating and accurate... -- Ove Hoegh-Guldberg, Centre For Marine Studies, University Of Queensland. ...sophisticated, scientific and up-to-date...yet...readily accessible to school children and the general public... -- Donald Potts, Professor Of Biology, University Of California. ...succeeds in providing a good introduction into reef ecology. -- Choice. ...people might make their own communities more sustainable if they imitated the Plato-like republics of coral reefs. -- Natural History. Informative and attractive...it presents thereader with fascinating glimpses into the structural diversity of reef animals and of intriguing aspects of their biology, illustrated by many magnificent photographs - The Naturalist, Autumn 2004.

Author Information

Richard C Murphy PhD is a marine biologist, educator, writer, and photographer. His association with Jacques-Yves Cousteau and his son, Jean-Michel, began in 1968. As chief scientist and expedition researcher, he has worked in some of the most remote regions of the world studying how ecosystems function and how humans interact with the natural system. Dr Murphy is Vice President of Science and Education for Ocean Futures Society. His focus is sustainable development and ecotourism in developing countries and the creation of environmental educational programs for young people.

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