Tropical Forest Ecology

• Introduction ; 1. Barro Colorado Island: The Background ; 2. Dramatis Personae ; 3. Tropical Climates ; 4. Runoff, Erosion, and Soil ; 5. Telling the Trees from the Forest: Tree Shape and Leaf Arrangement ; 6. Biomass and Productivity of Tropical Forest ; 7. The Seasonal Rhythms of Fruiting and Leaf Flush, and the Regulation of Animal Populations ; 8. Tropical Diversity ; 9. The Role of Mutualism in Tropical Forest ; 10. The Rainforest Endangered

"This book introduces rain forests and their ecological organization, using the tropical rain forest on Barro Colorado Island, Panama as a representative. Three essential questions addressed in the book are: How do tropical forests stay green with so many herbivores? Why do tropic forests have such diverse flora and fauna? And what role does mutualism play in rain forest ecology? . . . The text is illustrated with figures and tables. This book should be ofinterest to scientists in the fields of tropical biology, ecology, botany, zoology, evolution, and natural history."--Biological Abstracts/RRM®"Throughout this book the imprint of Egbert Leigh's keen intellect is apparent. He has pulled together an incredible mass of information both from his own observations from forests throughout the world but also from a summary of the works of others. Each chapter has very extensive list of references. When needed, Leigh summarizes natural law in the form of mathematical equations and while these may be beyond the comprehension of some readers, the book also iswritten in a style that is fun to read. Subjects are treated thoroughly and in an interesting manner; despite the wealth of information in each chapter the progression of subjects makes sense and is easy to follow. While the book uses Barro Colorado Island as a sounding board the information in thisbook is pertinent to tropical forests everywhere. The book should be mandatory reading for any student of ecology or biology."--Plant Systematics and Evolution"Leigh has produced a wonderful synthesis of our understanding of tropical forests, one that should attract a wide audience. . . ." Ecology