Biodiversity II [Hardcover]

M. Reaka-Kudla (Author), Marjorie L. Reaka-Kudla (Editor), Edward Osborne Wilson (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1997

A follow-up to the 1988 landmark volume, Biodiversity II updates readers on what is known about the world's species and what remains to be identified. New strategies for quantifying, understanding, and protecting biodiversity are explored.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

The groundbreaking Biodiversity (LJ 4/1/88) was responsible for introducing the term into the common parlance and for dramatically increasing awareness of the plight of the world's dwindling biological resources. The 33 chapters in the current multiauthored volume provide not only a comprehensive ten-year update on the state of the art of biodiversity but also proceed even further than the 1988 book in suggesting concrete and cost-effective solutions to the biodiversity crisis. Biodiversity II, with its longer and more technical chapters, may be slightly less lay reader-friendly than the original, but the inclusion in the new work of 70 color photos greatly enhances its attractiveness. Imperative for all academic and large public libraries and for all sizable environmental collections.?Lynn C. Badger, Univ. of Florida Lib., Gainesville
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Book Description

"The book before you . . . carries the urgent warning that we are rapidly altering and destroying the environments that have fostered the diversity of life forms for more than a billion years."

With those words, Edward O. Wilson opened the landmark volume Biodiversity (National Academy Press, 1988). Despite this and other such alarms, species continue to vanish at a rapid rate, taking with them their genetic legacy and potential benefits. Many disappear before they can even be identified.

Biodiversity II is a renewed call for urgency. This volume updates readers on how much we already know and how much remains to be identified scientifically. It explores new strategies for quantifying, understanding, and protecting biodiversity, including

• New approaches to the integration of electronic data, including a proposal for a U.S. National Biodiversity Information Center.
  
• Application of techniques developed in the human genome project to species identification and classification.
  
• The Gap Analysis Program of the National Biological Survey, which uses layered satellite, climatic, and biological data to assess distribution and better manage biodiversity.
  
• The significant contribution of museum collections to identifying and categorizing species, which is essential for understanding ecological function and for targeting organisms and regions at risk.

The book describes our growing understanding of how megacenters of diversity (e.g., rainforest insects, coral reefs) are formed, maintained, and lost; what can be learned from mounting bird extinctions; and how conservation efforts for neotropical primates have fared. It also explores ecosystem restoration, sustainable development, and agricultural impact.

Biodiversity II reinforces the idea that the conservation of our biological resources is within reach as long as we pool resources; better coordinate the efforts of existing institutions--museums, universities, and government agencies--already dedicated to this goal; and enhance support for research, collections, and training. This volume will be important to environmentalists, biologists, ecologists, educators, students, and concerned individuals. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 551 pages
• Publisher: National Academy Press; 2nd edition (January 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0309052270
• ISBN-13: 978-0309052276
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,500,625 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An invaluable addition to the "biodiversity" bookshelf, October 21, 1998

By 

Osha Gray Davidson (Phoenix, AZ. USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Biodiversity II (Hardcover)

"Biodiverity II" is a fascinating and important collection of essays on nearly every facet of biodiversity. What makes this book so rich is that each essay is written by the leading expert in his or her field. And you don't need to be a scientist to enjoy Biodiversity II--I'm not, and I found it very accessible.

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential for any course in Conservation Biology, May 18, 2010

By 

Adesh Seuraj (Santa Cruz, Trinidad) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Biodiversity II: Understanding and Protecting Our Biological Resources (Paperback)

I used this book several times as a reference for many of my research papers during an MSc program. The book is a compendium of different papers/topics related to biodiversity that spans some of the greatest works by luminaries such as Erwin, Raven, and Gaston. Some of the papers are a bit old but relevant nonetheless. The sections on species survival commissions and taxon advisory groups were well illustrated using primates like the Golden Lion Tamarin, and for the most part would make a great complement to Primack's text on conservation biology.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must-Have for Environmental Economists, April 22, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Biodiversity II (Hardcover)

This is a book that every environmental economist should have in collection. It covers a wide range of issues from the many aspects of biodiversity to its assessment and conservation. Its content is systematic and somewhat technical, and yet accessible for non-biologists. I use this book as an aid for research, and I've found that the case studies to be quite helpful.