Ecology and Field Biology: Hands-On Field Package (6th Edition) [Hardcover]

Robert L. Smith (Author), Thomas M. Smith (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 7, 2001 | ISBN-10: 0321068815 | ISBN-13: 978-0321068811 | Edition: 6

This book presents a comprehensive overview of all aspects of ecology, including evolution, ecosystems theory, practical applications, plants, animals, biogeochemical cycles, and global change. This balanced approach has made Ecology and Field Biology, Sixth Edition the best-selling ecology book on the market. The field package also includes The Ecology Action Guide, a guide that encourages readers to be environmentally responsible citizens, and a subscription to The Ecology Place (www.ecologyplace.com), a web site and CD-ROM that enables users to become virtual field ecologists by performing experiments such as estimating the number of mice on an imaginary island or restoring prairie land in Iowa. For college instructors and students.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

This book presents a comprehensive overview of all aspects of ecology, including evolution, ecosystems theory, practical applications, plants, animals, biogeochemical cycles, and global change. This balanced approach has made Ecology and Field Biology, Sixth Edition the best-selling ecology book on the market. The field package also includes The Ecology Action Guide, a guide that encourages readers to be environmentally responsible citizens, and a subscription to The Ecology Place (ecologyplace), a web site and CD-ROM that enables users to become virtual field ecologists by performing experiments such as estimating the number of mice on an imaginary island or restoring prairie land in Iowa.

About the Author

Robert L. Smith holds a B.S. in Animal Science, an M.S. in Wildlife Biology along with a Ph.D. in Wildlife Biology from Cornell University. Currently, he is a professor of Ecology at West Virginia University. He has spent over 30 years teaching Ecology and conducting field research throughout the world.

His teaching responsibilities have involved mostly undergraduate courses in general ecology and graduate courses in population ecology and wildlife management. His research has included forest-fire related problems in southern West Virginia, vegetational development and succession on abandoned and reclaimed surface mines, the relation between forest vegetational structure and the forest bird community, and forest habitat assessment and habitat evaluation procedures based on vegetational structure.

Smith has served as a consultant to congressional committees, workshops on environmental education and energy and environmental problems, the National Landmarks program of the U.S. Department of Interior, National Research Council Task Forces on wildlife and fisheries issues and ecological classification systems for implementing environmental quality evaluation procedures. He is the author of numerous articles and reviews as well as the author of three ecology texts: Ecology and Field Biology, Elements of Ecology and Ecology of Man: An Ecosystem Approach, Harper and Row, New York.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 720 pages
• Publisher: Benjamin Cummings; 6 edition (December 7, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0321068815
• ISBN-13: 978-0321068811
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 8.7 x 1.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #103,646 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars good for a general ecology course or reference, October 27, 1999

By 

Jerilyn Jewett-Smith ([e-mail]) (Mahwah, NJ) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ecology and Field Biology (5th Edition) (Hardcover)

I have used this book for several years as a text for my general ecology course. Although simple errors may plague this book, it is one of the most comprehensive for a course involving field investigations. The appendix sections on sampling plant and animal populations and life table construction are very helpful for students and instructors. The book is strong on physiological ecology, plant interactions, and case history presentations.

14 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars pretty pictures, but a poor text choice, December 3, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Ecology and Field Biology (5th Edition) (Hardcover)

I "inherited" Smith's book from my predecessor as the text for a general ecology course (junior-level). I found it to be a poor choice. The fifth edition appears to have undergone recent and massive revision; the text had far more than its fair share of typos, literature citations that were not listed in the bibliography, and perhaps most damningly, colorful figures that were often inadequately explained and sometimes incorrectly labeled. While I understand the presence of factual errors - a text with a subject as diverse as ecology would be difficult for one person to write - there is no excuse for them. All in all, this book was a disappointment.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Very Useful Book, July 21, 2008

By 

Jackson Landers (Charlottesville, VA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Ecology and Field Biology Student Package (Hardcover)

For a book that attempts to survey such a vast field, this does a good job. I find myself picking it up for reference purposes at least once every few months. Clear, concise explanations of ecological concepts and plentiful illustrations make this a useful volume.

If you are actually interested in ecology (rather than just getting a textbook for a required course), this is one of those textbooks that you will probably end up keeping on the bookshelf rather than selling at the end of the semester.