Ecology and Field Biology (5th Edition) [Hardcover]

Robert L. Smith (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1997 | ISBN-10: 0065009762 | ISBN-13: 978-0065009767 | Edition: 5

This engaging, conversational book presents a comprehensive overview of all aspects of ecology, including evolution, ecosystems, theory, practical applications, plants, and animals. Ecology and Field Biology, Fifth Edition features major shifts in the presentation of topics: two chapters on soil have been incorporated into one, while other various topics, such as acid deposition and global change, have been integrated into appropriate chapters. New issues discussed in this fifth edition include the importance of statistical power tests in ecological studies, the effects of impoundments on river ecology, intraguild predation, and more. Also featured in this edition are the addition of new pedagogical aids, a four-color design, and an entirely rewritten chapter on ecological experimentation and models.

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. A new chapter discusses global environmental change, human impacts on the global carbon cycle, and the possible implications for the global climate system. Six "Ecological Application Essays" demonstrate to students the real world relevance of ecological concepts. For example, Part V, Population Interactions, discusses how a lack of mushrooms helped power the Industrial Revolution. Reflecting current changes in the field of ecology, the new edition incorporates more discussion of the evolutionary perspective on ecological systems. For anyone interested in ecology. --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

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.

--This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 1 pages
• Publisher: Addison Wesley Publishing Company; 5 edition (January 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0065009762
• ISBN-13: 978-0065009767
• Product Dimensions: 10.9 x 8.6 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,601,227 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.