On the Wings of Checkerspots: A Model System for Population Biology [Hardcover]

Paul R. Ehrlich (Editor), Ilkka Hanski (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 019515827X | ISBN-13: 978-0195158274 | Publication Date: March 18, 2004 | Edition: First Printing

Hanski, a leading thinker in metapopulation ecology, studies checkerspot butterfly populations in Finland. Ehrlich, one of the leading ecologists and conservation biologist, investigates checkerspot butterfly populations in California. This book reports on and synthsizes the major long-term research of both workers' careers on the population biology of checkerspot butterflies.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Checkerspot butterflies are rightly celebrated in this book as important model organisms for applied conservation, as well as for our basic understanding in population biology. This is a very nicely edited and professionally produced book that is an important and useful review of checkerspot work over the past 40 years." -- TRENDS in Ecology and Evolution

"To cite the editors' ultimate purpose, the major intellectual challenge of population biology "is understanding the functioning of natural populations - how they are distributed and structured, how and why their sizes change, and how they evolove." In many respects, the book offers basic insights into the ecological and evolutionary dynamics of insect populations generally, not just of checkerspots, and thus forms a classic of modern biology." -- Nature

"The book is well written, well produced, and error free... Overall, this is an excellent book, even for those that do not have a strong interest in population dynamics. The history of the projects, the biology of the butterflies, and the philosophies promoted are worthy of anybody's time." -- BioScience

"...although the book is an edited volume with 15 contributors, it was obviously well planned and reads more like the work of a single author. Its structure could be a model for anyone wanting to write an overview of their particular research system. I strongly recommend On the Wings of Checkerspots to anyone interested in evolution, ecology, or entertaining and interesting stories about butterflies." -- Science

"This book should be required reading for all conservation biologists." -- Science

About the Author

Paul R. Ehrlich is at Stanford University. Ilkka Hanski is at University of Helsinki.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 408 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA; First Printing edition (March 18, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 019515827X
• ISBN-13: 978-0195158274
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 7.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,151,021 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a thorough collection of solid research, September 27, 2007

By 

Ned Ludd "dogman2000" (Lee Vining, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: On the Wings of Checkerspots: A Model System for Population Biology (Hardcover)

Any one interested in ecology and evolutionary biology will find something useful in this book. Checkerspots are a great model system, and despite all of the careful and thorough research reported in this volume, there is still room for many more creative research questions. This is a refreshing change from so many edited volumes that report cute little studies (much like what you might see in Science or Nature) that will not stand the test of time. I recommend this for all levels of academia (undergraduate through faculty or professional scientist).