A Primer for Environmental Literacy

This broad-ranging book presents the key concepts of environmental science in an accessible style that can be understood by those who are not natural scientists. Unique in its breadth and simplicity, yet providing full coverage of environmental issues, the book expands our capacity to understand the connections between humans and their environment. 74 illustrations.

Preface
Introduction
Foundation Concepts
The Environment	p. 3
The System	p. 10
Hierarchical Organization	p. 18
Land and Water Systems
The Ecosphere, with Comments on the Gaia Hypothesis and the Biosphere	p. 29
Energy Dynamics	p. 37
The Composition of the Earth	p. 45
The Biome	p. 59
The Landscape	p. 69
The Watershed	p. 78
The Ecotope	p. 90
Species Diversity	p. 101
Primary Production and Decomposition	p. 109
Ecological Succession	p. 118
The Population and the Individual
The Population as a Demographic Unit	p. 127
Life-History Adaptations	p. 138
The Individual Organism	p. 146
Body Size and Climate Space	p. 154
Speciation and Natural Selection	p. 163
Interaction Between Individuals and Species
Interactions Between Individuals	p. 173
Mutualism	p. 181
Competition	p. 188
Predation	p. 198
Coevolution and Niche	p. 205
The Biotic Community	p. 211
Island Biogeography	p. 217
Human Ecology	p. 224
Conclusion: Ecology, Environment, and Ethics	p. 229
Literature Cited	p. 239
Index	p. 249
Table of Contents provided by Blackwell. All Rights Reserved.

What is included with this book?

The New copy of this book will include any supplemental materials advertised. Please check the title of the book to determine if it should include any access cards, study guides, lab manuals, CDs, etc.

The Used, Rental and eBook copies of this book are not guaranteed to include any supplemental materials. Typically, only the book itself is included. This is true even if the title states it includes any access cards, study guides, lab manuals, CDs, etc.

FREE SHIPPING

Amazon no longer offers textbook rentals. We do!

A Primer for Environmental Literacy

Summary

Table of Contents

Supplemental Materials