Structure And Function Of An Alpine Ecosystem: Niwot Ridge, Colorado Hardcover

William D. Bowman

This book provides a complete overview of an alpine ecosystem, based on the long-term research conducted at the Niwot Ridge LTER. There is, at present, no general book on alpine ecology. The alpine ecosystem features conditions near the limits of biological existence, and is a useful laboratory for asking more general ecological questions, because it offers large environmental change over relatively short distances. Factors such as macroclimate, microclimate, soil conditions, biota, and various biological factors change on differing scales, allowing insight into the relative contributions of the different factors on ecological outcomes.

9780195117288

English

Oxford University Press, USA

26-04-2001

352

William D. Bowman

Timothy R. Seastedt

Overall, this is an important and sophisticated effort involving much data collection under sometimes extremely severe conditions for both observers and instruments. Many of the chapters could stand alone as significant contributions in their own disciplines; together they render this one of the most impressive syntheses available of an alpine ecosystem. * Mountain Research and Development * This is an important contribution destined to become a standard reference for alpine ecosystem research. * Mountain Research and Development *