Overview of the Conservation of Australian Marine Invertebrates


Book Description

"This volume is intended to be a companion to Yen and Butcher's (1997) overview of the conservation of non-marine invertebrates. As with that work, we see one of our major roles as addressing the "perceptual and practical imbalance" in the current approach to conservation and facilitating the conservation of marine invertebrates in Australia and its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ)"--Introduction.




The Other 99%


Book Description




Beetle Conservation


Book Description

This issue of Journal of Insect Conservation is the first to be dedicated entirely to beetles. It contains a number of papers to demonstrate the variety and scope of problems and conservation concerns that surround these insects. A short introductory perspective is followed by eight original contributions, in which beetles from many parts of the world are considered, and in which some major threats to their wellbeing are evaluated.




Australian Echinoderms


Book Description

Echinoderms, including feather stars, seastars, brittle stars, sea urchins and sea cucumbers, are some of the most beautiful and interesting animals in the sea. They play an important ecological role and several species of sea urchins and sea cucumbers form the basis of important fisheries. Over 1000 species live in Australian waters, from the shoreline to the depths of the abyssal plain and the tropics to Antarctic waters. Australian Echinoderms is an authoritative account of Australia’s 110 families of echinoderms. It brings together in a single volume comprehensive information on the identification, biology, evolution, ecology and management of these animals for the first time. Richly illustrated with beautiful photographs and written in an accessible style, Australian Echinoderms suits the needs of marine enthusiasts, academics and fisheries managers both in Australia and other geographical areas where echinoderms are studied.




Forests and Insect Conservation in Australia


Book Description

Losses of forests and their insect inhabitants are a major global conservation concern, spanning tropical and temperate forest regions throughout the world. This broad overview of Australian forest insect conservation draws on studies from many places to demonstrate the diversity and vulnerability of forest insects and how their conservation may be pursued through combinations of increased understanding, forest protection and silvicultural management in both natural and plantation forests. The relatively recent history of severe human disturbance to Australian forests ensures that reasonably natural forest patches remain and serve as ‘models’ for many forest categories. They are also refuges for many forest biota extirpated from the wider landscapes as forests are lost, and merit strenuous protection from further changes, and wider efforts to promote connectivity between otherwise isolated remnant patches. In parallel, the recent attention to improving forest insect conservation in harmony with insect pest management continues to benefit from perspectives generated from better-documented faunas elsewhere. Lessons from the northern hemisphere, in particular, have led to revelations of the ecological importance and vulnerability of many insect taxa in forests, together with clear evidence that ‘conservation can work’ in concert with wider forest uses. A brief outline of the variety of Australian tropical and temperate forests and woodlands, and of the multitude of endemic and, often, highly localised insects that depend on them highlights needs for conservation (both of single focal species and wider forest-dependent radiations and assemblages). The ways in which insects contribute to sustained ecological integrity of these complex ecosystems provide numerous opportunities for practical conservation.




The Biogeography of the Australian North West Shelf


Book Description

The Biogeography of the Australian North West Shelf provides the first assembly of existing information of the North West Shelf in terms of geological, oceanographic and climatological history and current understanding of such issues as biodiversity, connectivity, larval dispersal and speciation in the sea that determine the distribution patterns of its invertebrate fauna. It is intended as a source of information and ideas on the biota of the shelf and its evolutionary origins and affinities and the environmental drivers of species' ecology and distribution and ecosystem function. Regulators and industry environmental managers worldwide, but especially on the resource-rich North West Shelf, are faced with having to make decisions without adequate information or understanding of conservation values or the factors that drive ecosystem processes and resilience in the face of increasing anthropogenic and natural change. This book will provide a resource of information and ideas and extensive references to issues of primary concern. It will provide a big-picture narrative, putting the marine biota into a geological, evolutionary, and regional biodiversity context. - The first book to cover the major benthic habitats and physical and ecological condition of the North West Shelf of Australia - Covers new information on geomorphology and biota of coral reefs and other invertebrate habitats that are key species and functional groups of the North West Shelf - Introduces new ideas on biogeographic processes and patterns in tropical seas




The Invertebrate World of Australia's Subtropical Rainforests


Book Description

The Invertebrate World of Australia’s Subtropical Rainforests is a comprehensive review of Australia’s Gondwanan rainforest invertebrate fauna, covering its taxonomy, distribution, biogeography, fossil history, plant community and insect–plant relationships. This is the first work to document the invertebrate diversity of this biologically important region, as well as explain the uniqueness and importance of the organisms. This book examines invertebrates within the context of the plant world that they are dependent on and offers an understanding of Australia’s outstanding (but still largely unknown) subtropical rainforests. All major, and many minor, invertebrate taxa are described and the book includes a section of colour photos of distinctive species. There is also a strong emphasis on plant and habitat associations and fragmentation impacts, as well as a focus on the regionally inclusive Gondwana Rainforests (Central Eastern Rainforest Reserves of Australia) World Heritage Area. The Invertebrate World of Australia’s Subtropical Rainforests will be of value to professional biologists and ecologists, as well as amateur entomologists and naturalists in Australia and abroad.




Ecology of Australian Temperate Reefs


Book Description

Ecology of Australian Temperate Reefs presents the current state of knowledge of the ecology of important elements of southern Australian sub-tidal reef flora and fauna, and the underlying ecological principles. Preliminary chapters describe the geological origin, oceanography and biogeography of southern Australia, including the transitional temperate regions toward the Abrolhos Islands in the west and to Sydney in the east. The book then explains the origin and evolution of the flora and fauna at geological time scales as Australia separated from Antarctica; the oceanography of the region, including principal currents, and interactions with on-shelf waters; and the ecology of particular species or species groups at different trophic levels, starting with algae, then the ecological principles on which communities are organised. Finally, conservation and management issues are discussed. Ecology of Australian Temperate Reefs is well illustrated with line drawings, figures and colour photographs showing the many species covered, and will be a much valued reference for biologists, undergraduates, and those interested and concerned with reef life and its natural history. 2014 Whitley Award Commendation for Marine Ecology.







Biology and Evolution of the Mollusca, Volume 1


Book Description

Molluscs comprise the second largest phylum of animals (after arthropods), occurring in virtually all habitats. Some are commercially important, a few are pests and some carry diseases, while many non-marine molluscs are threatened by human impacts which have resulted in more extinctions than all tetrapod vertebrates combined. This book and its companion volume provide the first comprehensive account of the Mollusca in decades. Illustrated with hundreds of colour figures, it reviews molluscan biology, genomics, anatomy, physiology, fossil history, phylogeny and classification. This volume includes general chapters drawn from extensive and diverse literature on the anatomy and physiology of their structure, movement, reproduction, feeding, digestion, excretion, respiration, nervous system and sense organs. Other chapters review the natural history (including ecology) of molluscs, their interactions with humans, and assess research on the group. Key features of both volumes: up to date treatment with an extensive bibliography; thoroughly examines the current understanding of molluscan anatomy, physiology and development; reviews fossil history and phylogenetics; overviews ecology and economic values; and summarises research activity and suggests future directions for investigation. Winston F Ponder was a Principal Research Scientist at The Australian Museum in Sydney where he is currently a Research Fellow. He has published extensively over the last 55 years on the systematics, evolution, biology and conservation of marine and freshwater molluscs, as well as supervised post graduate students and run university courses. David R. Lindberg is former Chair of the Department of Integrative Biology, Director of the Museum of Paleontology, and Chair of the Berkeley Natural History Museums, all at the University of California. He has conducted research on the evolutionary history of marine organisms and their habitats on the rocky shores of the Pacific Rim for more than 40 years. The numerous elegant and interpretive illustrations were produced by Juliet Ponder.