Tropical rain forests [[electronic resource] ] : an ecological and biogeographical comparison / / Richard T. Corlett and Richard B. Primack

• Record Nr.: UNINA9910831176503321
• Autore: Corlett Richard
• Pubbl/distr/stampa: Chichester, West Sussex ; ; Hoboken, NJ, : Wiley-Blackwell, c2011
• ISBN: 1-283-40793-0; 9786613407931; 1-4443-9227-1; 1-4443-9229-8
• Edizione: [2nd ed.]
• Descrizione fisica: 1 online resource (338 p.)
• Altri autori (Persone): PrimackRichard B. <1950->
• Disciplina: 577.34
• Soggetti: Rain forests; Rain forest ecology
• Lingua di pubblicazione: Inglese
• Formato: Materiale a stampa
• Livello bibliografico: Monografia
• Note generali: Rev. ed. of : Tropical rain forests : an ecological and biogeographical comparison / Richard Primack & Richard Corlett. c2005.
• Nota di bibliografia: Includes bibliographical references and index.
• Nota di contenuto: Tropical RainForests; Contents; Preface to the first edition; Preface to the second edition; Acknowledgments; Chapter 1 Many Tropical Rain Forests; What are tropical rain forests?; Where are the tropical rain forests?; Rain forest environments; Rain forest histories; Origins of the similarities and differences among rain forests; Many rain forests; Conclusions; Chapter 2 Plants: Building Blocks of the Rain Forest; Plant distributions; Rain forest structure; How many plant species?; Widespread plant families; Neotropical rain forests; Asian rain forests; Rain forests in New Guinea and AustraliaAfrican rain forests; Madagascan rain forests; Conclusions and future research directions; Chapter 3 Primate Communities: A Key to Understanding Biogeography and Ecology; What are primates?; Old World versus New World primates; Primate diets; Primate communities; Primate equivalents in Australia and New Guinea; Conclusions and future research directions; Chapter 4 Carnivores and Plant-eaters; Carnivores; Herbivores of the forest floor; Conclusions and future research directions; Chapter 5 Birds: Linkages in the Rain Forest Community; Biogeography; Little, brown, insect-eating birdsForest frugivores; Fruit size and body size; Flower visitors; Ground-dwellers; Woodpeckers; Birds of prey; Scavengers; Night birds; Migration; Comparison of bird communities across continents; Conclusions and future research directions; Chapter 6 Fruit Bats and Gliding Animals in the Forest Canopy; Fruit- and nectar-feeding bats; Flying behavior; Foraging behavior; Bats as pollinators and seed dispersal agents; Gliding vertebrates; Conclusions and future research directions; Chapter 7 Insects: Diverse, Abundant, and Ecologically Important; Butterflies; Ants; TermitesBees; Conclusions and future research directions; Chapter 8 Island Rain Forests; Pacific islands; Evolution on islands; Indian Ocean islands; Atlantic islands; Caribbean islands; Natural disasters; Human impacts; Conclusions and future research directions; Chapter 9 The Future of Tropical Rain Forests; Different forests, different threats; The major threats; The forces behind the threats; Global climate change; Saving the many rain forests; Conclusions and future research directions; References; Index
• Sommario/riassunto: The first edition of Tropical Rain Forests: an Ecological and Biogeographical Comparison exploded the myth of 'the rain forest' as a single, uniform entity. In reality, the major tropical rain forest regions, in tropical America, Africa, Southeast Asia, Madagascar, and New Guinea, have as many differences as similarities, as a result of their isolation from each other during the evolution of their floras and faunas. This new edition reinforces this message with new examples from recent and on-going research. After an introduction to the environments and geological histories of the maj