The Ecology of Tropical East Asia

by Richard T. Corlett

Tropical East Asia is home to one billion people and faces massive human impact from its rising population and rapid economic growth. It has already lost more than two-thirds of its forest cover and has the highest rates of deforestation and logging in the tropics. The relentless trade in
wildlife products threatens all its large and many smaller vertebrates. Despite these problems, the region still supports an estimated 15-25% of global terrestrial biodiversity and is therefore a key area for conservation. Effective and efficient conservation action at the local and regional levels
depends on an understanding of the ecological patterns and processes in the region, but information is currently scattered among a large number of elusive publications in several different languages.

The Ecology of Tropical East Asia is the first book to describe the terrestrial ecology of the entire East Asian tropics and subtropics, from southern China to western Indonesia. It deals with plants, animals, and the ecosystems they inhabit, as well as the diverse threats to their survival and the
options for conservation. This book provides the background knowledge of the region's ecology needed by both specialists and non-specialists to put their own work into a broader context.

The accessible style, comprehensive coverage, and engaging illustrations make this advanced textbook an essential read for senior undergraduate and graduate level students studying the terrestrial ecology of the East Asian tropics, as well as an authoritative reference for professional ecologists,
conservationists, and interested amateurs worldwide.

Genres: Nature

272 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Prof. Richard T. Corlett is a renowned tropical ecologist and forthcoming president of the Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation. He heads the Environmental Biology group at the National University of Singapore and is author of The Ecology of Tropical East Asia, published by Oxford University Press in 2009.

Reviews

[Sarah Salisbury]

Read for March’s Renaissance Project(tm) study of tropical rainforest ecology. Dense, and not always the most enjoyable read, but a lot of good context.

[Felly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Part of reading job. Starting with chapter 1 and 2 and now in the beginning of chapter 3. Interesting writing and most likely about ecology and surprisingly history of Tropical East Asia which including all Asia countries started to China until Indonesia minus Papua.