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'Succession' is the term used to describe the phenomenon of changes in vegetational types in both time and space. The subject of the colonization and exploitation of 'new' areas by plants is a key one in ecology and this book summarizes the theoretical arguments currently raging about the topic.
List of contents
Prologue. The nature of vegetation dynamics; D.C. Glenn-Lewin, E. van der Maarel. Establishment, colonization and persistence; A.G. van der Valk. Community structure and ecosystem properties; R.K. Peet. Regeneration dynamics; T.T. Veblen. From population dynamics to community dynamics: modeling succession as a species replacement process; R. van Hulst. Statistical models of succession; M.B. Usher. Individual-based models of forest succession; D.L. Urban, H.H. Shugart. Climate change and long-term vegetation dynamics; I.C. Prentice. Epilogue.
Report
`... this book is useful in combining a summary of knowledge and ideas about succession to date and a forward looking discussion of the development of predictive ability in vegetation ecology.'
Forestry
` ... the editors and publishers are to be congratulated on producing a multiauthor book that maintains stylistic coherence throughout, and develops a consistent theme logically through successive chapters. The result is an authoritative and readable account that all practising and would-be ecologists should consult.'
Journal of Ecology
`The authors certainly cover a lot of ground, providing definitions of some of the crucial, but difficult, concepts that have semantically bedeviled much research on succession... a number of solid and useful reviews... This book will be of value to upper level undergraduates, to graduate students, and to professional succession researchers who want a broader view of the field.'
Plant Science Bulletin
`An impressive array of authors have compiled an important contemporary synthesis of plant succession theory and what must be a focal reference text for researchers and lecturers...this is an excellent book...be an indipensable addition to the book shelf of ecologists interested in spatial and temporal community phenomena.'
Annals of Botany
