FUNDAMENTALS OF ECOLOGY was first published in 1953 and was the vehicle Odum used to educate a wide audience about ecological science. This Fifth Edition of FUNDAMENTALS OF ECOLOGY is co-authored by Odum's protege Gary Barrett and represents the last academic text Odum produced. The text retains its classic holistic approach to ecosystem science, but incorporates and integrates an evolutionary approach as well. In keeping with a greater temporal/spatial approach to ecology, new chapters in landscape ecology, regional ecology, and global ecology have been added building on the levels-of-organization hierarchy. Also, a final chapter entitled "Statistical Thinking for Students of Ecology" provides a quantitative synthesis to the field of statistics. Contemporary and engaging, this text brings clarity and specificity to the study of ecology in the twenty-first century.

    A key conservationist text. This special edition includes drawing by Robert W. Arnold.

    Potts, internationally known for his innovative excavations of early archeological sites, brilliantly connects our planet's past with the environmental dilemmas we now face, showing how ancient humans responded to the forces of nature and survived long periods of dramatic habitat disturbance. In the end, Humanity's Descent offers a provocative statement about the present status of our species and its institutions. Potts convincingly explains why prevailing ideals of economic growth and environmental preservation are based on mistaken, short-term views of the natural world. Our future lies, as it always has, in our ability to tolerate environmental insult and to revise our relationship with nature.