Ebook: From Energetics to Ecosystems: The Dynamics and Structure of Ecological Systems

Ecosystems are complex and enigmatic entities that are ultimately our life support systems. Understanding these systems to the point of being able to predict their behaviour in the face of perturbations requires that researchers adopt a number of strategies that vary in both approach and scale. This book, in a sense, is representative of some of the developments that have unfolded when math and physics met ecology. Here, some of the world’s leading ecologists examine ecosystems from theoretical, experimental, and empirical viewpoints, from energetics to ecosystems. The book begins with simplifying and synthesizing nature’s complex relationships. It then moves on to explore the mapping between food web structure and function and ends with the role of theory in integrating different research areas. From the breadth of systems analyzed to the rigor of approaches taken, this book is not only a useful resource for students and researchers in ecology, but also serves as a fitting tribute to the life and work of Peter Yodzis.

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Ecosystems are complex and enigmatic entities that are ultimately our life support systems. Understanding these systems to the point of being able to predict their behaviour in the face of perturbations requires that researchers adopt a number of strategies that vary in both approach and scale. This book, in a sense, is representative of some of the developments that have unfolded when math and physics met ecology. Here, some of the world’s leading ecologists examine ecosystems from theoretical, experimental, and empirical viewpoints, from energetics to ecosystems. The book begins with simplifying and synthesizing nature’s complex relationships. It then moves on to explore the mapping between food web structure and function and ends with the role of theory in integrating different research areas. From the breadth of systems analyzed to the rigor of approaches taken, this book is not only a useful resource for students and researchers in ecology, but also serves as a fitting tribute to the life and work of Peter Yodzis.

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Ecosystems are complex and enigmatic entities that are ultimately our life support systems. Understanding these systems to the point of being able to predict their behaviour in the face of perturbations requires that researchers adopt a number of strategies that vary in both approach and scale. This book, in a sense, is representative of some of the developments that have unfolded when math and physics met ecology. Here, some of the world’s leading ecologists examine ecosystems from theoretical, experimental, and empirical viewpoints, from energetics to ecosystems. The book begins with simplifying and synthesizing nature’s complex relationships. It then moves on to explore the mapping between food web structure and function and ends with the role of theory in integrating different research areas. From the breadth of systems analyzed to the rigor of approaches taken, this book is not only a useful resource for students and researchers in ecology, but also serves as a fitting tribute to the life and work of Peter Yodzis.

Content:
Front Matter....Pages i-xix
A Process-Oriented Approach to the Multispecies Functional Response....Pages 1-36
Homage to Yodzis and Innes 1992: Scaling up Feeding-Based Population Dynamics to Complex Ecological Networks....Pages 37-51
Food Webs, Body Size and the Curse of the Latin Binomial....Pages 53-64
An Energetic Framework for Trophic Control....Pages 65-85
Experimental Studies of Food Webs: Causes and Consequences of Trophic Interactions....Pages 87-100
Interplay Between Scale, Resolution, Life History and Food Web Properties....Pages 101-126
Heteroclinic Cycles in the Rain Forest: Insights from Complex Dynamics....Pages 127-155
Emergence in Ecological Systems....Pages 157-183
Dynamic Signatures of Real and Model Ecosystems....Pages 185-190
Evolutionary Branching of Single Traits....Pages 191-212
Feedback Effects Between the Food Chain and Induced Defense Strategies....Pages 213-235
Evolutionary Demography: The Invasion Exponent and the Effective Population Density in Nonlinear Matrix Models....Pages 237-256
Of Experimentalists, Empiricists, and Theoreticians....Pages 257-260
Back Matter....Pages 261-265

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Ecosystems are complex and enigmatic entities that are ultimately our life support systems. Understanding these systems to the point of being able to predict their behaviour in the face of perturbations requires that researchers adopt a number of strategies that vary in both approach and scale. This book, in a sense, is representative of some of the developments that have unfolded when math and physics met ecology. Here, some of the world’s leading ecologists examine ecosystems from theoretical, experimental, and empirical viewpoints, from energetics to ecosystems. The book begins with simplifying and synthesizing nature’s complex relationships. It then moves on to explore the mapping between food web structure and function and ends with the role of theory in integrating different research areas. From the breadth of systems analyzed to the rigor of approaches taken, this book is not only a useful resource for students and researchers in ecology, but also serves as a fitting tribute to the life and work of Peter Yodzis.

Content:
Front Matter....Pages i-xix
A Process-Oriented Approach to the Multispecies Functional Response....Pages 1-36
Homage to Yodzis and Innes 1992: Scaling up Feeding-Based Population Dynamics to Complex Ecological Networks....Pages 37-51
Food Webs, Body Size and the Curse of the Latin Binomial....Pages 53-64
An Energetic Framework for Trophic Control....Pages 65-85
Experimental Studies of Food Webs: Causes and Consequences of Trophic Interactions....Pages 87-100
Interplay Between Scale, Resolution, Life History and Food Web Properties....Pages 101-126
Heteroclinic Cycles in the Rain Forest: Insights from Complex Dynamics....Pages 127-155
Emergence in Ecological Systems....Pages 157-183
Dynamic Signatures of Real and Model Ecosystems....Pages 185-190
Evolutionary Branching of Single Traits....Pages 191-212
Feedback Effects Between the Food Chain and Induced Defense Strategies....Pages 213-235
Evolutionary Demography: The Invasion Exponent and the Effective Population Density in Nonlinear Matrix Models....Pages 237-256
Of Experimentalists, Empiricists, and Theoreticians....Pages 257-260
Back Matter....Pages 261-265
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