'The book is well edited ... and shall be a good guide for researchers not only on coastal vegetation but for allied habitats as well. It should be a valuable addition to the shelf of ecologists.' Phytomorphology (1987) 'This volume, presented in Junk's usual high-quality style, generally well produced ... many people will use these papers individually, but it is certain that presenting them in a book form increases their value ... this book is a valuable contribution and necessary for anyone working in dune areas. The three editors ... are to be congratulated with this welcome addition to the ecological literature.' Acta Botanica Neerlandica, 36:1 (1987)

• 1 Vegetation studies.- 1. The halophilous vegetation of the Po Delta (northern Italy).- 2. Environmental structures and variation in coastal vegetation of the Golfe du Lion (France).- 3. A study on long-term salt-marsh succession using permanent plots.- 4. Interactions between Limonium vulgare and Plantago maritima in the Plantagini-Limonietum association on the Boschplaat, Terschelling, The Netherlands.- 5. Salt-marsh vegetation in the Shetland Islands.- 6. The salt-marsh vegetation at Vinjekilen, Bamble, SE Norway, with special reference to the Puccinellietum maritimae.- 7. Coastal fore-dune zonation and succession in various parts of the world.- 8. Phytosociological amplitudes of some Dutch coastal species and their ecological interpretation.- 9. Changes in the flora and vegetation of the coastal dunes of Voorne (The Netherlands) in relation to environmental changes.- 10. Phytosociological and ecological-aspects of the dunes on the Isle of Rügen, Baltic Sea.- 11. The reaction of some sand-dune plant species to experimentally imposed environmental change: a reductionist approach to stability.- 2 Studies on populations.- 12. Population differentiation in the life-history characteristics of salt-marsh annuals.- 13. Population dynamics of annual Salicornia species in the tidal salt marshes of the Oosterschelde, The Netherlands.- 14. Seed dimorphism and germination behaviour in Salicornia patula.- 15. Structure and dynamics of the inland populations of Salicornia patula.- 16. Population dynamics of Plantago maritima along a distributional gradient on a Baltic seashore meadow.- 17. Field studies on the variability of populations of Aster tripolium L. in relation to salt-marsh zonation.- 18. Comparison of niche breadths and overlaps of halophytes on salt marshes ofdiffering diversity.- 19. Adaptation in perennial coastal plants — with particular reference to heritable variation in Puccinellia maritima and Ammophila arenaria.- 20. Comparative population ecology of dune slack species: the relation between population stability and germination behaviour in brackish environments.- 21. Ecotypic differentiation within Festuca rubra L. occurring in a heterogeneous coastal environment.- 22. Ecology of the hybrid Marram Grass x Calammophila baltica in Britain.- 23. Population dynamics of some major woody species in relation to long-term succession on the dunes of Voorne.- 3 Ecophysiological studies.- 24. Salinity and seed germination patterns in coastal plants.- 25. On the ecophysiology of Halimione portulacoides.- 26. Salt resistance and the environment of the cell wall of some halophytes.- 27. Osmotic adaptation in Australian mangroves.- 28. The effects of the interaction between salinity and nitrogen limitation in Agrostis stolonifera L..- 29. Growth performance of an inland population of Plantago maritima in response to nitrogen and salinity.- 30. Stress metabolites and their role in coastal plants.- 31. Sulphide tolerance in coastal halophytes.- 32. Manganese as an ecological factor in salt marshes.- 33. Differential response of salt-marsh species to variation of iron and manganese.- 34. Nitrogen nutrition in the estuarine zone: the case of Suaeda maritima var. macrocarpa.- 35. The phytosociology of British sea-cliff vegetation with special reference to the ecophysiology of some maritime cliff plants.- 36. The physiological ecology of strandline plants.- 37. Response of Juniperus phoenicea on sandy dunes in the Camargue (France) to water and saline constraints in summer.- 4 Studies on biogeochemical and physical processes incoastal ecosystems.- 38. Decomposition of Spartina anglica, Elytrigia pungens and Halimione portulacoides in a dutch salt marsh in association with faunal and habitat influences.- 39. The distribution and interconversion of ammonium and nitrate in the Skallingen salt marsh (Denmark) and their exchange with the adjacent coastal water.- 40. The influence of vegetation on erosion and accretion in salt marshes of the Oosterschelde, The Netherlands.- 41. Tidal flows and sediment budgets for a salt-marsh system, Essex, England.- 5 Studies on conservation and management of coastal vegetation.- 42. Effects of mowing on the composition of Baltic salt-meadow communities.- 43. The impact of grazing on plant communities, plant populations and soil conditions on salt marshes.- 44. The significance of waterfowl grazing in the primary vegetation succession on embanked sandflats.- 45. Vegetation development on newly embanked sandflats in the Grevelingen (The Netherlands) under different management practices.- 46. Ecological consequences of tidal management for the salt-marsh vegetation.- 47. Salt-marsh research with respect to the civil-engineering project in The Oosterschelde, The Netherlands.- 48. The distribution and ecology of coastal species on roadsides.- 49. Grazing and mowing as management tools on dunes.- 50. Vegetation, land use and management of the inner-dune zone in the North-Holland Dune Reserve, The Netherlands.- 51. Dynamics and management of some coastal dune woodlands near The Hague, The Netherlands.- 6 Concluding papers.- 52. Vegetation study as a generator for population biological and physiological research on salt marshes.- 53. Population biology of salt marsh and sand dune annuals.- 54. Ecophysiological adaptations of coastal halophytes from foredunes and salt marshes.- 55. Nature management in coastal areas of Western Europe.- 56. Some considerations of and perspectives in coastal ecology.- Abstracts of poster papers.- 1. Regeneration of halophytes from seed on a Southern England salt marsh.- 2. The requirement for salt by coastal halophytes growing on N.E. England’s roadsides.- 3. Consequences of a change in tidal regime on the growth of and competition between Spartina anglica, Aster tripolium and Puccinellia maritima.- 4. Effects of Zinc, Copper and Cadmium on the growth and mineral composition of some salt-marsh halophytes.- 5. Effects of Zinc, Copper and Cadmium on the mineral nutrition and ion secretion of salt-secreting halophytes.- 6. Properties, planning and use of Meijendel, a dutch dry coastal dune area.- 7. Pattern development in a dune slack population of Dactylorhiza praetermissa.- 8. Influence of soil moisture and nitrate content in French mediterranean dunes on the nitrate accumulation and reduction in Ammophila arenaria.- 9. On the lime content in the Dutch coastal sand dunes in the province of Noord-Holland.- 10. Ecophysiology of a calcicolous and calcifuge species of the genus Cladonia (lichens).- 11. Conservation of coastal vegetation in an urban biosphere reserve — North Bull Island, Dublin Bay.- Author index.- Species index.