A. R. E. Sinclair - Böcker

Originally published in 1979, Serengeti: Dynamics of an Ecosystem was immediately recognized as the first synthesis of the patterns and processes of a major ecosystem. A prototype for initial studies, Serengeti contains baseline data for further and comparative studies of ecosystems. The new Serengeti II builds on the information presented originally in Serengeti; both books together offer essential information and insights for ecology and conservation biology.

The aim of this text is to provide an up-to-date understanding of the Serengeti-Mara ecosystem in East Africa, home to one of the largest and most diverse populations of animals in the world. Building on the groundwork laid by "Serengeti: Dynamics of an Ecosystem", published in 1979 by the University of Chicago Press, this work integrates studies of the ecosystem at every level, from the plants at the bottom of the visible food chain to the many species of herbivores and predators, as well as the system as a whole. Drawing on data from long-term studies, the contributors examine the processes that have produced the Serengeti's biological diversity, with its species-species and species-environment interactions. The book also discusses computer modelling as a tool for exploring these interactions, employing it to test and anticipate the effects of social, political and economic changes on the entire ecosystem and on particular species, with the aim of assisting the development of future conservation and management strategies.

Serengeti National Park is one of the world's most diverse ecosystems, a natural laboratory for ecology, evolution, and conservation, with a history that dates back at least four million years to the beginnings of human evolution. The third book of a groundbreaking series, "Serengeti III" is the result of a long-term integrated research project that documents changes to this unique ecosystem every ten years.Bringing together researchers from a wide range of disciplines - ecologists, paleontologists, economists, social scientists, mathematicians, and disease specialists - this volume focuses on the interactions between the natural system and the human-dominated agricultural system. By examining how changes in rainfall, wildebeest numbers, commodity prices, and human populations have afftected the Serengeti ecosystem, the authors conclude that changes in the natural system have affected human welfare just as changes in the human system have afftected the natural world. To promote both the conservation of biota and the sustainability of human welfare, the authors recommend community-based conservation and protected-area conservation."Serengeti III" presents a timely and provocative look at the conservation status of one of earth's most renowned ecosystems.