Coastal Ecosystem Processes

Daniel M Alongi Australian Institute of Marine Science, Australia

Series: Marine Science Volume: 15

List Price: $129.95
Our Price: $119.95

Cat. #: 8426 ISBN: 0849384265 Publication Date: 10/28/1997 Number of Pages: 448

Coastal Ecosystem Processes, written by the renowned marine scientist Daniel Alongi, describes how pelagic and benthic food webs, from beaches and tidal flats to the continental edge, process energy and matter. This volume focuses on recent advances and new developments on how food webs are closely intertwined with the geology, chemistry, and physics of coastal seas. Dr. Alongi presents a process-functional approach as a way of understanding how the energetics of coastal ecosystems rely not only on exchanges within and between food chains, but how such functions are influenced by terrigenous and atmospheric processes.

There is a need for documentation and an awareness of just how necessary, yet delicate, is the interplay of biological and physical forces between coastal ocean, land, and the atmosphere. Marine scientists today need to make informed management decisions about sustainable development and conservation of these fragile ecosystems. Coastal Ecosystem Processes provides present and future marine scientists the latest coastal ecosystem information to make the right decisions concerning the ecology of our oceans.

• Habitats are defined by chapter, allowing you speedy access to detailed habitat-specific information
• More than 60 tables allow rapid access to precise data
• 104 illustrations provide instant visualization of complex data sets and global trends
• 740 references function as a guide to the related literature