The goal of biogeography is to build an understanding of biogeography as a unified science studying how environment, space and time interact to control the large-scale distribution of organisms. This title includes the key concepts related to the study of vegetation and animal distributions and the human impact on these distributions.

Features:

• Illustrative examples from recent research publications and "classic" studies are prominently featured throughout the book.
• Research techniques are highlighted in "special interest" boxes. Illustrations and descriptions of research techniques are provided with examples such as fire-scars from trees used to reconstruct disturbance, fossil pollen used to reconstruct vegetation change and plant migration, transect and quadrate sampling.
• Includes key biogeographical theories that link space and time to the distribution of life. Some of these theories include: 1. Ranges, Reflicts, Refuges, Corridors, Barriers, 2. Centers of Origins, 3. Cladistics, 4. Variance, 5. Island BioGeography, 6. Diversity Theory, 7. Gap Analysis for Conservation.