Evidence is mounting that redwood forests, like many other ecosystems, cannot survive as small, isolated fragments in human-altered landscapes. Such fragments lose their diversity over time and, in the case of redwoods, may even lose the ability to grow new, giant trees. The Redwood Forest, written in support of Save-the-Redwood League's master plan, provides scientific guidance for saving the redwood forest by bringing together in a single volume the latest insights from conservation biology along with new information from data-gathering techniques such as GIS and remote sensing. It presents the most current findings on the geologic and cultural history, natural history, ecology, management, and conservation of the flora and fauna of the redwood ecosystem. Leading experts -- including Todd Dawson, Bill Libby, John Sawyer, Steve Sillett, Dale Thornburgh, Hartwell Welch, and many others -- offer a comprehensive account of the redwoods ecosystem, with specific chapters examining: the history of the redwood lineage, from the Triassic Period to the present, along with the recent history of redwoods conservation life history, architecture, genetics, environmental relations, and disturbance regimes of redwoods terrestrial flora and fauna, communities, and ecosystems aquatic ecosystems landscape-scale conservation planning management alternatives relating to forestry, restoration, and recreation. The Redwood Forest offers a case study for ecosystem-level conservation and gives conservation organizations the information, technical tools, and broad perspective they need to evaluate redwood sites and landscapes for conservation. It contains the latest information from ground-breaking research on such topics as redwood canopy communities, the role of fog in sustaining redwood forests, and the function of redwood burls. It also presents sobering lessons from current research on the effects of forestry activities on the sensitive faunas of redwood forests and streams. The key to perpetuating the redwood forest is understanding how it functions; this book represents an important step in establishing such an understanding. It presents a significant body of knowledge in a single volume, and will be a vital resource for conservation scientists, land use planners, policymakers, and anyone involved with conservation of redwoods and other forests.

The landscapes of North America, including eastern forests, have been shaped by humans for millennia, through fire, agriculture, hunting, and other means. But the arrival of Europeans on America’s eastern shores several centuries ago ushered in the rapid conversion of forests and woodlands to other land uses. By the twentieth century, it appeared that old-growth forests in the eastern United States were gone, replaced by cities, farms, transportation networks, and second-growth forests. Since that time, however, numerous remnants of eastern old growth have been discovered, meticulously mapped, and studied. Many of these ancient stands retain surprisingly robust complexity and vigor, and forest ecologists are eager to develop strategies for their restoration and for nurturing additional stands of old growth that will foster biological diversity, reduce impacts of climate change, and serve as benchmarks for how natural systems operate. Forest ecologists William Keeton and Andrew Barton bring together a volume that breaks new ground in our understanding of ecological systems and their importance for forest resilience in an age of rapid environmental change. This edited volume covers a broad geographic canvas, from eastern Canada and the Upper Great Lakes states to the deep South. It looks at a wide diversity of ecosystems, including spruce-fir, northern deciduous, southern Appalachian deciduous, southern swamp hardwoods, and longleaf pine. Chapters authored by leading old-growth experts examine topics of contemporary forest ecology including forest structure and dynamics, below-ground soil processes, biological diversity, differences between historical and modern forests, carbon and climate change mitigation, management of old growth, and more. This thoughtful treatise broadly communicates important new discoveries to scientists, land managers, and students and breathes fresh life into the hope for sensible, effective management of old-growth stands in eastern forests.

"Pinus radiata (radiata pine) is a versatile, fast-growing, medium-density softwood, suitable for a wide range of end-uses. Its silviculture is highly developed, and is built on a rm foundation of over a century of research, observation and practice. Radiata pine is often considered a model for growers of other plantation species. This book explores current knowledge of, and experience with radiata pine forest plantation management and examines its long-term sustainability. Radiata pine management needs to integrate the biological aspects of tree-growing, with socio-economics, management objectives, practical considerations and other constraints and opportunities. Although stands of radiata pine may appear to be simple, they are actually quite complex ecosystems because they contain large, long-lived trees that change dramatically over time and interact in changing ways with the environment and with other organisms. The focus of this book is on the principles and practices of growing radiata pine sustainably. It also looks ahead to emerging challenges facing radiata pine plantation management, such as the effects of climate change, new diseases and other threats, and meeting changing product needs and societal demands."--Page 4 of cover.

Since the first edition of our book "Tissue Culture in Fores try" in 1982 we have witnessed remarkable advances in cell and tissue culture technologies with woody perennials. In addition to forest biologists in government, industry, and universities, we now have molecular biologists, genetic engineers, and biochemists using cell and tissue cultures of woody species routinely. There fore, the time has come for an update of the earlier edition. In our present effort to cover new developments we have expanded to three volumes: 1. General principles and Biotechnology 2. Specific Principles and Methods: Growth and Development 3. Case Histories: Gymnosperms, Angiosperms and Palms The scientific barriers to progress in tree improvement are not so much lack of foreign gene expression in plants but our current inabili ty to regenerate plants in true-to-type fashion on a mas sive and economic scale. To achieve this in the form of an appro pr iate biotechnology, cell and tissue culture will increasing ly require a better understanding of basic principles in chemistry and physics that determine structural and functional relationships among molecules and macromolecules (proteins, RNA, DNA) within cells and tissues. These principles and their relationship with the culture medium and its physical environment, principles of clonal propagation, and genetic variation and ultrastructure are discussed in volume one.

Honorable Mention, Popular Science, 2012 PROSE Awards, Professional and Scholarly Publishing Division of the Association of American Publishers The only mammals capable of true flight, bats are among the world’s most fascinating creatures. This accessible guide to the forty-seven species of bats found in the United States and Canada captures and explains the amazing diversity of these marvels of evolution. A wide variety of bat species live in the United States and Canada, ranging from the California leaf-nosed bat to the Florida bonneted bat, from the eastern small-footed bat to the northern long-eared bat. The authors provide an overview of bat classification, biology, feeding behavior, habitats, migration, and reproduction. They discuss the ever-increasing danger bats face from destruction of habitat, wind turbines, chemical toxicants, and devastating diseases like white-nose syndrome, which is killing millions of cave bats in North America. Illustrated species accounts include range maps and useful identification tips. Written by three of the world’s leading bat experts and featuring J. Scott Altenbach's stunning photographs, this fact-filled and easy-to-use book is the most comprehensive and up-to-date account of bats in the U.S. and Canada.