Why big fierce animals are rare : an ecologist's perspective
Here is one of the most provocative, wide-ranging, and delightful books ever written about our environment. Paul Colinvaux takes a penetrating look at the science of ecology, bringing to his subject both profound knowledge and an enthusiasm that will encourage a greater understanding of the environment and of the efforts of those who seek to preserve it.
Print Book, English, 1979, ©1978
Princeton University Press, Princeton, N.J., 1979, ©1978
viii, 256 pages ; 22 cm
9780691023649, 9780691081946, 0691023646, 0691081948
10081738
Prelude
The science that reasons why
Every species has its niche
Why big fierce animals are rare
The efficiency of life
The nation states of trees
The social lives of plants
Cycles: a lesson from farming
Why the sea is blue
The ocean system
The regulation of the air
The curious incident of the lake in the Now Time
The succession affair
Peaceful coexistence
What hunting animals do
The social imperatives of space
Why there are so many species
The stability in nature
The people's place
Postlude