Biodiversity Theories

Foundations, Mechanisms and Applications in Conservation and Sustainability
Erscheinungsjahr 2027
ISBN: 978-0-443-51801-0
Verlag: Elsevier Science

Buch, Englisch, 449 Seiten, Format (B × H): 191 mm x 235 mm

Understanding why biodiversity varies across ecosystems, and how it is maintained or altered, requires bringing together multiple ecological theories across spatial and temporal scales. Yet major biodiversity frameworks are often presented separately, making it challenging to understand their relationships and practical relevance.

Biodiversity Theories: From Foundations, Mechanisms and Applications in Conservation and Sustainability provides a structured synthesis of the theories used to explain biodiversity patterns and processes. It examines foundational and contemporary perspectives including species–area relationships, island biogeography, niche theory, neutral theory, metapopulation and metacommunity dynamics, and biodiversity–ecosystem function relationships.

Moving from theory to application, the book shows how these frameworks can inform research on species distribution and community assembly, conservation planning, ecosystem management, restoration, and sustainability decision-making. It also considers emerging applications involving phylogenetic diversity, climate change, ecosystem services, environmental DNA, remote sensing, and artificial intelligence.

Designed for students, researchers, and practitioners, this book provides an interdisciplinary framework for comparing and interpreting biodiversity theories, evaluating their predictions and limitations, and translating ecological knowledge to contemporary conservation and sustainability challenges.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Ogwu, Matthew Chidozie

Fachgebiete

• Mathematik | Informatik Mathematik Stochastik
• Naturwissenschaften Biowissenschaften Biowissenschaften Ökologie
• Geowissenschaften Umweltwissenschaften Biodiversität
• Geowissenschaften Umweltwissenschaften Umweltschutz, Umwelterhaltung

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Part I: Foundations- Pattern and Scale
1. Introduction: why a theoretical synthesis for biodiversity?
2. Species–area relationships and early biogeographic models
3. Latitudinal and elevational diversity gradients
4. Island biogeography: immigration–extinction dynamics and extensions

Part II: Community Assembly and Coexistence Mechanisms
5. Niche theory from Grinnell and Elton to Hutchinson
6. Disturbance, predation, competition, and resource heterogeneity
7. Neutral theory of biodiversity: assumptions, evidence, and synthesis
8. Keystone species and functional diversity

Part III: Spatial Dynamics and Scaling Up
9. Metapopulation theory
10. Metacommunity theory
11. Source–sink dynamics, edge effects, and habitat configuration
12. Diversification dynamics and regional species pools

Part IV: Evolutionary and Functional Dimensions
13. Red Queen dynamics and coevolutionary processes
14. Biodiversity–ecosystem function and multifunctionality
15. Insurance, stability, and resilience

Part V: Integration, Applications, and Future Directions
16. Phylogenetic diversity and macroecological scaling
17. Biodiversity, climate change, and ecosystem services
18. Emerging frontiers: eDNA, remote sensing, and AI
19. From theory to conservation planning and policy
20. Future directions: translational biodiversity science

Über Autor(innen)

Ogwu, Matthew Chidozie
Matthew Chidozie Ogwu is an Associate Professor of Sustainable Development at Appalachian State University, USA. He holds a Ph.D. in Biological Sciences from Seoul National University, with research training spanning microbial ecology, environmental toxicology, biodiversity conservation, and food–environment interactions. His interdisciplinary research focuses on contaminant pathways in food systems, soil and water quality, exposure assessment, human health risks, and sustainability, with particular emphasis on trace metals and agro-food contamination. He has led and collaborated on funded research projects across North America, Africa, Europe, and Asia, emphasizing the connection between ecological evidence and environmental science and conservation, management, and policy.