Landscape Ecology and Resource Management: Linking Theory with Practice

Bridging the gap between the science of landscape ecology and on-the-ground land and resource management, this work relates the theory and empirical research within landscape ecology to the practical needs of resource managers. It offers both a conceptual foundation of applicable and operational theory and case-study examples that address ways in which political, economic and social factors influence the use of landscape ecology and other data-based science around the world. Contributors focus on links between theory and practice, between small-scale and large-scale, and between humans and nature. Specific linkages examined include: landscape patterns and biological reality; top-down effects and organisms; the indicator species concept and conservation efforts; the concept of fitness landscapes and the behaviour and distribution of animals; and body mass patterns and wildlife conservation. Chapters feature examples of interactions between people and landscapes in boreal, central and Mediterranean Europe; northern Australia; and Eastern Africa; along with case studies from central Europe, North America and South America.