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A primer of conservation biology
BOOK studies of social behaviour serves to be widely read. Laurent
in ants. It de-
Keller
University of Lausanne, lnstitut de Zoologie et d’Ecologie Animale, BStiment de Biologie, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
References 1 HClldobler, B. and Wilson, E.O. (1990) The Ants, Springer-Verlag
A quick guide to conservation biology A Primer of Conservation Biology by Richard B. Primack Sinauer, 1995. f14.95 pbk (i + 277 pages) ISBN 0 87893 730 7
A
lthough several edited volumes and major texts on conservation biology have appeared in recent years’, more basic textbooks have been a surprisingly long time in appearing. This has presented some problems for undergraduate course organizers. Depending on the level and nature of the course, A Primer of ConservationBiologymay or may not provide a solution. Primack is already well known for his excellent earlier book, Essentials of Conservation Biology, but his latest primer is an entirely different endeavour. It is intended to be ‘a quick guide’ to conservation biology for short or introductory courses, providing basic material for environmental policy courses or acting as a concise guide for pro
fessionals. As the title states, this is genuinely a ‘primer’, and whisks the reader through what might be called ‘broad-sense conservation biology’ in less than 250 pages. The five major sections focus upon descriptions of biodiversity, the loss of biodiversity and the utilitarian and non-utilitarian arguments for its preservation, an overview of threats and threatening processes, conservation at the level of species and populations, conservation at the community level, and sustainable use. The effort to integrate biological with social and economic aspects, especially sustainable use, is well worthwhile for the market the book is aimed at, and there is a substantial set of references to governmental and non-governmental policies, practice and legislation. Because of the breadth of the material covered and the fact that this is an introductory text, it is perhaps inevitable that there is not much depth. Even so, for a science textbook, there is remarkably little the ory, especially in comparison to the amount of empirical information and the descrip tions of policy and practice presented. Some might argue that this is the nature of conservation biology as a young and still developing area of scientific enquiry. Personally, I should like to see more theory and techniques from evolutionary, population and community ecology included, as these seem to me to lie at the heart of conservation biology (at least in its ‘strict sense’). As a young and rapidly developing science, conservation biology has an extensive, recent primary literature. The lack of detail and of critical commentary in Prima&s text is partly compensated by an excellent bib liography at the end of the book, and by a selection of items for further reading at the end of each section. The literature cited is well up to date with many 1993 and 1994 references and also a few from 1995.
REVIEWS
Conservation biology has its roots in North American academia, and it is here that there are most undergraduate courses, so it is perhaps a little petty to comment on the American bias in style and content. There are, however, very few examples from Europe, Australasia or even the tropics, and the discussion of national legislation is entirely restricted to the US Endangered Species Act. These may seem relatively trivial points but some prominent areas of interest and study outside the US are given scant attention. For example, the discussion of methods for selecting priority areas for conservation is restricted to gap analysis, and the various approaches to maximizing species diversity among sites developed largely in Australia and the UK are not presented*. Neither is there mention of the important distinction between declining populations and small but stable populations. Recent discussions have indicated that this distinction is fundamental to the analysis and treatment of threatened populations3. This is a well-written, well-researched and admirably current textbook that will pro vIde a comprehensive background in conservation biology for introductory courses. However, I think that we still await the arrival of a definitive higher level text appropriate for specialized graduate and undergraduate courses. Geogina
M. Mace
Institute of Zoology, Regent’s Park, London, UK NW1 4RY
References 1
Ginsberg,J.R.and Balmford,A. (1995)Trends Ecol. Evol. 10,387-388
2
Pressey, R.L.et al. (1993)Trends Ecol. Evol. 8,
124-128 3 Caughley, G. (1994) .J Anim. Ecol. 63, 215-244
Combinlng data in phylogenetic analysis, .U? Huelsenbeck?et al. Do plankton and benthos really exist? E Boer0 et al. New methods for estimating transition bias, J. Wukeley what we don’t know about great ape variation, A. Uckidu Genetic anti ~o~ut~o~ How orp;anisms
TREE vol.
II,
RO. 3 March
con
uences of metapopulation structure, S
and A.
pond to environmental changes, M:Pfg&cci
1996
143
in ants. It de-
Keller
University of Lausanne, lnstitut de Zoologie et d’Ecologie Animale, BStiment de Biologie, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
References 1 HClldobler, B. and Wilson, E.O. (1990) The Ants, Springer-Verlag
A quick guide to conservation biology A Primer of Conservation Biology by Richard B. Primack Sinauer, 1995. f14.95 pbk (i + 277 pages) ISBN 0 87893 730 7
A
lthough several edited volumes and major texts on conservation biology have appeared in recent years’, more basic textbooks have been a surprisingly long time in appearing. This has presented some problems for undergraduate course organizers. Depending on the level and nature of the course, A Primer of ConservationBiologymay or may not provide a solution. Primack is already well known for his excellent earlier book, Essentials of Conservation Biology, but his latest primer is an entirely different endeavour. It is intended to be ‘a quick guide’ to conservation biology for short or introductory courses, providing basic material for environmental policy courses or acting as a concise guide for pro
fessionals. As the title states, this is genuinely a ‘primer’, and whisks the reader through what might be called ‘broad-sense conservation biology’ in less than 250 pages. The five major sections focus upon descriptions of biodiversity, the loss of biodiversity and the utilitarian and non-utilitarian arguments for its preservation, an overview of threats and threatening processes, conservation at the level of species and populations, conservation at the community level, and sustainable use. The effort to integrate biological with social and economic aspects, especially sustainable use, is well worthwhile for the market the book is aimed at, and there is a substantial set of references to governmental and non-governmental policies, practice and legislation. Because of the breadth of the material covered and the fact that this is an introductory text, it is perhaps inevitable that there is not much depth. Even so, for a science textbook, there is remarkably little the ory, especially in comparison to the amount of empirical information and the descrip tions of policy and practice presented. Some might argue that this is the nature of conservation biology as a young and still developing area of scientific enquiry. Personally, I should like to see more theory and techniques from evolutionary, population and community ecology included, as these seem to me to lie at the heart of conservation biology (at least in its ‘strict sense’). As a young and rapidly developing science, conservation biology has an extensive, recent primary literature. The lack of detail and of critical commentary in Prima&s text is partly compensated by an excellent bib liography at the end of the book, and by a selection of items for further reading at the end of each section. The literature cited is well up to date with many 1993 and 1994 references and also a few from 1995.
REVIEWS
Conservation biology has its roots in North American academia, and it is here that there are most undergraduate courses, so it is perhaps a little petty to comment on the American bias in style and content. There are, however, very few examples from Europe, Australasia or even the tropics, and the discussion of national legislation is entirely restricted to the US Endangered Species Act. These may seem relatively trivial points but some prominent areas of interest and study outside the US are given scant attention. For example, the discussion of methods for selecting priority areas for conservation is restricted to gap analysis, and the various approaches to maximizing species diversity among sites developed largely in Australia and the UK are not presented*. Neither is there mention of the important distinction between declining populations and small but stable populations. Recent discussions have indicated that this distinction is fundamental to the analysis and treatment of threatened populations3. This is a well-written, well-researched and admirably current textbook that will pro vIde a comprehensive background in conservation biology for introductory courses. However, I think that we still await the arrival of a definitive higher level text appropriate for specialized graduate and undergraduate courses. Geogina
M. Mace
Institute of Zoology, Regent’s Park, London, UK NW1 4RY
References 1
Ginsberg,J.R.and Balmford,A. (1995)Trends Ecol. Evol. 10,387-388
2
Pressey, R.L.et al. (1993)Trends Ecol. Evol. 8,
124-128 3 Caughley, G. (1994) .J Anim. Ecol. 63, 215-244
Combinlng data in phylogenetic analysis, .U? Huelsenbeck?et al. Do plankton and benthos really exist? E Boer0 et al. New methods for estimating transition bias, J. Wukeley what we don’t know about great ape variation, A. Uckidu Genetic anti ~o~ut~o~ How orp;anisms
TREE vol.
II,
RO. 3 March
con
uences of metapopulation structure, S
and A.
pond to environmental changes, M:Pfg&cci
1996
143