An Introduction to Disturbance Ecology

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xiii

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2. Heterogeneity, Dynamism, and Diversity of Natural Systems

   • Corrado Battisti, Gianluca Poeta, Giuliano Fanelli

   Pages 1-6

3. The Concept of Disturbance

   • Corrado Battisti, Gianluca Poeta, Giuliano Fanelli

   Pages 7-12

4. Role and Effects of Disturbances in Natural Systems

   • Corrado Battisti, Gianluca Poeta, Giuliano Fanelli

   Pages 13-29

5. The Disturbance Regime

   • Corrado Battisti, Gianluca Poeta, Giuliano Fanelli

   Pages 31-46

6. Disturbances and Coexistence of Species

   • Corrado Battisti, Gianluca Poeta, Giuliano Fanelli

   Pages 47-52

7. Classification Criteria for Disturbance Events

   • Corrado Battisti, Gianluca Poeta, Giuliano Fanelli

   Pages 53-58

8. Categories of Natural Disturbances

   • Corrado Battisti, Gianluca Poeta, Giuliano Fanelli

   Pages 59-71

9. Anthropogenic Threats

   • Corrado Battisti, Gianluca Poeta, Giuliano Fanelli

   Pages 73-84

10. Nomenclature and Taxonomy of Threats

    • Corrado Battisti, Gianluca Poeta, Giuliano Fanelli

    Pages 85-104

11. Threat Regime

    • Corrado Battisti, Gianluca Poeta, Giuliano Fanelli

    Pages 105-109

12. Threat Quantification and Ranking

    • Corrado Battisti, Gianluca Poeta, Giuliano Fanelli

    Pages 111-132

13. Threat Mapping

    • Corrado Battisti, Gianluca Poeta, Giuliano Fanelli

    Pages 133-166

14. Including Threats in Adaptive Management

    • Corrado Battisti, Gianluca Poeta, Giuliano Fanelli

    Pages 167-171

15. Conclusions and Prospects

    • Corrado Battisti, Gianluca Poeta, Giuliano Fanelli

    Pages 173-178

This book represents an introductory review of disturbance ecology and threat analysis, providing schematic concepts and approaches useful for work on sites that are affected by the impact of human actions. It is aimed at conservation and environmental practitioners, who will find tips for choosing methods and approaches when there are conflicts between the natural components and human activity. It is also addressed to students of applied ecology, ecosystem management, land-use planning and environmental impact assessment. It discusses a number of topics covered in the programs of many university courses related to basic ecology and ecology of disturbance, the latter constituting a field of great interest because of its implications and repercussions in applied territorial science.
The book is divided into two parts: the first focuses on the theoretical and disciplinary framework of the ecology of disturbance, while the second is devoted to the analysis of anthropogenic threats. This, in particular, discusses the most recent approach, which uses a conventional nomenclature to allow a coarse-grained quantification and objective assessment of threat impact on different environmental components. Such an approach facilitates the comparison of hierarchically different events and, therefore, helps define the priorities for management and conservation strategies.

• Natural Disturbances
• Human-induced Threats
• Driving Forces of Disturbances
• Biodiversity Targets
• Causal Chains in Ecological Processes
• Environmental Geography
• Fish and Wildlife Biology

• Protected areas Service, Città Metropolitana di Roma Capitale, Rome, Italy

  Corrado Battisti

• Department of Science, University of Rome III, Rome, Italy

  Gianluca Poeta

• Department of Biology, University of Rome II Tor Vergata Department of Biology, Rome, Italy

  Giuliano Fanelli

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