Ecology

Michael L. Cain, William D. Bowman, and Sally D. Hacker

March 2008
552 pages, 547 illustrations
casebound

About This Title

(A sample textbook chapter and sample instructor media resources are available on the Ecology Samples Page.)

Understanding ecology is important in today's world. Yet, due to the sheer volume of conceptual material and morass of details to be digested, many students find it a difficult subject to grasp. Moreover, the dynamic nature of this discipline presents challenges to providing students with the most current information available. For some time now, instructors have been calling for a textbook that offers just the right balance of subject matter emphasis, clearly presented concepts, and engaging, fresh examples. Ecology—authored by ecologists who each have more than 10 years’ experience teaching the subject—is that book.

To aid students in integrating material across the levels at which ecology is studied, the book is structured so that they are always reminded of connections among levels of the ecological hierarchy (from individuals to populations to communities to ecosystems) and links to evolution, a unifying theme for all of ecology.

Features of Ecology

Pedagogical Excellence Students taking their first course in ecology are exposed to a great deal of material, on a conceptual as well as individual-systems level. To help them manage this vast amount of information, each chapter of Ecology is organized around a small number of Key Concepts (typically 3-5). Chapter-opening vignettes (see “Case Studies”) draw students in, while clear narrative, state-of-the-art illustrations, and links among chapter sections help them comprehend and digest chapter contents.
Subject Matter This book differs from existing textbooks by placing comparatively greater emphasis on community ecology, ecosystem ecology, and applied aspects of ecology. The authors devote a greater number of chapters to these subjects, and include discussion of community/ecosystem topics in chapters that focus on individuals or populations. Mechanisms that underlie communities and ecosystems—such as the impact of climate and the physical environment, evolution and ecology, population ecology, and interactions among organisms—are also discussed thoroughly.
Ecological Inquiry Our understanding of ecology is constantly changing due to new observations and new results from ecological experiments and models. All chapters of the book emphasize the active, inquiry-based nature of what is known about ecology.
“Hands-on Problem Solving,” a unique component of the Companion Website, is designed to sharpen scientific reasoning skills. Students are asked to manipulate data, to explore mathematical aspects of ecology in more detail through quantitative problems, and to grapple with how to interpret results from real experiments. The exercises can be used in class lectures or recitations, or assigned as homework problems.
Case Studies Each chapter opens with an interesting vignette—a Case Study. By presenting an engaging story or interesting application, the Case Study captures the reader's attention while introducing the topic of the chapter. Later, the authors bring the reader full circle with the corresponding “Case Study Revisited” section at chapter's end. Each Case Study relates naturally to multiple levels of the ecological hierarchy, thereby providing a nice lead-in to the Connections in Nature feature described next.
Connections in Nature To facilitate the ability of students to grasp how events in nature are interconnected, each chapter of Ecology closes with a section that discusses how the material covered in that chapter affects and is affected by interactions at other levels of the ecological hierarchy. Where appropriate, these interconnections are also emphasized in the main body of the text.
Ecological Applications In recent years, ecologists have increasingly focused their attention on applied issues. Similarly, many students taking introductory ecology are very interested in applied aspects of ecology. Thus, ecological applications (including conservation biology) receive great attention in this book. Discussions of applied topics are woven into each chapter, helping to capture and retain student interest.
Links to Evolution Evolution is a central unifying theme of all biology, and its connections with ecology are very strong. Yet, ecology textbooks typically present evolution almost as a separate subject. As an alternative to the standard approach, Ecology's Chapter 6 is devoted to describing the joint effects of ecology and evolution. This chapter explores the ecology of evolution at both the population level and as documented in the sweeping history of life on Earth. The authors also describe concepts or applications that relate to evolution in many other chapters.
Art Program Many of Ecology's illustrations feature “balloon captions,” which tell a story that can be understood at a glance, without relying on the accompanying text. The art program is available to adopting instructors both as overhead transparencies and as part of the Instructor's Resource Library (see Media and Supplements).

About the Authors

Michael L. Cain, having opted for an early retirement to focus full-time on writing, now brings his expertise to this new book. He received his Ph.D. in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from Cornell University, taught at New Mexico State University and the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, and is currently affiliated with Bowdoin College. Dr. Cain is the senior author of Discover Biology, Third Edition, and a coauthor of Campbell’s Biology, Eighth Edition. He has instructed students across a wide range of subjects, including introductory biology, ecology, field ecology, evolution, botany, mathematical biology, and biostatistics. His research interests include: plant population ecology; long-distance dispersal; ecological and evolutionary dynamics in hybrid zones; and search behavior in plants and animals.

William D. Bowman is Professor at the University of Colorado at Boulder, affiliated with both the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and the Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research. He earned his Ph.D. from Duke University. Dr. Bowman has taught courses in introductory ecology, plant ecology, plant–soil interactions, and ecosystems ecology, and for several years has directed undergraduate summer field research programs. He is coeditor of the 2001 book, Structure and Function of an Alpine Ecosystem, Niwot Ridge, Colorado (Oxford University Press). His research focuses on plant ecology, biogeochemistry, and community dynamics.

Sally D. Hacker is Associate Professor in the Department of Zoology at Oregon State University. She received her Ph.D. from the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Brown University. She has taught courses in general ecology, community ecology, marine biology, and field ecology. As a community ecologist interested in natural and managed marine, dune, and estuarine communities, Dr. Hacker's research explores species interactions and how they influence community formation and species diversity.

NEW! Interactive eBook

Free preview available now at www.sinauer.com/ebooks/ecology (log in as "Guest", with no password).

Ecology is also available as an Interactive eBook, at a substantial discount off the price of the printed textbook.

The interactive eBook features a wealth of interactive tools and resources. For instructors, the eBook offers an unprecedented opportunity to easily customize the textbook with the addition of notes, Web links, images, documents, and more. Students can readily bookmark pages, highlight text, add their own notes, and customize the display of the text. All of the Companion Website's resources are integrated into the eBook, so that students can easily access Hands-On Problem Solving Exercises, Web Extensions, Online Quizzes, and more while reading the text.

For more information about the Interactive eBook, please contact Susan McGlew at mcglew@sinauer.com.

Reviews and Commentary

“I have found it to be a great book. It is clearly written, the selection of examples is ideal and it represents an excellent textbook on ecology. I am certain our ecology students will enjoy and benefit from this wonderful compendium.”
—Rodolfo Dirzo, Stanford University

“As instructors we all dream of the perfect ecology textbook and I compliment Cain, Bowman, and Hacker on making their ideal text a reality. This textbook provides a gateway to attract student interest and many ways to encourage the learning of ecology.”
—Kathleen L. Shea, Ecology

“The authors have produced a clear, engaging, and beautifully illustrated undergraduate textbook on ecology. … This is a carefully prepared, eminently ‘readable’ textbook that deserves full consideration for undergraduate ecology courses.”
—Sharon P. Lawler, The Quarterly Review of Biology

“The authors also had two major goals—to provide the right emphasis with the right degree of difficulty, and to ensure integration of ecological functioning across multiple levels. Perhaps the reason the authors so fully achieve the ‘right emphasis’ goal is their lack of achieving the ‘less is more’ principle. The abundance and diversity of examples within the book succeed in articulating common principles across multiple scales of view. These fascinating stories clearly reveal the connectedness of the world in which we live and the commonality of processes across multiple ecological scales. These two concepts are very important for students to not only know but to understand and be able to articulate. A narrative presentation style ensures that the content is well-integrated and ‘flows,’ while the case study recapitulation at the end of the chapter brings student learning full circle. This book’s straight-forward, captivating style of presentation should lead students to a more sophisticated level of comprehension.”
—Joyce Phillips Hardy, Plant Science Bulletin

“One of the many great things about Cain et al.'s Ecology textbook is that it seamlessly blends up-to-date examples from the primary literature with the most classic studies in ecology. Students can really get a sense that ecology is a dynamic science. My students also really appreciate how user friendly it is—the text is wonderfully written, the graphics are crystal clear and illustrative of key concepts, and the index and glossary are thorough.”
—Nathan Sanders, University of Tennessee, Knoxville

“Ecology by Cain, Bowman, and Hacker is a welcome addition to the landscape of textbooks for undergraduate classes in general ecology. The major concepts in ecology are presented at a level ideal for undergraduate students, and the text is easily read. Examples of ecological phenomena are well chosen and complemented by rich graphics and photographs. Ecology will be my book of choice for many semesters to come.”
—Keith W. Pecor, The College of New Jersey

“This may be the best college text I have used in any course. The writing is superlative and accessible for undergraduates. The organization is sensible, the coverage is thorough, the illustrations are outstanding, and the accompanying PowerPoint lectures are professionally rendered. Kudos to the authors and to Sinauer.”
—Robert Martin, Murray State University

“The online ‘Hands-On Problem Solving’ exercises are great, as they drive students to synthesize their conceptual knowledge and apply this to practical problems. I'm very pleased to use this top-notch textbook for my undergraduate course in ecology.”
—Betsy Von Holle, University of Central Florida

“So far I have loved using this text. It strikes the perfect balance for the students here at HSU.”
—Erik S. Jules, Humboldt State University

“I think the students will love it, for its simple direct writing, breadth of examples, and wonderful color figures. I like these and also the case studies that are embedded in each chapter, as they tend to be of important, real-world problems. Most importantly, the book is attractive and concise, but sacrifices nothing in terms of rigor.”
—David W. Tonkyn, Clemson University

“I have 7 ecology texts on my desk, and I just adopted Cain et al. 2008 for my ecology class this fall. I found it more readable/engaging and easier to teach from than the other texts. It has a nice combination of (1) classic examples and new research and (2) empirical research and applied examples. It is also pitched at the right level for this sophomore class.”
—Rachel J. Collins, Roanoke College

1. Introduction: The Web of Life

Unit I. Organisms and Their Environment

2. The Physical Environment
3. The Biosphere
4. Coping with Environmental Variation: Temperature and Water
5. Coping with Environmental Variation: Energy
6. Evolution and Ecology

Unit II. Populations

7. Life History Analyses
8. Population Distribution and Abundance
9. Population Growth and Regulation
10. Population Dynamics

Unit III. Interactions among Organisms

11. Competition (Click for sample chapter)
12. Predation and Herbivory
13. Parasitism
14. Mutualism and Commensalism

Unit IV. Communities

15. The Nature of Communities
16. Change in Communities
17. Biogeography
18. Species Diversity in Communities

Unit V. Ecosystems

19. Production
20. Energy Flow and Food Webs
21. Nutrient Supply and Cycling

Unit VI. Applied and Large-Scale Ecology

22. Conservation Biology
23. Landscape Ecology and Ecosystem Management
24. Global Ecology

Media and Supplements

For Instructors (available to adopting instructors)

(Sample instructor media resources are available on the Ecology Samples Page.)
The Ecology Instructor’s Resource Library includes a variety of resources to help in developing your course and delivering your lectures. The Library includes:

Textbook Figures and Tables: All the figures (including photographs) and tables from the textbook are provided as PowerPoint slides and as JPEGs (both high- and low-resolution), reformatted and relabeled for optimal readability.
PowerPoint Presentations. For each chapter, the following presentations are provided:

A presentation that includes all figures and tables, making it easy to add figures to your own presentations.
A complete lecture presentation that covers all the material presented in the chapter, easily editable to match your needs.

“Hands-on Problem Solving” These exercises, described below, can be used in class lectures or recitations, or assigned as homework problems.
Supplemental Photo Collection: Additional photos provided for use in lecture or other course materials (JPEG and PowerPoint).
Test Bank: Multiple-choice questions covering the breadth of material included in each textbook chapter (Microsoft Word files).
Computerized Test Bank: The entire test bank (including the online quizzes) is also provided in the Wimba Diploma format, for easy exam creation (software included).

Course Management Support
Course cartridges/e-packs for WebCT and Blackboard are available to qualified adopters. The e-pack includes all of the student resources from the companion website, the complete test bank, and a wealth of instructor resources.

Online Quizzing
Available via the Companion Website, instructors have access to a set of online quizzes that can be used either as assigned homework or as self-study tools. Instructors choose how they want the quizzes to be used by their students, and can quickly see student results in the quiz administration site.

Overhead Transparencies
A set of approximately 200 figures from the textbook, resized and relabeled to enhance projection quality.

For Students

Companion Website (www.sinauer.com/ecology)
The Ecology companion website features review and study tools to help your students master the material presented in the ecology course. Access to the site is free of charge, and requires no passcode. (Instructor registration is required for student quiz access.) The site includes:

Chapter Outlines and Summaries: Concise overviews of the important topics covered in each chapter.
“Hands-on Problem Solving” This novel learning tool challenges students with inquiry-based problems designed to sharpen their ability to reason as scientists. Exercises include data manipulation questions using data from real experiments, as well as problems involving the use of online simulations. (View a sample exercise here.)
Web Extensions: Additional coverage of selected topics.
Multiple-choice Quizzes: Quizzes that cover all the major concepts introduced in each chapter.
Flashcards: Activities to help students learn the new terminology introduced in the textbook.
Glossary

Pricing and Options

Titles	Product Code	Price (USD)
Ecology Interactive eBook - purchase via Kagi.com.	978-0-87893-362-4	$65.95		Request Exam Copy
Ecology Loose Leaf	978-0-87893-395-2	$65.95	Purchase	Request Exam Copy
Ecology Interactive eBook bundled with Gotelli: A Primer of Ecology, Fourth Edition Bundle available in US and Canada only. This bundle includes: Ecology A Primer of Ecology, Fourth Edition	978-0-87893-364-8	$106.40	Purchase	Request Exam Copy
Ecology	978-0-87893-083-8	$109.95	Purchase	Request Exam Copy
Ecology bundled with Gotelli: A Primer of Ecology, 4E Bundle available in US and Canada only. This bundle includes: Ecology A Primer of Ecology, Fourth Edition	978-0-87893-284-9	$139.40	Purchase	Request Exam Copy
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