Ecology of North American Freshwater Fishes- A forthcoming textbook from the University of California Press

Authors: Stephen T. Ross

Year: 2012 (xliv)

Abstract

The North American freshwater fish fauna is the most diverse temperate fish fauna in the world as well as one of the best-studied faunas. Ecology of North American Freshwater Fishes integrates ecological and evolutionary principles and concepts with the processes involved in the formation and maintenance of this fauna. The intended audience for this book includes upper-level undergraduate students, graduate students, professional fish biologists, and anyone else curious about or with a passion for fishes. The book should be appropriate for use in one or two semester, undergraduate and/or graduate courses in fish ecology. Part 1 provides a broad picture, both spatially and temporally, of the derivation of the fauna, including examples of how global and North American geological and climatological processes have shaped the fauna. Part 2 focuses on how local populations and assemblages are formed and how they persist, or not, through time. Part 3 deals with the relationship of body form and life history patterns as they are related to ecological functions. The numerous interactions among individuals and species through communication, competition, predation, mutualism, and facilitation are the topics of Part 4. Part 5 focuses on several primary conservation issues such as flow alterations and the increasing biotic homogenization of faunas. The five parts lead the reader from a broad-scale appreciation of why specific species and assemblages occur in particular places, to how individuals and species interact with each other and with their environments, how such interactions have been altered by anthropogenic impacts, and the relative success of efforts to restore damaged ecosystems.