Restoring North America's birds : lessons from landscape ecology / Robert A. Askins ; illustrations by Julie Zickefoose.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Askins, Robert.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Birds--Conservation--North America.

Birds.

Landscape ecology--North America.

Landscape ecology.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (349 p.)

Edition:

2nd ed.

Place of Publication:

New Haven : Yale University Press, [2002]

Language Note:

English

Summary:

The decline of bird species in a wide range of North American habitats-forests, prairies, shrublands, mountain regions, marshes, and deserts-has inspired two decades of intense scientific study of bird ecology and conservation. But for professional scientists and amateur birders alike, interpreting the results of these diverse studies is often complex and bewildering. This accessible book pulls together recent research on bird species and habitats to show how basic ecological principles apply in seemingly different situations. Robert A. Askins provides an engaging introduction to bird ecology and concepts of landscape ecology, focusing on such intriguing species as Bachman's Warbler, Red Crossbill, Mountain Plover, and Marbled Murrelet. Understanding the ancient landscapes of North America and how humans have changed them, Askins says, is essential for devising plans to protect and restore bird populations. In addition to such obvious changes to the landscape as the clearing of forests and plowing of prairies, more subtle changes also dramatically affect birds. Species may disappear when we interrupt natural disturbances by suppressing wildfires or trapping out beaver, or when we disrupt habitat with roads and housing developments. Askins challenges some of the assumptions that underlie current conservation efforts and offers concrete recommendations, based on sound ecological principles, for protecting the rich natural diversity of North America's birds.

Contents:

Front matter

Contents

Preface

Chapter 1.. Grassland Birds of the East Coast

Chapter 2. Another Quiet Decline

Chapter 3. The Great Plains

Chapter 4. Lost Birds of the Eastern Forest

Chapter 5. Deep-forest Birds and Hostile Edges

Chapter 6. Industrial Forestry and the Prospects for Northern Birds

Chapter 7. Birds of the Western Mountain Slopes

Chapter 8. Declining Birds of Southwestern Floodplains

Chapter 9. Red-cockaded Woodpeckers and the Longleaf Pine Woodland

Chapter 10. Landscape Ecology

Afterword

Appendix 1. Scientific Names of Organisms Other Than Birds

Notes

References

Index

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references (p. [283]-317) and index.

ISBN:

9786611740696

9781281740694

1281740691

9780300127119

0300127111

OCLC:

1024047884