The Ecozones of the World

Recent studies have greatly contributed to a better understanding of the earth's ecosystem. This abundantly illustrated book provides a fundamental introduction to the ecological zones of the geosphere. Nine terrestrial ecozones have been distinguished and described in individual chapters with respect to: distribution, climate, relief/hydrology, soil vegetation/animal lifeand land use. The first chapter provides the reader with a general introduction to each subject area.

The second edition is a competely revised and updated version. A large number of new Anglo-American ecological studies are included.  The book also includes more than 70 new figures and tables and detailed maps on global agricultural regions and soil classification. Another new feature is the discussion of the correlation between northern ecosystems and the carbon dioxide balance in the global atmosphere.

• Oxide
• Relief
• classification
• ecosystem
• ecosystems
• hydrology
• vegetation

From the reviews of the second edition:

"This is a well organized and concise description of the nine major terrestrial regions of the earth. Each region is described in terms of its distribution, climate, soil, relief and drainage, land use, and vegetation and animals. This allows for an easy comparison of salient factors between regions and also allows the reader to readily focus on a particular aspect of interest … . This is a useful and practical guide and an excellent introduction to biogeography." (Southeastern Naturalist, Vol. 5 (1), 2006)

"The book consists of two parts. A general part discusses the treatment of the ecozones and gives an overview of selected characteristics … . And a second part called Regional sections: The individual ecozones. … ‘The ecozones of the world’ is a good introduction to the ecological division of the earth, especially for those with an interest in patterns and processes on a large scale. The book is amply illustrated with figures, tables and diagrams, which, together with the text, provide a lot of information." (Frits Adema, Blumea, Vol. 51 (2), 2006)

"The book provides a summary and explanation of the most significant characteristics of the major regions of the earth … . Due to the wealth of facts and features presented on terrestrial ecozones of the world, the book is … a useful reference work for teachers and lecturers. … the author should be complimented for having done an excellent job … . The textbook gives an impressive overview of the world’s terrestrial ecozones and should be present in all reference libraries … ." (Udo Schickhoff, Phytocoenologia, Vol. 36 (3), 2006)

• Geographisches Institut Rheinisch-Westfälische, Technische Hochschule Aachen (RWTH), Aachen, Germany

  Jürgen Schultz

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