xviii, 765 pp. Features a massive bibliography (nearly 100 pages), and an extensive index. Between roughly 25 and 31 degrees north latitude, a combination of flat topography, poor soils, and limited surface water produce deserts nearly everywhere on earth. In Florida, however, these conditions support a lavish biota, more diverse than that of any other state east of the Mississippi. In this first comprehensive guide to the state's natural resources in sixty years, thirty top scholars describe the character, relationships, and importance of Florida's ecosystems, the organisms that inhabit them, the forces that maintain them, and the agents that threaten them. From pine flatwoods to coral reef, Ecosystems of Florida provides a detailed, comprehensive, authoritative account of the peninsular state’s complex, fragile environments. In straightforward text, charts, maps, and illustrations, Ecosystems of Florida offers broad vision and detailed expertise to naturalists, wildlife managers, land use planners, foresters, and other professional and general readers interested in Florida’s environmental resources. For the foreseeable future, it will serve as the authoritative guide to the state's environment and to those who would work with it.
