Tropical Agroecosystems

280pp  ISBN 0849315816      £68.00

• Presents a unique classification system for tropical agroecosystems
• Discusses the possibilities and the limitations for Integrated Pest Management programs to protect crops in tropical agroecosystems
• Examines the potential for using mycorrhizal biology to improve the sustainability of agroecosystems
• Provides two case studies on agricultural transformation and its effects on plant and animal diversity
• Offers perspectives from a team of international specialists

Tropical areas present ecological, cultural and political problems that demand analysis that is distinct from general ecological analysis. The tropical environment is special in many ways, from the lack of a biological down season (winter), to generally poor soil conditions, to a reliance on traditional methods of agriculture in an undeveloped society. At a time when the sustainability of natural resource use in the tropics has become a very big issue Tropical Agroecosystems provides a critical scientific foundation for developing a sustainable agriculture component within this process.

Presenting a broad range of approaches to agroecosystem analysis, the text addresses specific ecological issues associated with agricultural production, examines two case studies of agricultural transformation and its effect on biodiversity, and discusses key landscape relationships between agroecosystems, wildlife, and human disease.

Contents

• Introduction, John H. Vandermeer
• Plant-Plant Interactions in Tropical Agriculture, Luis Garcia-Barrios
• Pest Management in Mesoamerican Agroecosystems, Luko Hilje, Carlos. M. Arayha, and B. E. Valverde
• Managing Mycorrhizae for Sustainable Agriculture in the Tropics, Chris Picone
• Technological Change and Biodiversity in the Rubber Agroecosystem of Sumatra, Joshi Laxman, Gede Wibawa, Hendrien Beukema, Sandy Williams and Meine van-Noordwijk
• Technological Change and Biodiversity in the Coffee Agroecosystem of Northern Latin America, Ivette Perfecto and Inge Armbrecht
• Tropical Agricultural Landscapes, Robert Rice
• Wildlife in the Context of Tropical Agroecosystems, Johannes Foufopoulos, Sonia Altizer, and Andrew Dobson
• Tropical Agriculture and Human Disease: Ecological Complexities Pose Research Challenges, Mark L. Wilson