Serengeti III

"This book builds on the previous two volumes on the Serengeti ecosystem. The first volume, Serengeti: The

Dynamics of an Ecosystem (CH, Sep'80), synthesizes the previous 20 years of research on herbivore-carnivore

population dynamics and vegetation-herbivore systems. The second, Serengeti II (CH, Feb'96, 33-3300), updates

information on ecosystem dynamics, conservation, and changes brought about by a growing population of pastoralists

and agriculturalists surrounding the Serengeti. Serengeti III focuses on major changes taking place in this ecosystem

and their impact on the future, intensified by the growing human population near the protected area. In 16

multiauthored chapters, ecologists, paleontologists, epidemiologists, economists, social scientists, and mathematicians

report on a program that integrates socioeconomic research and decision making with ecological research. The goal is

to develop a better understanding of the feedback loop between natural and human components of the Serengeti

ecosystem. This work is best studied in the context of the other two volumes. The three together provide an

unparalleled long-term study of natural and anthropogenic changes to a large, intact ecosystem and offer approaches

to conservation. A critical addition to the conservation biology library....Essential."