The interaction between plants and animals is a principal factor governing the composition and structure of marine benthic communities. This volume provides a synthesis and evaluation of the current state of knowledge, emphasizing the relationships between herbivores and their food plants.

A comprehensive account of how abiotic and biotic interactions shape patterns of coastal marine biodiversity and ecosystem processes globally.

Traditional compartmentalization of biological sciences is increasingly breaking down or being considered irrelevant by new generations of biological scientists. Marine biologists have generally been ahead of such trends, as is evident from much recent research on plant-animal interactions in the marine benthos.

The synthesis of the Aquatic Biodiversity and Ecosystems Conference (ABEC) 2015, which was held to assess scientific progress over the past twnety-five years, this book provides a comprehensive and global review of work since the 1992 publication of Plant-Animal Interactions in the Marine Benthos. Taking a regional and, where appropriate, habitat perspective, it considers sites of coastal biodiversity from around the world to incorporate a global approach. The volume analyses abiotic and biotic interactions, and the factors determining distribution patterns, community structure and ecosystem functioning of coastal systems. It explores themes of how phylogeography and biogeographic process influence assemblage composition, and hence drive community structure and the respective roles of environmental factors and biological interactions, with the overall goal to establish how general are the processes in different regions and habitats. For researchers, graduate students and academics studying coastal ecosystems, with interest for conservation practitioners managing areas of high biodiversity.

Systematics and taxonomy / M.E. Harte -- Shell structure and age determination / Lowell W. Fritz -- Embryogenesis and organogenesis of veligers and early juveniles / Melbourne R. Carriker -- Anatomy and histology of Mercenaria mercenaria / Albert F. Eble -- Reproduction in Mercenaria mercenaria / Arnold G. Eversole -- Genetics of hard clams, Mercenaria mercenaria / Thomas J. Hilbish -- Functional morphology and behavior of shelled veligers and early juveniles / Melbourne R. Carriker -- Physiological ecology of Mercenaria mercenaria / Raymond E. Grizzle, V. Monica Bricelj and Sandra E. Shumway -- Demography and dynamics of hard clam populations / Stephen R. Fegley -- Integrating nutritional physiology and ecology to explain interactions between physics and biology in Mercenaria mercenaria / Charles H. Peterson -- Predators and predation / John N. Kraeuter -- Pests, parasites, diseases, and defense mechanisms of the hard clam, Mercenaria mercenaria / Susan E. Ford -- Management of hard c ...

The seashore has long been the subject of fascination and study - the Ancient Greek scholar Aristotle made observations and wrote about Mediterranean sea urchins. The considerable knowledge of what to eat and where it could be found has been passed down since prehistoric times by oral tradition in many societies - in Britain it is still unwise to eat shellfish in months without an 'r' in them. Over the last three hundred years or so we have seen the formalization of science and this of course has touched intertidal ecology. Linnaeus classified specimens collected from the seashore and many common species (Patella vulgata L. , Mytilus edulis L. , Littorina littorea (L. )) bear his imprint because he formally described, named and catalogued them. Early natural historians described zonation patterns in the first part of the 19th century (Audouin and Milne-Edwards, 1832), and the Victorians became avid admirers and collectors of shore animals and plants with the advent of the new fashion of seaside holidays (Gosse, 1856; Kingsley, 1856). As science became professionalized towards the end of the century, marine biologists took advantage of low tides to gain easy access to marine life for taxonomic work and classical studies of functional morphology. The first serious studies of the ecology of the shore were made at this time (e. g.

Yet another Springer world-beater, this is the first ever book devoted to the chemical ecology of algae. It covers both marine and freshwater habitats and all types of algae, from seaweeds to phytoplankton. While the book emphasizes the ecological rather than chemical aspects of the field, it does include a unique introductory chapter that serves as a primer on algal natural products chemistry.

The Ecology of Seashores explores the complex shore environment. It covers the ways in which representative species have adapted to life in a constantly changing environment in terms of their interactions, the control of community structure, and how energy and materials are cycled in different ecosystems. Written by an eminent marine biologist,

Chapter 3 of this book is freely available as a downloadable Open Access PDF under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 3.0 license. https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/tandfbis/rt-files/docs/Open+Access+Chapters/9781138318625_oachapter3.pdf Oceanography and Marine Biology: An Annual Review remains one of the most cited sources in marine science and oceanography. The ever increasing interest in work in oceanography and marine biology and its relevance to global environmental issues, especially global climate change and its impacts, creates a demand for authoritative reviews summarizing the results of recent research. OMBAR has catered to this demand since its foundation more than 50 years ago. Following the favourable reception and complimentary reviews accorded to all the volumes, Volume 56 continues to regard the marine sciences—with all their various aspects—as a unity. Physical, chemical, and biological aspects of marine science are dealt with by experts actively engaged in these fields, and every chapter is peer-reviewed by other experts working actively in the specific areas of interest. The series is an essential reference text for researchers and students in all fields of marine science and related subjects, and it finds a place in libraries of universities, marine laboratories, research institutes and government departments.