Includes bibliographical references (pages 473-509) and index.

Machine generated contents note: 1. Ecosystem Concept -- Introduction -- Focal Issue -- Overview of Ecosystem Ecology -- History of Ecosystem Ecology -- Ecosystem Structure and Functioning -- Ecosystem Processes -- Ecosystem Structure and Constraints -- Controls over Ecosystem Processes -- Human-Induced Ecosystem Change -- Human Impacts on Ecosystems -- Resilience and Threshold Changes -- Degradation in Ecosystem Services -- Summary -- Review Questions -- Additional Reading -- 2. Earth's Climate System -- Introduction -- Focal Issue -- Earth's Energy Budget -- Atmospheric System -- Atmospheric Composition and Chemistry -- Atmospheric Structure -- Atmospheric Circulation -- Ocean -- Ocean Structure -- Ocean Circulation -- Landform Effects on Climate -- Vegetation Influences on Climate -- Temporal Variability in Climate -- Long-Term Changes -- Anthropogenic Climate Change -- Interannual Climate Variability -- Seasonal and Daily Variation -- Storms and Weather -- Relationship of Climate to Ecosystem Distribution and Structure -- Summary -- Review Questions -- Additional Reading -- 3. Geology, Soils, and Sediments -- Introduction -- Focal Issue -- Controls Over Soil Formation -- Parent Material -- Climate -- Topography -- Time -- Potential Biota -- Human Activities -- Controls Over Soil Loss -- Development of Soil Profiles -- Additions to Soils -- Soil Transformations -- Soil Transfers -- Losses from Soils -- Soil Horizons and Soil Classification -- Soil Properties and Ecosystem Functioning -- Soil Physical Properties -- Soil Chemical Properties -- Summary -- Review Questions -- Additional Reading -- 4. Water and Energy Balance -- Introduction -- Focal Issue -- Surface Energy Balance -- Radiation Budget -- Partitioning of Absorbed Radiation -- Overview of Ecosystem Water Budgets -- Water Inputs to Ecosystems -- Water Movements Within Ecosystems -- Water Movement from the Canopy to the Soil -- Water Storage and Movement in the Soil -- Water Movement from Soil to Roots -- Water Movement Through Plants -- Water Losses from Ecosystems -- Evaporation from Wet Canopies -- Evapotranspiration from Dry Canopies -- Changes in Storage -- Runoff -- Summary -- Review Questions -- Additional Reading -- 5. Carbon Inputs to Ecosystems -- Introduction -- Focal Issue -- Overview of Carbon Inputs to Ecosystems -- Biochemistry of Photosynthesis -- Pelagic Photosynthesis -- Light Limitation -- CO2 Supply -- Nutrient Limitation -- Pelagic GPP -- Living on the Edge: Streams and Shorelines -- Terrestrial Photosynthesis -- Photosynthetic Structure of Terrestrial Ecosystems -- C4 Photosynthesis -- Crassulacean Acid Metabolism -- CO2 Limitation -- Light Limitation -- Nitrogen Limitation and Photosynthetic Capacity -- Water Limitation -- Temperature Effects -- Pollutants -- Terrestrial GPP -- Canopy Processes -- Leaf Area -- Length of the Photosynthetic Season -- Satellite-Based Estimates of GPP -- Summary -- Review Questions -- Additional Reading -- 6. Plant Carbon Budgets -- Introduction -- Focal Issue -- Plant Respiration -- What Is NPP? -- Marine NPP -- Lake NPP -- Stream and River NPP -- Terrestrial NPP -- Physiological Controls Over NPP -- Environmental and Species Controls Over NPP -- Allocation -- Allocation of NPP -- Allocation Response to Multiple Resources -- Diurnal and Seasonal Cycles of Allocation -- Tissue Turnover -- Global Distribution of Biomass and NPP -- Biome Differences in Biomass -- Biome Differences in NPP -- Summary -- Review Questions -- Additional Reading -- 7. Decomposition and Ecosystem Carbon Budgets -- Introduction -- Focal Issue -- Overview of Decomposition and Ecosystem Carbon Balance -- Leaching of Litter -- Litter Fragmentation -- Chemical Alteration -- Fungi -- Bacteria and Archaea -- Soil Animals -- Temporal and Spatial Heterogeneity of Decomposition -- Temporal Pattern -- Vertical Distribution -- Factors Controlling Decomposition -- Litter Quality -- Rhizosphere Stimulation of Decomposition -- Microbial Community Composition and Enzymatic Capacity -- Environment -- Soil Organic Matter -- Peat Accumulation and Trace Gas Emissions -- Heterotrophic Respiration -- Net Ecosystem Production (NEP) -- Net Ecosystem Carbon Balance -- Gaseous Carbon Fluxes -- Particulate Carbon Fluxes -- Dissolved Carbon Fluxes -- Stream Carbon Fluxes -- Stream Decomposition -- Stream Carbon Budgets -- Lake Carbon Fluxes -- Ocean Carbon Fluxes -- Carbon Exchange at the Global Scale -- Summary -- Review Questions -- Additional Reading -- 8. Plant Nutrient Use -- Introduction -- Focal Issue -- Overview -- Ocean Ecosystems -- Lake Ecosystems -- Rivers and Streams -- Terrestrial Ecosystems -- Nutrient Movement to the Root -- Diffusion -- Mass Flow -- Root Interception -- Nutrient Absorption -- Nutrient Supply -- Development of Root Length -- Mycorrhizae -- Nitrogen Fixation -- Root Absorption Properties -- Nutrient Use -- Nutrient Loss from Plants -- Senescence -- Leaching Loss from Plants -- Herbivory -- Other Avenues of Nutrient Loss from Plants -- Summary -- Review Questions -- Additional Reading -- 9. Nutrient Cycling -- Introduction -- Focal Point -- Overview of Nutrient Cycling -- Marine Nutrient Cycling -- Large-Scale Nutrient Cycles -- Estuaries -- Coastal Currents -- Lake Nutrient Cycling -- Stream Nutrient Cycling -- Nitrogen Inputs to Terrestrial Ecosystems -- Biological Nitrogen Fixation -- Nitrogen Deposition -- Internal Cycling of Nitrogen -- Overview of Mineralization -- Production and Fate of Dissolved Organic Nitrogen -- Production and Fate of Ammonium -- Production and Fate of Nitrate -- Temporal and Spatial Variability -- Pathways of Nitrogen Loss -- Gaseous Losses of Nitrogen -- Solution Losses -- Erosional Losses -- Other Element Cycles -- Phosphorus -- Sulfur -- Essential Cations -- Micronutrients and Nonessential Elements -- Nitrogen and Phosphorus Cycling in Agricultural Systems -- Summary -- Review Questions -- Additional Reading -- 10. Trophic Dynamics -- Introduction -- Focal Issue -- Overview of Trophic Dynamics -- Controls Over Energy Flow through Ecosystems -- Bottom-Up Controls -- Top-Down Controls -- Trophic Effects on Nutrient Cycling -- Ecological Efficiencies -- Trophic Efficiency and Energy Flow -- Consumption Efficiency -- Assimilation Efficiency -- Production Efficiency -- Food Chain Length -- Seasonal and Interannual Patterns -- Nutrient Transfers -- Detritus-Based Trophic Systems -- Integrated Food Webs -- Summary -- Review Questions -- Additional Reading -- 11. Species Effects on Ecosystem Processes -- Introduction -- Focal Issue -- Overview of Species Effects on Ecosystem Processes -- Effect Functional Types -- Species Effects on Biogeochemistry -- Species Effects on Biophysical Processes -- Species Effects on Trophic Interactions -- Species Effects on Disturbance Regime -- Response Functional Types -- Integrating the Effects of Traits on Ecosystems -- Functional Matrix of Multiple Traits -- Linkages Between Response and Effect Traits -- Diversity as Insurance -- Species Interactions and Ecosystem Processes -- Summary -- Review Questions -- Additional Reading -- 12. Temporal Dynamics -- Introduction -- Focal Issue -- Ecosystem Resilience and Change -- Alternative Stable States -- Resilience and Thresholds -- Disturbance -- Conceptual Framework -- Impact of a Disturbance Event -- Recovery and Renewal after Disturbance -- Disturbance Regime -- Succession -- Ecosystem Structure and Composition -- Water and Energy Exchange -- Carbon Balance -- Nutrient Cycling -- Trophic Dynamics -- Temporal Scaling of Ecological Processes -- Summary -- Review Questions -- Additional Reading -- 13. Landscape Heterogeneity and Ecosystem Dynamics -- Introduction -- Focal Issue -- Concepts of Landscape Heterogeneity -- Causes of Spatial Heterogeneity -- Detection and Analysis of Spatial Heterogeneity -- State Factors and Interactive Controls -- Community Processes and Legacies -- Disturbance -- Interactions Among Sources of Heterogeneity -- Patch Interactions on the Landscape -- Topographic and Land-Water Interactions -- Atmospheric Transfers -- Movement of Plants and Animals on the Landscape -- Disturbance Spread -- Human Land-Use Change and Landscape Heterogeneity -- Extensification -- Intensification -- Extrapolation to Larger Scales -- Summary -- Review Questions -- Additional Reading -- 14. Changes in the Earth System -- Introduction -- Focal Issue -- Human Drivers of Change -- Global Water Cycle -- Water Pools and Fluxes -- Anthropogenic Changes in the Water Cycle -- Consequences of Changes in the Water Cycle -- Global Carbon Cycle -- Carbon Pools and Fluxes -- Changes in Atmospheric CO2 -- Marine Sinks for CO2 -- Terrestrial Sinks for CO2 -- CO2 Effects on Climate -- Global Methane Budget -- Global Nitrogen Cycle -- Nitrogen Pools and Fluxes -- Anthropogenic Changes in the Nitrogen Cycle -- Global Phosphorus Cycle -- Phosphorus Pools and Fluxes -- Anthropogenic Changes in the Phosphorus Cycle -- Global Sulfur Cycle -- Summary -- Review Questions -- Additional Reading -- 15. Managing and Sustaining Ecosystems -- Introduction -- Focal Issue -- Sustaining Social-Ecological Systems -- Sustainability -- Ecological Dimensions of Sustainability -- Conceptual Framework for Ecosystem Management

Note continued: Sustaining Soil Resources -- Sustaining Biodiversity -- Sustaining Variability and Resilience -- Applying Ecosystem Principles to Management -- Forest Management -- Fisheries Management -- Ecosystem Renewal -- Management for Endangered Species -- Socioeconomic Contexts of Ecosystem Management -- Meeting Human Needs and Wants -- Managing Flows of Ecosystem Services -- Addressing Political Realities -- Innovation and Adaptive Management -- Sustainable Development: Social-Ecological Transformation -- Summary -- Review Questions -- Additional Reading.