An Introduction to Evolutionary Ecology by Andrew CockburnReview by: Calvin DythamJournal of Animal Ecology, Vol. 62, No. 3 (Jul., 1993), pp. 594-595Published by: British Ecological SocietyStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/5210 .

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Journal of Animal Ecology 1993, 62, 594-597

Book Reviews

A.K. Behrensmeyer, J.D. Damuth, W.A. DiMichele, R. Potts, H.-D. Sues & S.L. Wing (1992) Terrestrial Ecosystems Through Time. Pp. xii + 568 with 21 tables and 31 text figures. University of Chicago Press, Illinois, USA. ?23.95 (paperback), ?59.95 (hardback).

Derived from the proceedings of the first conference on Evolution of Terrestrial Ecosystems in 1987, the book is subtitled Evolutionary Paleoecology of Ter- restrial Plants and Animals. Its stated goals are 'coordinating a large body of scattered data and demonstrating the potential use of these data in testing hypotheses of general interest to paleontol- ogists, anthropologists, evolutionists and ecologists'.

The first four chapters are concerned with methods and basic principles of palaeoecology, beginning with a short account of evolutionary palaeoecology, the study of patterns of ecological organization and change over the long periods of time during which evolution can happen. The long second chapter deals with fossil-preserving environments and taphonomic processes. Although something of a catalogue, it includes a wealth of information backed up by almost 800 references. Chapters 3 and 4 cover the ecological characterization of fossil assemblages and modern methods of deriving biological and environmental information from the structure and form of fossil animals and plants, especially without the need for taxonomic identification.

The later and larger part of the book deals with the history of animals, plants and ecosystems from the Palaeozoic, through the Mesozoic and Early Cenozoic to the late Cenozoic. It covers the gradual diversification of Palaeozoic floras involving in- crease in architectural complexity as well as species richness, leading to increasing complexity of the interactions between organisms. The later moder- nization of animal community dynamics seems to suggest that animals were not necessary for the basic structural and dynamic aspects of plant communities. There is an excellent integrated account of Mesozoic faunas and floras including the rise of the angio- sperms and the mammals, changes in animal size and mass extinctions. Modern faunas and floras are helpful analogues in the interpretation of the more recent fossils of the Late Cenozoic, which has been characterized by reduction in forest and the devel- opment of more open communities in response to complex climatic changes. Detailed histories of plant and especially animal communities are given continent by continent.

For a multi-author book (and many more people have contributed to the chapters than appear on the

title page) this volume is surprisingly well integrated. Throughout, it stresses the interactions between plant and animal communities and the palaeoeco- logical interpretation of the fossil evidence. It is not a book to read easily from cover to cover but, as a source of information, references and ideas, it is a valuable addition to the palaeoecological literature.

DAVID BARTLEY

Andrew Cockburn (1991) An Introduction to Evolutionary Ecology. Pp. xii + 370. Blackwell Scientific Publications, Oxford. ?17.50. (paperback).

This is an excellent book, which succeeds in its aim to give a broad overview of evolutionary ecology for graduate (or final year undergraduate) students. It is easy to read, or dip into and it doesn't pull any punches where there are areas of controversy. It would be a worthy addition to the bookshelf of any ecologist.

Andrew Cockburn admits to being a terrestrial vertebrate ecologist and although vertebrates are perhaps slightly over-represented, he has endeav- oured to provide a very wide range of examples using plants and marine organisms too. The examples often have an antipodean flavour providing a wel- come change to the usual bias towards US and British research in other books of this genre.

The book is of manageable size (considerably smaller than A4) and is very carefully laid out. There are 11 chapters which sensibly start with an overview of the subject to set the agenda for the rest of the book. The final chapter is a reprise of the first where the subjects raised are re-examined in the light of the intervening chapters. The intervening chapters look at the usual subjects for such a book: units of selection, adaptation, the genetic basis of evolution, speciation and sex. The style and feel of the book is very much enhanced by the very large number of excellent illustrations drawn by Karina Hansen, which accompany nearly every graph and fill every spare space in the book. The general lay- out is rather similar to other BSP books of recent years and serves to reinforce the house style of wide margins and subheadings that they seem to be aiming at.

One of the more interesting chapters, under the heading 'Why are there so many species?' is mostly concerned with attempts to discover how many species exist as well as looking at the variation in diversity between ecosystems. The chapter on 'Applied evolutionary ecology' outlines how the concepts in the book relate to extinction of species and the management of endangered species at low numbers, as well as considering the alarming fact that 95% of all human nutrition is provided by just 30 rather inbred species of plant. 594

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595 Book Reviews

I recommend this book, with very few reservations, to any ecologist: there are some one-sentence para- graphs which read rather badly, the cover depicting two rather cute tiger cubs is not representative of the contengts and perhaps indicates a rather frivolous treatment of the subject, which is not the case. I hope these minor problems will be ironed out in a future second edition.

CALVIN DYTHAM

Patrick Duncan (1992) Horses and Grasses. Pp. 287. Ecological Studies, Vol. 87. Series Editors Billings, W.D. et al. Springer-Verlag, New York.

The Family Equidae has seen better times. Through the Pliocene, the Family was represented by half a dozen genera: in a single ecosystem, three or four sympatric species was not uncommon. Even into the Pleistocene, Equus, the genus in which all modern equids are placed, could boast five species on each continent. Today, even by the most fragmented taxonomy, only seven wild species remain. Their prospects are dismal: one is extinct in the wild (Prezwalski's horse, E. ferus przewalskii), and four are endangered (Grevy's zebra, E. grevyi; mountain zebra, E. zebra; the onager, E. hemionus; and the African ass, E. africanus). Only two species, the plains zebra (E. burchelli) and the kiang (E. kiang), are abundant. In contrast, feral horses (E. caballus) are rapidly colonizing the world's grasslands, most notably in the Americas.

Why have equids fared so badly when bovids have fared so well (44 genera, 123 species) and why have equids persisted at all? In Horses and Grasses, Patrick Duncan attempts to answer this question. Previous attempts to examine this and similar questions have relied on general interpretations of equid/bovid evolution and ecology (Janis 1976; Bell 1970). In contrast, Duncan attempts to analyse the particular extensively and extend his findings to the general. In this case, the particular is a small (70-100) loosely managed herd of feral horses in 3 km2 of Mediter- ranean marsh and grassland.

The book is well written and easy to read. I would recommend it to anyone interested in the evolution of ungulate ecology and social behaviour, or to any- one interested in the comparative digestive ecology of ruminants and hind-gut fermenting ungulates, or to anyone interested in how patterns of ecology and behaviour can influence conservation strategies (Chapters 8 & 9). The analyses are detailed and supported by a wealth of data from the literature. For instance, by drawing on literature from a variety of disciplines - e.g. ecology, evolution, physiology, nutrition, parasitology, historical records - Duncan manages to fashion a convincing set of three hypo- theses explaining equid persistence and decline

(Chapter 3, p. 74). These are consistent with earlier explanations, but incorporate equid population biology and social behaviour in greater detail. Janis' work suggests that equids succeed by eating large volumes of poor quality vegetation, ruminants (bovids) by specializing on lower density high quality food. Following this, Duncan suggests that: (i) many natural grasslands may not provide the food density equids require; (ii) ruminants may be able to exploit a wider array of plants laden with secondary com- pounds; (iii) the need for greater bulk means in- creased feeding times for equids, hence higher rates of predation.

Throughout the book, he skilfully marshals evi- dence from other field studies, and presents elaborate and well-argued data from his work and that of other scientists on the Camargue horses, to examine these hypothesis. Despite these efforts, Duncan is unable to test his hypothesis thoroughly. Nonetheless, by clearly defining the question, and drawing to- gether the threads of the argument, he has clearly defined what studies and experiments are needed to test his hypotheses.

For a data junkie, the heart of the book is a detailed analysis of the Camargue horses data. The book presents relatively few new data, with much of the information having been published previously in papers. Nonetheless, the book does do an admirable job of synthesizing what has become an extensive literature on the Camargue, its plants and animals.

With a wry sense of humour, Duncan leads off Section C., 'Nutrient Use' with a chapter on 'Social organization, mating system, and feeding behaviour.' While it is hard to be objective when an author is flattering about one's own work, I found this chapter the weakest in the book. The discussion of data from other studies is, as elsewhere, thorough and apt. However, the data on the Camargue population are, to my mind, problematic. In many instances, discussion of intergroup behaviour relies on a single pair-wise comparison. The proposition that female behaviour is imposed by males (e.g. p. 151), does not conform with observations in other equid studies (e.g. Klingel 1974; Rubenstein 1986) and may well be a result of the close confinement of the population.

My problems with this chapter may reflect personal biases and concerns about the generality of a study of social behaviour in which the population is con- strained to an area two orders of magnitude smaller than the natural home range, in an area in which predation and dispersal are impossible, and in which food and water are, relatively speaking, hyper- abundant. Certainly, the restrictions of space and the simplicity of ecological milieu allowed Duncan and his co-workers to observe more closely, and experiment more accurately, than was possible in previous studies of feral or wild equids.

J .R . G1NSBERG

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