An up-to-the-minute overview of community studies in an area covering ten percent of the Earth's surface.

Conservation of biodiversity is best achieved through the management of natural communities, but progress in increasing our understanding of communities remains slow. The study of Antarctic communities can provide a valuable step forward in investigating the control of community development, the utilisation of habitats and the interaction between species in both species rich and species poor communities. This book contains chapters characterising the current approaches to both aquatic and terrestrial communities in the Antarctic. From biodiversity to trophic flows, from ecophysiological strategies to the impacts of environmental change and the effects of human disturbance, this volume provides an up-to-the-minute overview of community studies in an area covering ten percent of the Earth's surface.

Part I. Biodiversity
Part II. Community Structure and Function
Part III. Survival Mechanisms
Part IV. Adaptive Mechanisms
Part V. Human Impact and Environmental Change
Introduction
47. Climatic change and the recent climatic record W. Karlen
48. Ecological variability in Antarctic coastal environments
Part VI. Postscript.