
Stability and Complexity in Model Ecosystems
Robert M. May(Author)
Princeton University Press
Published on 18. March 2001
Book
Paperback/Softback
304 pages
978-0-691-08861-7 (ISBN)
Description
What makes populations stabilize? What makes them fluctuate? Are populations in complex ecosystems more stable than populations in simple ecosystems? In 1973, Robert May addressed these questions in this classic book. May investigated the mathematical roots of population dynamics and argued-counter to most current biological thinking-that complex ecosystems in themselves do not lead to population stability. Stability and Complexity in Model Ecosystems played a key role in introducing nonlinear mathematical models and the study of deterministic chaos into ecology, a role chronicled in James Gleick's book Chaos. In the quarter century since its first publication, the book's message has grown in power. Nonlinear models are now at the center of ecological thinking, and current threats to biodiversity have made questions about the role of ecosystem complexity more crucial than ever. In a new introduction, the author addresses some of the changes that have swept biology and the biological world since the book's first publication.
Reviews / Votes
"May's Stability and Complexity in Model Ecosystems was undoubtedly the most influential treatise in theoretical ecology since the pioneering efforts of Volterra and Lotka. It transformed the subject by brokering a marriage between theory and fact that had been - and is still too often - missing in theoretical ecology. It is no coincidence that the full integration of theory into ecology has occurred since the original appearance of this landmark book. May's new Introduction wonderfully places events in perspective." - Simon Levin, Princeton University"More details
Series
Edition
Revised edition
Language
English
Place of publication
New Jersey
United States
Target group
Professional and scholarly
College/higher education
Edition type
Revised edition
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Dimensions
Height: 216 mm
Width: 140 mm
Thickness: 17 mm
Weight
380 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-691-08861-7 (9780691088617)
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Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

Robert M. May
Stability and Complexity in Model Ecosystems
E-Book
02/2020
1st Edition
Princeton University Press
€85.49
Available for download
Person
Robert M. May has been a pioneer in theoretically driven biology for the last thirty years. He has done key work in population ecology, the dynamics of infectious diseases, extinctions, and other areas. He is currently a Professor at Oxford University as well as President of the Royal Society in the United Kingdom.
Content
Preface vii Preface to the Second Edition Biology Edition 1. Intoduction 3 2. Mathematical Models and Stability 13 3. Stability versus Complexity in Multispecies Models 4. Models with Few Species: Limit Cycles and Time Delays 79 5. Randomly Fluctuating Environments 109 6. Niche Overlap and Limiting Similarity 139 7. Speculations 172 Appendices 187 Afterthoughts for the Second Edition 211 Bibliography to Afterthoghts 234 Bibliography 241 Author Index 259 Subject Index 263