Population processes—births, deaths, and movements of individuals—express the varied interactions of organisms with their environments. Evolution by natural selection and the regulation of community structure and ecosystem function transcend the individual organism and can be comprehended only in terms of the dynamics of populations. For many purposes one may determine average birth and death rates for small samples of individuals and multiply them by the total population size to characterise the overall dynamics of a population. But populations also are heterogeneous. Genetic variation in the interaction of individuals with their environments results in evolution. Variation in the suitability of habitat leads to parallel variation in population density and may determine the net movement of individuals within the population. A veritable mine of information, this book encompasses authoritative information on a number of vital issues like—population structure; social behaviour; fluctuations; population regulation; population growth; population ecology; future of man etc.
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