โ Scribed by J.L. Monteith
No coin nor oath required. For personal study only.
Phenology, as defined by Morren and worked out by Ihne, Hoffmann, Quetelet, Sinirnov, Hopkins, Merriam and Others, was a real contribution to developing physiology and ecology. Later on agricultural meteorology took advantage of phenology in order to define relationships between weather and climate, and animal and plant life. The works of Schnelle, Volkert, Witerstein and Schneider in West Germany, and other researchers iri Europe, Asia and America, confirm phenology to be a science rather than a simple technique. This books shows a new outlook on phenology, on the basis of remote-sensing observations, mathematical modeling and the increasing international interest in research on natural resources and environmental conservation.
After the Introduction (Part 1) by Prof. Lieth, where he establishes several conceptual definitions, explains the book's purpose and its connection with American efforts in the International Biological Program, further contributions are included in the 5 following parts and 31 subjects. Part 2, Methods for Phenological Studies, deals with phenological networks and gardens, use of remote-sensing methods such as multiband photography, multispectral scanners, thermal infrared scanners and radar (active microwave), and computer plane and tridimensional mapping of phenological events. Part 3, on Seasonality Trophic Levels, shows several examples on the evolution of nutrition giving models in the ecosystem chain (producer, consumer and decomposer), from plants, insects, birds, mammals, bacteria and fungi. Part 4, Representative Biome Studies, offer examples of seasonality for several major biomes of the world such as tundra, desert, grassland, deciduous forest, chaparral, woodland and tropical rain forest. Part 5, Modeling Phenology and Seasonality, is an outstanding part devoted to several views expressing mathematical relationships between seasonality and its factors. Subjects such as physiological simulators, present spatial and temporal correlation models between plant phenophases and growth indices, are objectively treated. Part 6, Applications of Phenology, deals with some practical applications of the above to agriculture and silviculture, public health, natural-resources management, and education and community programs.
Very well printed, with colorful plates and objective graphs, this will be a useful book for biologists, ecologists, agronomists and geographers.
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