Smithsonian Institution Scholarly Press
Pages: 426
Trim: 7½ x 10⅜
978-1-935623-02-1 • Hardback • April 2011 • $81.00 • (£62.00)
William J. McShea is research ecologist at the Conservation Ecology Center in the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, Smithsonian Institution. Stuart James Davies is director of Asia Programs at the Arnold Arboretum at Harvard University. Naris Bhumpakphan is associate professor in the Department of Forest Biology at Kasetsart University in Bangkok, Thailand.
Chapter 1. Introduction. Seasonally Dry Forests of Tropical Asia: An Ecosystem Adapted to Seasonal Drought, Frequent Fire, and Human Activity
Chapter 2. Seasonally Dry Tropical Forests in Continental Southeast Asia: Structure, Composition, and Dynamics
Chapter 3. Seasonally Dry Tropical Forests in Southern India: An Analysis of Floristic Composition, Structure, and Dynamics in Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary
Chapter 4. The Uncertainty in Mapping Dry Forests in Asia
Chapter 5. The Role of Disturbance in Dry Tropical Forest Landscapes
Chapter 6. Fire Management in South Asia's Dry Forests: Colonial Approaches, Current Problems, and Perspectives
Chapter 7. The Evolution and Ecology of Dry Forest Gingers (Zingiberaceae) in Southeast Asia
Chapter 8. Seasonality in Avian Communities of a Dipterocarp Monsoon Forest and Related Habitats in Myanmar's Central Dry Zone
Chapter 9. Asian Elephants and Dry Forests
Chapter 10. Tropical Deer in the Seasonal Dry Forests of Asia: Ecology, Concerns, and Potential for Conservation
Chapter 11. Ecology of Gaur and Banteng in the Dry Forests of Thailand
Chapter 12. Rainfall Patterns and Unpredictable Fruit Production in Seasonally Dry Evergreen Forest and Their Effects on Gibbons
Chapter 13. Sloth Bears Living in Tropical Dry and Moist Broadleaf Forests and Their Conservation
Chapter 14. Tropical Dry Forest Is Essential Tiger Habitat
Chapter 15. Ecology and Distribution of Sympatric Asiatic Black Bears and Sun Bears in the Tropical Dry Forest Ecosystem of Southeast Asia
Chapter 16. Tropical Asian Dry-Forest Amphibians and Reptiles: A Regional Comparison of Ecological Communities
Chapter 17. The Impact of Local Communities on a Dry Forest Sanctuary: A Case Study from Upper Myanmar (Burma)
Chapter 18. Governing the Flame: Bunong Management of Fire Regimes in Mondulkiri Province, Northeast Cambodia
Chapter 19. Local Residents' Attitudes toward Dry Forests at Selected Sites in Nepal and Myanmar
Chapter 20. Conservation Planning and Management in Southeast Asia's Dry Forest Landscapes: Experiences from Cambodia
The seasonal tropics of Asia have been the mainspring of some of the greatest agrarian civilizations; its dry forests the source of fuel and succor to cattle for millennia. Yet the conquest of malaria, especially, has resulted in human pressures never previously experienced. This timely book brings knowledge of forest ecology and sociology, heretofore fragmented by political borders, into an integrated and thoroughly modern scientific review supported by important new data, while focusing on the challenge of sustainable management.
— Peter Ashton, Harvard University
Tropical rain forests seem to get most of the attention, but this book puts the seasonally dry forests back on the agenda. An outstanding group of authors sheds new light on many of the keystone species involved, ranging from tigers to elephants and three species of bears. Even more helpful is the attention given to the role of people in both maintaining these habitats and benefitting from them. Climate change is likely to have significant impacts on these forests, so having a baseline of solid science will help give future studies a sound basis for comparison, and for conservation. This is a timely and welcome contribution to the understanding of Asia's great diversity of forest ecosystems.
— Jeffrey A. McNeely, Senior Science Advisor, IUCN
-Color photos and maps of forests and species indicative of seasonally dry forests in Asia