Ecology of Shallow Lakes brings together current understanding of themechanisms that drive the diametrically opposite states of water clarity shownby the cover ... » 

Ecology of Shallow Lakes brings together current understanding of themechanisms that drive the diametrically opposite states of water clarity shownby the cover paintings found in many shallow lakes and ponds. It gives anoutline of the knowledge gained from field observations experimental work andrestoration studies linked by a solid theoretical framework.The book focuseson shallow lakes but the lucid treatment of plankton dynamics resuspensionlight climate and the role of vegetation is relevant to a much wider range ofaquatic systems. The models that are used remain simple and most analyses aregraphical rather than algebraic. The text will therefore appeal to studentsscientists and policy makers in the field of ecology fisheries pollutionstudies and water management and also to theoreticans who will benefit fromthe many realworld examples of topics such as predation and competitiontheory bifurcation analysis and catastrophe theory. Perhaps most importantlythe book is a remarkable example of how large field experiments and simplemodels can catalyze our insight into complex ecosystems.Marten Scheffer wrotethis book while at the Institute of Inland Water Management and WasteTreatment RIZA Lelystad The Netherlands. He is currently at the Departmentof Water Quality Management and Aquatic Ecology of the Wageningen AgriculturalUniversity. «