First Published in 2004. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

A richly illustrated atlas of the world’s deserts and drylands, their ecosystems, and their environments Deserts and drylands account for more than 40 percent of land on our planet. Characterized by a lack of water and extreme temperatures, they are the result of atmospheric stability, large landmass characteristics, rain shadows, and cold ocean currents. They appear harsh and hostile, but deserts and drylands are also exceptionally beautiful environments. Desert ecosystems often teem with diverse forms of life that exhibit astonishing ingenuity in the face of such forbidding conditions. The World Atlas of Deserts and Drylands takes readers on a guided tour of some of the most awe-inspiring desert environments on Earth, explaining their environmental and ecological dynamics and describing the techniques used to categorize and map them. From the ever-expanding Gobi of Mongolia and China to the ancient Namib of coastal Africa, this is the ultimate reference book for deserts. Features a wealth of color photos, maps, and infographics Describes the resilient and complex biodiversity of the world’s desert and dryland terrains Covers subtropical deserts, continental deserts, rain shadow deserts, and ocean margin deserts Addresses the challenges posed by global warming and human activity, and discusses solutions and opportunities Written by a team of leading experts

The World Atlas of Desertification summarises the state of scientific knowledge on the drylands of the globe. Representing in graphic form the current stage of our understanding of desertification, as well as its extent and possible solutions, it contains an extraordinary amount of information of value to students and experts alike. The Atlas clearly shows that desertification is one of the world's most pressing environmental problems, and that it is a truly global issue. Since the publication of the first edition in 1992, over 100 countries have ratified the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification. This 2nd edition reflects major advances in our understanding of desertification over the past few years and has been thoroughly revised and expanded to almost twice its original size. Because combating desertification involves all aspects of environmental issues, this edition covers a broader range of topics, including concerns surrounding poverty, biodiversity, climate change and the availability of water. Social and economic conditions also have a major impact on the progress and control of desertification and this edition contains the latest information on population movements which result from, and lead to desertification. Desertification directly affects the livelihoods of more than one billion people who are directly dependent on the land for their survival. Using the latest updated digitised maps of desertification and fully referenced throughout, this Atlas is essential reading for everyone concerned with the drylands and their people.

Layering climate science, mythologies, nature writing, and personal experiences, this New York Times Notable Book presents a stunning reckoning with our current moment and with the literal and figurative end of time. Desert Notebooks examines how the unprecedented pace of destruction to our environment and an increasingly unstable geopolitical landscape have led us to the brink of a calamity greater than any humankind has confronted before. As inhabitants of the Anthropocene, what might some of our own histories tell us about how to confront apocalypse? And how might the geologies and ecologies of desert spaces inform how we see and act toward time—the pasts we have erased and paved over, this anxious present, the future we have no choice but to build? Ehrenreich draws on the stark grandeur of the desert to ask how we might reckon with the uncertainty that surrounds us and fight off the crises that have already begun. In the canyons and oases of the Mojave and in Las Vegas’s neon apocalypse, Ehrenreich finds beauty, and even hope, surging up in the most unlikely places, from the most barren rocks, and the apparent emptiness of the sky. Desert Notebooks is a vital and necessary chronicle of our past and our present—unflinching, urgent—yet timeless and profound.

A marvelously illustrated look at the world’s diverse forests and their ecosystems The earth’s forests are havens of nature supporting a diversity of life. Shaped by climate and geography, these vast and dynamic wooded spaces offer unique ecosystems that shelter complex and interdependent webs of flora, fungi, and animals. The World Atlas of Trees and Forests offers a beautiful introduction to what forests are, how they work, how they grow, and how we map, assess, and conserve them. Provides the most wide-ranging coverage of the world’s forests availableTakes readers beneath the breathtaking variety of wooded canopies that span the globeProfiles a wealth of tree species, with enlightening and entertaining natural-history highlights along the wayFeatures stunning color photos, maps, and graphicsDraws on the latest cutting-edge research and technology, including satellite imagery

"[A] gorgeously illustrated compendium."--Sunset This lavishly illustrated atlas takes readers off the beaten path and outside normal conceptions of California, revealing its myriad ecologies, topographies, and histories in exquisite maps and trail paintings. Based on decades of exploring the backcountry of the Golden State, artist-adventurer Obi Kaufmann blends science and art to illuminate the multifaceted array of living, connected systems like no book has done before. Kaufmann depicts layer after layer of the natural world, delighting in the grand scale and details alike. The effect is staggeringly beautiful: presented alongside California divvied into its fifty-eight counties, for example, we consider California made up of dancing tectonic plates, of watersheds, of wildflower gardens. Maps are enhanced by spirited illustrations of wildlife, keys that explain natural phenomena, and a clear-sighted but reverential text. Full of character and color, a bit larger than life, The California Field Atlas is the ultimate road trip companion and love letter to a place.

A 2014 Choice Magazine "Outstanding Academic Title" An Atlas of the World's Conifers is the first ever atlas of all known conifer species. It is based on locality information of ca. 37,000 collected herbarium specimens held in scientific institutions. As well as providing natural distribution maps for each species, Farjon and Filer give the reader comprehensive insight into the biogeography, diversity and conservation status of conifers on all continents, dispelling the widely held view that they are primarily a northern boreal plant group. Conifer diversity is analysed and presented with a taxonomic and geographic perspective. Distribution patterns are interpreted using the latest information on continental drift, dispersal and phylogeny. The entire dataset supporting the Atlas can be consulted and verified online. These data can also be used for further research and are an invaluable resource for anyone working on conifer systematics, biogeography or conservation. An Atlas of the World’s Conifers indicates the known distribution of all conifers including an analysis of their biogeography, diversity and conservation status. Also available from Brill is Aljos Farjon’s A Handbook of the World's Conifers, published in 2010 (ISBN 978 90 04 17718 5) which is a 2017 Choice Magazine "Outstanding Academic Title".

The newest concise atlas, conveniently sized and remarkably affordable, is the same exceptional map quality as seen in Oxford's larger Atlas of the World. This second edition features hundreds of changes in boundaries and place names, with full-color maps of every corner of the globe. A 48-page U.S. map section, world statistics and survey data, and more are also included.