A definitive guide to the environments, flora and fauna of the unique and varied coasts of New Zealand and the Pacific Rim.

In this book, the natural history of New Zealand's North Island, from Lake Taupo up, is described, including geology, soils, climate, flora and fauna. Chapters on different habitats are included, including forests, shrublands, wetlands and the coast.

Biogeography and Evolution in New Zealand provides the first in-depth treatment of the biogeography of New Zealand, a region that has been a place of long-enduring interest to ecologists, evolutionary scientists, geographers, geologists, and scientists in related disciplines. It serves as a key addition to the contemporary discussion on regionalization—how is New Zealand different from the rest of the world? With what other areas does it share its geology, history, and biota? Do new molecular phylogenies show that New Zealand may be seen as a biological ‘parallel universe’ within global evolution?

Academic survey of the Pacific Islands. Includes maps, photographs, tables, diagrams, atlas, and detailed index.

Traces of the action of mechanical and chemical boring, scraping or crushing organisms on hard substrates appear in fossil carbonates as old as the Precambrian, providing valuable palaeoenvironmental indicators. Bioerosion has been extensively studied in tropical seas, but data from cold-temperate to polar settings remain sparse. This book presents an experimental study into the pace of carbonate degradation and the chronology of boring community development along a bathymetric gradient in high-latitude settings.

Molluscs comprise the second largest phylum of animals (after arthropods), occurring in virtually all habitats. Some are commercially important, a few are pests and some carry diseases, while many non-marine molluscs are threatened by human impacts which have resulted in more extinctions than all tetrapod vertebrates combined. This book and its companion volume provide the first comprehensive account of the Mollusca in decades. Illustrated with hundreds of colour figures, it reviews molluscan biology, genomics, anatomy, physiology, fossil history, phylogeny and classification. This volume includes general chapters drawn from extensive and diverse literature on the anatomy and physiology of their structure, movement, reproduction, feeding, digestion, excretion, respiration, nervous system and sense organs. Other chapters review the natural history (including ecology) of molluscs, their interactions with humans, and assess research on the group. Key features of both volumes: up to date treatment with an extensive bibliography; thoroughly examines the current understanding of molluscan anatomy, physiology and development; reviews fossil history and phylogenetics; overviews ecology and economic values; and summarises research activity and suggests future directions for investigation. Winston F Ponder was a Principal Research Scientist at The Australian Museum in Sydney where he is currently a Research Fellow. He has published extensively over the last 55 years on the systematics, evolution, biology and conservation of marine and freshwater molluscs, as well as supervised post graduate students and run university courses. David R. Lindberg is former Chair of the Department of Integrative Biology, Director of the Museum of Paleontology, and Chair of the Berkeley Natural History Museums, all at the University of California. He has conducted research on the evolutionary history of marine organisms and their habitats on the rocky shores of the Pacific Rim for more than 40 years. The numerous elegant and interpretive illustrations were produced by Juliet Ponder.

Water City offers practical solutions to some of the environmental challenges facing 21st-century cities as a result of climate change. The dense compact nature of the contemporary city makes it difficult to generate urban resilience to the effects of climate change, particularly coastal and pluvial flooding. This book describes a design-led remediation methodology that draws on catchment planning and GIS mapping and analysis to redefine the city as a series of hydrological and ecological systems. Six case studies test the presented methodology, two greenfield and four brownfield sites based in the UK, USA, New Zealand and China. Each case study is illustrated with GIS maps and perspectives. Specific solutions to the environmental problems that will be intensified by climate change are presented. Water City describes adaptation strategies to help practitioners in the urban landscape tackle these issues and make our cities better places to live. This practical guide is a key read for professionals and stakeholders in landscape architecture, urban design, planning and all those interested in how climate change will affect the future of our cities.