Living in a Dynamic Tropical Forest Landscape

About this book

Living in a Dynamic Tropical Forest Landscape is a compendium of current knowledge of the so-called 'Wet Tropics' landscapes of Northeast Australia. These forested landscapes are home to a high proportion of the continent's species and ecosystems, and have a special significance both nationally and internationally, recognised through World Heritage status granted to the region in 1988.

The Wet Tropics forests of Australia face many of the major threats that other tropical forests around the world are experiencing. Like many of these areas, sustainable management has been hindered by a lack of baseline and applied research. This book reflects the multidisciplinary outcomes focused approach taken by the Rainforest Cooperative Research Centre, a partnership of research providers, including universities and CSIRO, and stakeholders including all levels of government, the tourism industry, conservation sector, local communities including indigenous people.

This book is presented in six sections with summaries by international luminaries who have placed the chapters in a global context. Social, cultural and economic dimensions are discussed, providing a holistic view of tropical landscape environments. Bringing together a wealth of scientific findings and indigenous ecological knowledge, this book will be of great global interest to a wide range of readers including students, scientists, policy makers and natural resource managers.

Contents

Foreword by Peter H. RavenIntroduction. Stork & Turton1. Australian forests in a global context. Stork & Turton SECTION 1: HISTORY AND BIODIVERSITY OF THE WET TROPICS - LEAD EDITOR NIGEL STORK2. The synoptic meteorology of high rainfalls and the storm run-off response in the Wet Tropics. Bonell & Callaghan3. Impacts of tropical cyclones on forests in the Wet Tropics of Australia. Turton & Stork4. Aboriginal cultures in the Wet Tropics. Pannell 5. European settlement and its impact on the Wet Tropics region. David Turton 6. The establishment of a World Heritage Area. Valentine & Hill7. The nature of rainforest tourism: Insights from a tourism social science research program. Philip L. Pearce8. The dynamic forest landscape of the Australian Wet Tropics: Present, past and future. David W. Hilbert9. Floristics and plant biodiversity of the rainforests of the Wet Tropics. Metcalfe & Ford10. Towards an understanding of vertebrate biodiversity in the Australian Wet Tropics. Williams et al 11. Origins and maintenance of freshwater fish biodiversity in the Wet Tropics region. Pusey et al 12. Diversity of invertebrates in Wet Tropics streams: Patterns and processes. Connolly et al 13. The invertebrate fauna of the Wet Tropics: Diversity, endemism and relationships. Yeates & Monteith14. International Perspective: Future of biodiversity in the Wet Tropics. Kikkawa SECTION 2: ECOLOGICAL PROCESSES AND OTHER ECOSYSTEM SERVICES - LEAD EDITOR NIGEL STORK15. Hydrological processes in the tropical rainforests of Australia. McJannet et al 16. Seed dispersal processes in Australia's tropical rainforests. Westcott et al17. Floral morphology, phenology and pollination in the Wet Tropics. Boulter et al 18. Services and disservices from insects in agricultural landscapes of the Atherton Tableland. Cunningham & Blanche19. Economic approaches to the value of tropical rainforests. Curtis 20. International Perspectives: Ecological processes and ecosystem services in the Wet Tropics. Wright SECTION 3: THREATS TO THE ENVIRONMENTAL VALUES OF THE WET TROPICS - LEAD EDITOR STEVE TURTON21. Impacts of climate variability and climate change on the Wet Tropics of North Eastern Australia. Balston 22. The impact of climate change on the biodiversity and ecosystem functions of the Wet Tropics. Williams et al 23.Impacts of habitat fragmentation and linear clearings on Australian rainforest biota. Laurance & M. Goosem24. Invasive weeds in the Wet Tropics. S. Goosem25. Vertebrate pests of the Wet Tropics bioregion: Current Status and Future Trends. Congdon & Harrison 26. Applications of high resolution remote sensing in rainforest ecology and management. Gillieson et al 27. Environmental impacts of tourism and recreation in the Wet Tropics. Turton & Stork 28. International Perspective: Conservation research in the Australian Wet Tropics. Laurance SECTION 4: LIVING IN A WORLD HERITAGE AREA - LEAD EDITOR STEVE TURTON29. The Wet Tropics conservation strategy: Conservation in a community context. Clarke 30. Cultural landscapes in the Wet Tropics. Pannell 31. Encountering a World Heritage Landscape: Community and visitor perspectives and experiences. Bentrupperbaumer & Reser 32. Integrating effort for regional natural resource outcomes: the Wet Tropics experience. Dale et al 33. "Getting the mob in": Indigenous initiatives in a new era of NRM in Australia. Pannell 34. Framing and researching the impacts of visitation and use in protected areas. Reser & Bentrupperbaumer35. Linking cultural and natural diversity of global significance to vibrant economies. Hill 36. Rethinking road ecology. M. Goosem37. International Perspective: Living in a World Heritage Landscape. McNeely SECTION 5: RESTORING TROPICAL FOREST LANDSCAPES - LEAD EDITOR NIGEL STORK38. Forest restoration at a landscape scale. Lamb & Erskine39. Restoration in north Queensland: Recent advances in the science and practice of tropical rainforest restoration. Tucker 40. Rainforest restoration for biodiversity and the production of timber. Wardell-Johnson et al 41. Biodiversity and new forests: interacting processes, prospects and pitfalls of rainforest restoration. Catterall et al 42. Monitoring the outcomes of reforestation for biodiversity conservation. Kanowski et al43. The future for forest-based industries in the Wet Tropics. Harrison & Herbohn 44. International Perspective: Restoring tropical forest landscapes: restoring what and for whom? Sayer SECTION 6 SCIENCE INFORMING POLICY AND CONSERVATION AND MAMAGENMENT OF TROPICAL FORESTS - LEAD EDITOR NIGEL STORK45. Catchment to reef: Water quality and ecosystem health in tropical streams. Pearson & Stork46. A preliminary assessment of priority areas for plant biodiversity conservation in the Wet Tropics bioregion. K. Williams et al47. New tools for monitoring World Heritage values. Phinn 48. Rainforest science and its application. Goosem 49. Lessons for other tropical forest landscapes. Stork et alAcronyms and AbbreviationsIndex

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Biography

Nigel Stork is Head of School of Resource Management and Geography and Head of the Burnley Campus at the University of Melbourne, Australia. Formerly the CEO of the Cooperative Research Centre for Tropical Rainforest Ecology and Management and Founder of the Australian Canopy Crane, he has studied tropical forest ecology and insect diversity in many tropical regions of the world with particular interest in the magnitude and decline of global biodiversity.

Stephen Turton is Professor and Executive Director of the Australian Tropical Forest Institute at Cook University in Cairns, Australia. Previously, he was Director of Research for the Rainforest Cooperative Research Centre. His research and teaching interests include tropical climatology, rainforest ecology, urban ecology, recreation ecology and natural resource management.