Buch, Englisch, 485 Seiten, Format (B × H): 157 mm x 235 mm, Gewicht: 936 g
A History of Environmental Change in Temperate North America from 1500 to the Present
Buch, Englisch, 485 Seiten, Format (B × H): 157 mm x 235 mm, Gewicht: 936 g
ISBN: 978-0-521-39452-9
Verlag: Cambridge University Press
From Coastal Wilderness to Fruited Plain is an account of the making of a large part of the American landscape following European settlement. Drawing upon land survey records and early travellers' accounts, Dr Whitney reconstructs the 'virgin' forests and grasslands of the north-eastern and central United States during the pre-settlement period. He then documents successively the clearance and fragmentation of the region's woodlands, the harvest of the forest and its game, the ploughing of the prairies, and the draining of wetlands. The degree to which these activities altered the soil, climate, plant and animal communities, and water cycle are evaluated, and the sustainability of present-day ecosystems is brought into question in this account.
Autoren/Hrsg.
Fachgebiete
- Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Weltgeschichte & Geschichte einzelner Länder und Gebietsräume Geschichte einzelner Länder Amerikanische Geschichte
- Naturwissenschaften Biowissenschaften Biowissenschaften Ökologie
- Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Geschichtliche Themen Wirtschaftsgeschichte
- Naturwissenschaften Biowissenschaften Biowissenschaften Naturschutzbiologie, Biodiversität
- Naturwissenschaften Biowissenschaften Biowissenschaften Meeres- und Süßwasserökologie
- Geowissenschaften Umweltwissenschaften Umweltmanagement, Umweltökonomie
- Wirtschaftswissenschaften Wirtschaftswissenschaften Wirtschaftsgeschichte
- Naturwissenschaften Biowissenschaften Biowissenschaften Terrestrische Ökologie
Weitere Infos & Material
List of figures; List of tables; Acknowledgements; Conversion of English to metric units; US state abbreviations; Common and scientific names of trees mentioned in the text; Photographic essay illustrating the character and the demise of the pre-settlement vegetation of the Northeast and the Midwest; 1. Introduction; 2. Reconstructing the past; 3. Nature imposes …; 4. The forest primeval; 5. Preservers of the ecological balance wheel; 6. European precedents; 7. Assault upon the forest, part I: the farmer; 8. Assault upon the forest, part II: the lumber industry; 9. Assault upon the forest, part III: fuel-wood; 10. Predatory agriculture; 11. Grassland agriculture; 12. Forest influences; 13. A transported flora; 14. An impoverished fauna; 15. The legislated landscape; 16. Conclusion; References; Index.
