Biogeography and Ecology of New Guinea

J. L. Gressitt New Guinea is a fantastic island, unique and fascinating. It is an area of incredible variety of geomorphology, biota, peoples, languages, history, tradi­ tions and cultures. Diversity is its prime characteristic, whatever the subject of interest. To a biogeographer it is tantalizing, as well as confusing or frustrating when trying to determine the history of its biota. To an ecologist, and to all biologists, it is a happy hunting ground of endless surprises and unanswered questions. To a conservationist it is like a dream come true, a "flash-back" of a few centuries, as well as a challenge for the future. New Guinea is so special that it is hard to compare it with other islands or tropical areas. It is something apart, with its very complicated history (chapters I: 2-4, II: 1-4, III: I, VI: I, 2). It is partly old but to a great extent very young, yet extremely rich and complex. It has biota of different sources - to such a degree that it is still disputed in this volume as to what Realm it belongs to: the Paleotropical or Notogaean (Australian); or what Region: Oriental, "Oceanic," Papuan or Australian. The terms Papuasian, Indo-Australian and Australasian also have been applied to the area.

Inhalt
One: General and Physical Background.- 1. General introduction.- 2. Geology of New Guinea.- 3. Pleistocene and present-day glaciations.- 4. Landforms and landform development.- 5. The soils of New Guinea.- Two: Man and His Impact on the Environment.- 1. Biological exploration of New Guinea.- 2. Physical anthropology, linguistics and ethnology.- 3. Human ecology and cultural variation in prehistoric New Guinea.- 4. History of plant use and man's impact on the vegetation.- 5. Staple crops in subsistence agriculture: their major insect pests, with emphasis on biogeographical and ecological aspects.- Three: Vegetation and Flora.- 1. Late Quaternary vegetation history.- 2. Origins of the tropicalpine flora.- 3. Plant zonation.- 4. Phytogeography and evolution of the Ericaceae of New Guinea.- 5. The Nothofagus Blume (Fagaceae) of New Guinea.- 6. The Araucaria forests of New Guinea.- 7. New Guinea Pandanaceae: first approach to ecology and biogeography.- 8. Semi-deciduous scrub and forest and Eucalypt woodland in the Port Moresby area.- 9. Grasslands and grassland succession in New Guinea.- 10. Ecology of fungi in New Guinea.- 11. Ecology and distribution of the seagrasses.- 12. Mangroves of the Papuan Subregion.- 13. Fly pollination in Drimys (Winteraceae), a primitive angiosperm.

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