‘Owing to massive land conversion and invasive species, future tropical biodiversity will probably be characterized by fragmented, homogenized and depauperate ecosystems that lack key functional elements’ (p. 50). This book contains 10 chapters, all focused on the tropics, covering the following topics: loss of habitat, loss of ecosystem services, landscape fragmentation, forest fires, invasive species, uses and abuses of tropical biodiversity, threats to aquatic ecosystems, climate change, species extinctions and conservation challenges. In addition, each chapter features a prominent scientist with a short biography and a question/answer section related to the topic of the chapter. The book is intended for biologists, natural resource managers, politicians, policy makers, advanced undergraduate and postgraduate students, scientists and anyone with an interest in tropical conservation biology. The subjects presented in the book are well documented and illustrated with tables, figures, examples and many references to original work. The authors do a great job of finding tropical examples for subjects that normally are not treated from a tropical perspective, such as fisheries management, and marine, wetland and aquatic systems. However, tropical dry forests are neglected even though they represent more than half of the tropical forests. The writing in this book is clear and straightforward with few typographical errors or unexplained figure symbols. In short, this is a well-written book on a very important conservation topic.
As I read the book, I became aware that this is the most up-to-date and informative reference on the wrongs of conservation of biodiversity in the tropics. The picture that emerges would depress the most optimistic reader. The book lacks balance and scientific curiosity in the presentation of information. You should not read this book if you are interested in seeking solutions to the conservation crisis in the tropics. Read this book only to learn about the worst case scenario of the issue. The underlying assumption throughout the book is that environmental change is always irreversible and bad for biodiversity (see the initial quote and fig. 3.1 in the book).
The sections on prominent scientists are informative and entertaining. Apparently they were given instructions to be assertive with the presentations of their credentials, which some do with exces-sive hyperbole. According to William F. Lawrence, ‘. . . the world has plenty of generalists and exotic species; we don't need to conserve them’ (p. 58). Gretchen C. Daily, makes a strong case for the conservation value of secondary tropical forests and human dominated systems, a focus that is critical for any conservation programme in the tropics. Yet, such a point is lost and remains unmentioned or unconsidered in the rest of the book.
The analysis of information is not sophisticated. For example, (1) in one part of the book forestry is presented as a problem (deforestation) and in another as a positive (jobs), but these different aspects of the forestry activity are not consolidated with a realistic appraisal of the situation. (2) Edge effects are largely considered negative (p. 66) without regard to situations where they are not, as in riparian zones. (3) Many long-term predictions of gloom and doom are based on short-term observations. (4) Seasonal, moist and rain forests are used interchangeably as if they all respond in the same way to ecological conditions. (5) Eradication of alien species is the proposed solution to species management; authors do not recognize a single positive contribution of alien species to the biota. (6) The section on climate change confuses CO2 effects with temperature effects. (7) For many issues of climate change and species extinction rates, authors will point out that this or another issue is controversial, but they go on to present the gloom and doom scenario without indicating why it is controversial or balancing the selected scenario with the alternate position. Moreover, known and predicted scenarios are often mixed without proper caution. (8) If a weakness is identified, as for example in the species/area curve for estimating species extinctions, it is the one that underestimates extinctions while those weaknesses that exaggerate extinctions with this method are ignored.
These lapses of analysis diminish the value of this book for students, scientists or critical readers. Since the book lacks suggested solutions, it might not be of use to managers or policy makers. The book also raises questions about this kind of conservation biology. Does the tropical biota lack capacity to adapt and adjust to environmental change? What solutions or alternatives are available to society beyond an awareness of the problems?
