None
4 stars
Interesting stuff on a bunch of subjects relating to the animal and plant kingdoms, including K- and r-strategy reproduction (r-strategy: produce as many young as possible so that at least some will survive. K-strategy: produce a few and make sure they survive), and why the sea isn’t as full of plant life as the land. Colinvaux does seem to dismiss environmentalist concerns a bit too readily by present-day standards (the book dates from 1978). It’s easier to answer the title conundrum looked at upside down, so to speak: a certain area of land can support a specified amount of plant life, which can feed a limited number of herbivores, which in turn will serve as prey for a small number of carnivores, a smaller number if the herbivores are large because the carnivores need to be big enough to bring them down.
Interesting stuff on a bunch of subjects relating to the animal and plant kingdoms, including K- and r-strategy reproduction (r-strategy: produce as many young as possible so that at least some will survive. K-strategy: produce a few and make sure they survive), and why the sea isn’t as full of plant life as the land. Colinvaux does seem to dismiss environmentalist concerns a bit too readily by present-day standards (the book dates from 1978). It’s easier to answer the title conundrum looked at upside down, so to speak: a certain area of land can support a specified amount of plant life, which can feed a limited number of herbivores, which in turn will serve as prey for a small number of carnivores, a smaller number if the herbivores are large because the carnivores need to be big enough to bring them down.