**Meet the editor**

Dr. Igor Ya. Pavlinov, born on March 26, 1950 in Moscow, Russia. His DrS dissertation was "Cladistic approach in phylogenetics and taxonomy: theoretical foundations of evolutionary cladistics" (1997). He is currently affiliated with Zoological Museum, Moscow Lomonosov State University (Russia) where he is a leading researcher and curator of mammls. His principal research interests are

in taxonomy of mammals (mainly rodents); morphometrics, theoretical taxonomy and phylogenetics. His principal published scientific books are: "Systematics of Mammals of the USSR" (1998), "A Short Guide to Terrestrial Mammals of Russia" (2002). "Systematics of Recent Mammals" (2003), "Introduction to Contemporary Phylogenetics" (2005), "A review of Phylogeny and Classification of Gerbillnae (Mammalia: Rodentia)" (2007), "Biological Systematics: Evoluiton of Ideas" (2011). He also published several popular books on natural history including "The Wondering Animal Life" (2000), "The History of the Life on the Earth" (2001).

Contents

**Preface IX** 

Peter Chesson

**Part 1 Models in Biodiversity 1** 

**Exploring the Tsonga Concept of** *Ntumbuloko* **in South Africa 3**  Brandon P. Anthony, Sylvia Abonyi, Petra Terblanche and Alan Watt

Chapter 2 **A Study on Biodiversity Mechanism by** 

**the Creativity Theory of Ecosystem 25**  Yong Liu, Guolei Li, Haiqun Yu and Ruiheng Lv

Chapter 3 **Ecological Niches and Diversity Maintenance 43** 

R. Eliot Crafton and Brandon P. Anthony

**Diversity: Deconstructing Composition Patterns of Saproxylic Beetles Breeding in Recently Burnt Boreal Forest 75**  Ermias T. Azeria, Jacques Ibarzabal, Jonathan Boucher and Christian Hébert

**Identify Factors Underlying Avian Species** 

**Imperilment in Sub-Saharan Africa and Europe 61** 

Chapter 4 **Using Multiple Linear Regression Models to** 

Chapter 5 **Towards a Better Understanding of Beta** 

**Biodiversity Conservation 97**  Corey J. A. Bradshaw, Navjot S. Sodhi, William F. Laurance and Barry W. Brook

**Part 2 History of Biodiversity 95** 

Chapter 6 **Twenty Landmark Papers in** 

Chapter 1 **Towards Bridging Worldviews in Biodiversity Conservation:** 

## Contents

#### **Preface XIII**

**Part 1 Models in Biodiversity 1** 

	- **Part 2 History of Biodiversity 95**

#### **Part 3 Evaluating Biodiversity 113**

Chapter 7 **Evaluating Biodiversity and Spatial Simulation of Land-Cover Change in the Tropical Region of Western Ghats, India 115**  Giriraj A., Murthy M.S.R. and Basanta Shrestha

#### **Part 4 Regional Biodiversity 145**

Chapter 8 **An Agenda for Austrian Biodiversity Research at the Long-Term Ecosystem Research Network (LTER) 147**  Stefan Schindler, Thomas Dirnböck, Franz Essl, Richard Zink, Stefan Dullinger, Thomas Wrbka and Michael Mirtl

Contents VII

**Part 6 Morphological Disparity 339**

Igor Ya. Pavlinov

Chapter 16 **Morphological Disparity: An Attempt to** 

**Widen and to Formalize the Concept 341** 

	- **Part 5 Uses of Biodiversity 321**

#### **Part 6 Morphological Disparity 339**

VI Contents

**Part 3 Evaluating Biodiversity 113**

**Part 4 Regional Biodiversity 145** 

**An Overview 163**

Bert Kohlmann

Chapter 7 **Evaluating Biodiversity and Spatial Simulation** 

Chapter 8 **An Agenda for Austrian Biodiversity Research at** 

Stefan Schindler, Thomas Dirnböck, Franz Essl, Richard Zink, Stefan Dullinger, Thomas Wrbka and Michael Mirtl

Chapter 9 **Conservation of Chinese Plant Diversity:** 

Chapter 10 **Biodiversity Conservation in Costa Rica** 

Chapter 11 **Multiple Approach for Plant Biodiversity** 

Chapter 12 **Environmental Assessment and Aquatic** 

Chapter 13 **Biodiversity Conservation Planning in**

**Part 5 Uses of Biodiversity 321** 

Marco Cosimo Simeone

**of Western Ghats, India 115**

**of Land-Cover Change in the Tropical Region** 

**the Long-Term Ecosystem Research Network (LTER) 147**

Jordi López-Pujol, Hua-Feng Wang and Zhi-Yong Zhang

**- An Animal and Plant Biodiversity Atlas 203**

**Conservation in Restoring Forests 223** Federico Vessella, Bartolomeo Schirone and

**Biodiversity Conservation of Amazonian Savannas, Marajó Island, Brazil 261** 

**Rural Landscapes in Japan: Integration of Ecological and Visual Perspectives 285** Yoji Natori, Janet Silbernagel and Michael S. Adams

Chapter 14 **Water for Biodiversity Conservation and Livelihoods: Protecting Northernmost Tropical Deciduous Forest Relicts in Mexico 307** 

Chapter 15 **Bioprospecting: Creating a Value for Biodiversity 323**

Alan L. Harvey and Nigel Gericke

Luciano Fogaça de A. Montag, Tiago Magalhães da S. Freitas,

Ana Cristina Mendes-Oliveira and Ronaldo B. Barthem

Rolando E. Diaz-Caravantes and Erick Sánchez-Flores

Giriraj A., Murthy M.S.R. and Basanta Shrestha

Chapter 16 **Morphological Disparity: An Attempt to Widen and to Formalize the Concept 341**  Igor Ya. Pavlinov

Preface

subjects in the past decades.

with certain aspect of biodiversity researches and uses.

impacts of forest fire (E.T. Azeria & oth.).

of importance of biodiversity has been emerging.

Biodiversity has became some time ago one of the key notions in various fields of human activity, from biological disciplines dealing directly with the kinds of living beings up to strategy of sustainable development of the humankind. Such a high rating of biodiversity theme has been resulting in publication of many books on these

The present book is one of them. Its content is as wide as the biodiversity itself, beginning from the theoretical models of biodiversity and finishing with the latter's uses for human needs. It contains 17 chapters grouped into 5 sections, each dealing

The first section,, "Models of Biodiversity", contains several important theoretical chapters, some of which consider the ways in which biodiversity could be thought about, while others develop issues of more specific "biological" sound. Of particular interest are chapters (R. Rozzi; B.P. Anthony & oth.) concerning some aspects of interrelation between biological and socio-cultural components of the entire life on Earth at any scale of its consideration. Noteworthy is, as well, the chapter on pretty original "creativity theory of ecosystem" (Liu & oth.). Under consideration in this section are also: theoretical model of relation between ecological niches and diversity maintenance (P. Chesson), numerical model of the factors underlying avian species imperilment in sub-Saharan Africa and Europe (R.E. Crafton & B.P. Anthony), and the diversity turnover rate model for a beetle group undergone periodical catastrophic

A small section "History of Biodiversity Researches" contains the only chapter of C. Bradshaw & N. Sodhi reviewing in short some key publications on this subject that appeared during the last hundred years. It allows to trace how the very understanding

The section "Evaluating biodiversity" is also small to include just one chapter describing an approach for monitoring the conservation of regional tropical phytodiversity in India (Giriraj A. et oth.). It is to be pointed out however that such a general issue as biodiversity evaluation is considered, to a higher or lesser degree, in most of the chapters in this book, as it is impossible to study and protect biodiversity without its measuring.

## Preface

Biodiversity has became some time ago one of the key notions in various fields of human activity, from biological disciplines dealing directly with the kinds of living beings up to strategy of sustainable development of the humankind. Such a high rating of biodiversity theme has been resulting in publication of many books on these subjects in the past decades.

The present book is one of them. Its content is as wide as the biodiversity itself, beginning from the theoretical models of biodiversity and finishing with the latter's uses for human needs. It contains 17 chapters grouped into 5 sections, each dealing with certain aspect of biodiversity researches and uses.

The first section,, "Models of Biodiversity", contains several important theoretical chapters, some of which consider the ways in which biodiversity could be thought about, while others develop issues of more specific "biological" sound. Of particular interest are chapters (R. Rozzi; B.P. Anthony & oth.) concerning some aspects of interrelation between biological and socio-cultural components of the entire life on Earth at any scale of its consideration. Noteworthy is, as well, the chapter on pretty original "creativity theory of ecosystem" (Liu & oth.). Under consideration in this section are also: theoretical model of relation between ecological niches and diversity maintenance (P. Chesson), numerical model of the factors underlying avian species imperilment in sub-Saharan Africa and Europe (R.E. Crafton & B.P. Anthony), and the diversity turnover rate model for a beetle group undergone periodical catastrophic impacts of forest fire (E.T. Azeria & oth.).

A small section "History of Biodiversity Researches" contains the only chapter of C. Bradshaw & N. Sodhi reviewing in short some key publications on this subject that appeared during the last hundred years. It allows to trace how the very understanding of importance of biodiversity has been emerging.

The section "Evaluating biodiversity" is also small to include just one chapter describing an approach for monitoring the conservation of regional tropical phytodiversity in India (Giriraj A. et oth.). It is to be pointed out however that such a general issue as biodiversity evaluation is considered, to a higher or lesser degree, in most of the chapters in this book, as it is impossible to study and protect biodiversity without its measuring.

#### XIV Preface

A number of chapters gathered under the title "Regional Biodiversity" deal with biodiversity assessment and protection under particular conditions. The latter might be quite different being encompassed either by the national and provincial governmental polices and strategies (S. Schindler et oth. on biodiversity in Austria; J. López-Pujol & oth. on plant diversity in China; B. Kohlmann on biodiversity in Costa Rica; F. Vessella & oth. on reforestation in Europe; L.F.A. Montag on a local aquatic biota in Brazil), by human-made environments (Y. Natori & oth. on rural Japan), or by certain natural sources availability (R.E. Diaz-Caravantes & E. Sánchez-Flores on Mexico, water supply is of concern). This section overlaps in part by its content with the previous ones, as the ideas and models discussed over there are illustrated by the data on regional biodiversity (Europe, sub-Saharan and in particular South Africa, India, Canada)

Another small section entitled "Uses of Biodiversity" contains a chapter on so called bioprospecting (A. Harvey). This relatively new notion accentuates a rather old subject of the use of diverse organisms in biomedical issues, but now it is considered under commercial circumstances.

The concluding section "Morphological Disparity" contains I. Pavlinov's chapter, in which some theoretical concepts and notions concerning that disparity are considered. The principle message of this paper is that morphological disparity should not be delimited by just between-species differences (nowadays predominating concept), but is be considered in its most widened sense to include all its forms and aspects.

> **Igor Ya. Pavlinov, DrS** Leading Researcher, Zoological Museum of Moscow M.V. Lomonosov University Moscow, Russia
