Conservation Edited by

This book is the first of its kind to describe the challenges that arise in studying and conserving biodiversity across different scales. Taking a scale-conscious view of the drivers of change, biodiversity patterns and processes themselves, and policy actions aimed at management and protection, it describes a wide range of practical methods and recommendations to improve conservation at continental and global scales. Drivers of change are considered at different spatial scales, including the likely effects on biodiversity under land use and climate change. Ecological patterns and processes are examined and modelled at different levels of biological organization, from genetics, through individual dispersal and population viability, to community structure and selected ecosystem services. Trade-offs and tensions between different conservation goals are explored, and promising new methods for the study of scaling effects are digested from the scientific literature. Different governance and policy tools are evaluated and recommendations given. Finally, case studies from both Europe and Taiwan illustrate many of the scaling issues with a focus on networks of protected areas and their connectivity. The book is addressed to a wide range of readers. Scientists will find readable summarie