Autorentext

Heather A. Hager is an ecologist and natural sciences research facilitator at Wilfrid Laurier University, Canada, and an award-winning textile artist.

David J. Gibson is a plant ecologist and Emeritus in the School of Life Sciences at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, USA. He is the author of Grasses and Grassland Ecology (2009) and co-editor of Grasslands and Climate Change (2019).

Jonathan A. Newman is a temperate grassland ecologist and Vice President: Research at Wilfrid Laurier University, Canada. He is co-author of Defending Biodiversity (2017) and co-editor of Grasslands and Climate Change (2019).

Klappentext

This comprehensive handbook represents a definitive state of the art overview of grasslands from multiple, interdisciplinary and global perspectives.

Despite the real and intrinsic values that grasslands offer, they are globally subject to fragmentation, habitat and species loss, and they are increasingly threatened by climate change. From a human societal perspective, grasslands are central to much of our culture and represent areas where agriculture first arose. The Routledge Handbook of Grasslands brings together an interdisciplinary team of global authors to present a much needed and vitally important overview of the new and ongoing debates around the values of and threats to grasslands. Reflecting the broad range of issues, debates and threats, the handbook is divided into five parts:

• Part I: Deep Roots, Dynamic Futures: Understanding the Science of Grasslands
• Part II: Living Complexity: Grassland Function, Biodiversity, and Renewal
• Part III: Working Landscapes: Innovation and Tradition in Grassland Stewardship
• Part IV: Social-Ecological Ties: Grassland Services, Justice, and Governance
• Part V: Landscapes of Meaning: Cultural and Creative Perspectives on Grasslands Drawing on the experience of researchers, practitioners and managers, the handbook is the only grassland-oriented text to include social, economic, policy, and cultural value dimensions of grasslands, as well as an up-to-date coverage of the agronomy and ecology of these environments. The handbook concludes with a forward-thinking chapter which discusses the future of grasslands, further directions, threats and innovations.

The Routledge Handbook of Grasslands is essential reading for students and scholars of grassland ecology, management and conservation as well as policy and management practitioners involved in grassland management and governance, as well as natural resources more broadly.

Inhalt

1. Grasslands at the Crossroads: Integrating Science, Culture, and Sustainability PART I Deep Roots, Dynamic Futures: Understanding the Science of Grasslands 2. Rise of the Grasslands: Evolution, Fire, and Mammalian Giants 3. Grasslands at Scale: Mapping Extent, Diversity, and the Price of Neglect 4. Soil Symphony: How Grassland Nutrients Flow, Store Carbon, and Enhance Ecosystem Services 5. Predicting Pasture Prospects: Climate Scenarios and Carbon Futures for Global Grasslands PART II. Living Complexity: Grassland Function, Biodiversity, and Renewal 6. Physiological and Anatomical Traits of Grass Species: Diversification Facilitates Persistence in Grassy Ecosystems 7. Adaptive Alleles on the Prairie: Genomic Insights for a Warming World 8. Filters, Pools & Fire: Decoding How Grassland Communities Form 9. Endophytes Unveiled: Microbial Keys to Grassland Resilience and Productivity 10. From Fragments to Function: Habitat Quality, Size, and Connectivity for Grassland Invertebrates 11. Giants of the Grass: How Large Herbivores Sculpt Savannas and Prairies 12. Ecosystems on the Edge: Unraveling Compositional, Structural, and Functional Loss in Grasslands 13. Hooves on a Gradient: Livestock, Moisture, and Ecosystem Changes 14. Adapt or Perish: Trait-Based Tales from Turbulent Grasslands 15. Switching States: How Climate Change Flips the Grass-Woody Balance 16. Cross-Border Colonists: How Naturalised Species Reshape Prairies, Pampas, and Savannas 17. Beyond Fences: Balancing Food, Fire, and Biodiversity in Grassland Conservation 18. Grassland Restoration: Understanding the Past to Change the Future 19. Rewilding the Range: Trophic Restoration for Resilient Grasslands PART III. Working Landscapes: Innovation and Tradition in Grassland Stewardship 20. Pasture Perfect: Designing Grasses for Yield, Quality, and Carbon Capture 21. Cultivating Resilience: Grassland Agronomy in a Changing Climate 22. Conflict and Coexistence: Untangling the Socio-Ecology of Human-Wildlife Interactions in Rangelands 23. Ancestral Stewardship: Indigenous Knowledge Shaping Africa's Grasslands 24. Meet Me in the Meadow: How Spatial Ecology Drives Natural Pest Regulation 25. Rangeland Vital Signs: Evaluating Health and Productivity 26. From Drones to Digital Twins: High-Tech Eyes on Grassland Change PART IV. Social-Ecological Ties: Grassland Services, Justice, and Governance 27. Hectares & Hidden Wealth: Valuing Provisioning, Cultural, and Regulating Services 28. Pastures in Parallel: How Management and Nature Co-Create Grassland Value 29. Fields of Uncertainty: Charting Climate-Smart Futures for Global Grasslands 30. Breaking the Grassland Glass Ceiling: Women Ranchers and Sustainable Development 31. From Fields to Frameworks: Crafting Effective Grassland Policies Part V. Landscapes of Meaning: Cultural and Creative Perspectives on Grasslands 32. Beyond Grazing: Pastoralism's Role in Culture, Economy, and Ecology 33. "I felt that the grass was the country": A Literary History of Grasslands 34. Prairie Perspectives: Eco-Revelatory Art and Grassland Narratives 35. Sacred Spaces: Exploring the Cultural and Spiritual Heart of Grasslands Conclusion 36. Saving Our Shared Heritage: Priorities for Grassland Conservation and Management