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This volume explores the climates, landscapes, ecosystems and hazards that comprise the Mediterranean world. It traces the development of the Mediterranean landscape over very long timescales and examines modern processes and key environmental issues in a wide range of settings. The Mediterranean is the only region on Earth where three continents meet and this interaction has produced a very distinctive Physical Geography. This book examines the landscapes and processes at themargins of these continents and the distinctive marine environment between them. Catastrophic earthquakes, explosive volcanic eruptions and devastating storms and floods are intimately bound up within the history and mythology of the Mediterranean world. This is a key region for the study of naturalhazards because it offers unrivalled access to long records of hazard occurrence and impact through documentary, archaeological and geological archives. The Mediterranean is also a biodiversity hotspot; it has been a meeting place for plants, animals and humans from three continents throughout much of its history. The Quaternary records of these interactions are more varied and better preserved than in any other part of the world. These records have provided important new insights into thetempo of climate, landscape and ecosystem change in the Mediterranean region and beyond. The region is unique because of the very early and widespread impact of humans in landscape and ecosystem change - and the richness of the archaeological and geological archives that chronicle this impact. This bookexamines this history and these interactions and places current environmental issues in long term context. Contributors : Ramadan Husain Abu-Zied Harriet Allen Jacques Blondel Maria-Carmen Llasat James Casford Marc Castellnou Andrew Goudie Andrew Harding Angela Hayes Tom Holt Babette Hoogakker Philip Hughes Jos Lelieveld John Lewin Francisco Lloret Francisco Lopez-Bermudez Mark Macklin Jean Margat Anne Mather Frédéric Médail Christophe Morhange Clive Oppenheimer JeanPalutikof Gerassimos Papadopoulos Josep Piñol David Pyle Jane Reed Neil Roberts Eelco Rohling Iain Stewart Stathis Stiros John Thornes Chronis Tzedakis John Wainwright
A core textbook series that aims to provide students with accessible, up-to-date accounts of Ecogeography - the marriage of ecology with geography - in the primary terrestrial and marine environments. This is the first book in the series on Mediterranean Ecogeography. Biological diversity in the Mediterranean Basin is amongst the highest of any region on earth, both in terms of total species numbers and endemism. The flora is estimated at about 25,000 species of flowering plants and ferns, compared with about 6000 species in non-Mediterranean Europe. About 50% of these are endemic. Diversity amongst vertebrate animals is also high, though endemism rates are lower than for plants. The high levels of diversity contribute to, and are a reflection of, the considerable variability of landscape. This results from a combination of factors including geological and tectonic history, relief and physiography, climate, geomorphological processes, hydrology, soils, the incidence of fires and impact of human activities. The landscapes of the Mediterranean Basin are thus varied and fragmented; a mosaic of ecosystems and communities. Mediterranean Ecogeography aims to examine and explain this heterogeneity, and the approach is focused on the ecogeography of the region. Analysing the factors which account for the present distributions of plants and animals, and the functioning of ecosystems within the Mediterranean Basin can help in the understanding of the relationship between people and natural ecosystems. A key to the conservation of these ecosystems is the wise use of resources, biological and physical. In addition, it is vital to assess how the natural environments of the region will respond to further change. In the last twenty years, understanding of the functioning of mediterranean-type ecosystems has advanced through several international projects. This book draws upon the findings of these, and other research in the Mediterranean Basin, to present a comprehensive text on a key region of the world, and the problems and prospects of its environmental exploitation.
Illustrated with pioneering maps and country analyses by a network of researchers from across the Mediterranean, this book takes a territorial approach as a way toward a shared vision for a truly integrated Euro-Mediterranean region. At a time when the region is undergoing rapid change, the main goal of the book is to challenge misconceptions with common geographic data, on issues such as transport, energy, agriculture and water. The book suggests avenues for Europe to regain a part of the influence it has lost on its Mediterranean neighbourhood and policies common to Europe and its southern neighbours. The wide range of geographic country analyses, from Morocco to Turkey and including the occupied Palestinian territory and Jordan, are complemented with new maps at the scale of the wider Euro-Mediterranean region. The contributions contend that cross-border cooperation, common transport networks and shared environmental management can foster partnership when diplomatic relations are stalling. The Gibraltar case study shows that while competition is rising between the two sides of the strait their potential complementarity is also very high. The book calls for a Euro-Mediterranean local data collaborative platform to drive a common 'Neighbourhoods Territorial Agenda' for North-South shared vision and action. This timely and enlightening book is essential reading for those studying regional, European, Mediterranean and Arab world issues. It will appeal to policymakers and actors involved in cross-border cooperation, territorial development, environment, cultural knowledge and networking. Contributors include: M. Ababsa, P. Beckouche, N. Ben Cheikh, P. Besnard, Y. Cohen, G. Faour, J. Hilal, O. Isik, E. Larrea, J.-Y. Moisseron, Z. Ouadah-Bedidi, D. Pages El Karoui, H. Pecout, R. Tabib, A. Ulied, G. Van Hamme, I. Zboun