Soil invertebrates make up diverse communities living in soil pores and on the soil surface, digging burrows and tunnels, processing organic matter and interacting with microbes. Soil is also a habitat of growing concern as many human activities cause soil degradation. This book documents the evolutionary history of soil invertebrates and their multitude of adaptations. Soil invertebrates live in a twilight zone: some have gone down to seek stability, constancy and rest, others have gone up and faced environmental variation, heat, cold and activity. And it all happens in a few decimetres, millimetres sometimes. Check out the wonderful life below ground in this book.
The Selective Environment of the Soil. Evolution of Terrestrialized Invertebrate Lineages. Populations in Space and Time. Reproduction and Development. Mate Choice, Brood Care and Predatory Behaviour. Physiological Adaptation and Microbial Interactions. A Kaleidoscope of Adaptations. Annexes.
Biography
Nico M. van Straalen is Em. Professor of Animal Ecology at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, where he headed a research program on ecology of soil invertebrates. He specialized in ecotoxicology, molecular ecology and evolutionary biology. He became mainly known for his contributions to environmental risk assessment of soil pollution but has many other research interests like human evolution and the origin of life. This book builds on his expertise on springtails, isopods, mites and earthworms.
