Plants and Vegetation: Origins, Processes, Consequences Paul A. Keddy Plants make up 99.9% of the world's living matter, provide food and shelter, and control the Earth's climate. The study of plant ecology is therefore essential to understanding the functions and processes of the biosphere. This vibrant new introductory textbook integrates important classical themes with recent ideas, models and data. The book begins with the origins of plants and their role in creating the biosphere, as the context for discussing plant functional types and evolutionary patterns. The coverage continues logically through the exploration of causation with chapters, amongst others, on resources, stress, competition, herbivory, and mutualism. The book concludes with a chapter on conservation, addressing the concern that as many as one-third of all plant species are at risk of extinction. Each chapter is enriched with striking and unusual examples of plants (e.g., stone plants, carnivorous plants) and plant habitats (e.g., isolated tropical Tepui, arctic cliffs). Paul Keddy's lively and thought-provoking style will appeal to students at all levels. Paul Keddy is the first holder of the Edward G. Schlieder Endowed Chair for Environmental Studies at Southeastern Louisiana University. His current research explores the environmental factors that control plant communities, and how these factors can be manipulated to maintain and restore biological diversity. Dr. Keddy has published more than 100 scholarly papers on plant ecology, and is designated a Highly Cited Researcher in Ecology and environment by the Institute for Scientific Information. He is the author of Wetland Ecology: Principles and conservation (winner of the Society of Wetland Scientists' Merit Award) and Competition (awarded Lawson Meal by Canadian Botanical Association and Gleason Prize by New York Botanical Garden). Dr. Keddy also co-edited The World's Largest Wetlands: Ecology and Conservation and Ecological Assembly Rules: Perspectives, Advances, Retreats.