Contributors; Foreword; 1. Soil Organisms in Tropical Ecosystems: a Key Role for Brazil in the Global Quest for the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Biodiversity; 2. Soil and Land Use in the Brazilian Amazon; The colour plate; 3. Soil Macrofauna Communities in Brazilian Amazonia; 4. Earthworm Ecology and Diversity in Brazil; 5. Termite Diversity in Brazil (Insecta: Isoptera); 6. Patterns of Diversity and Responses to Forest Disturbance by Ground-dwelling Ants in Amazonia; 7. Soil Mesofauna in Central Amazon
Summary
This book contains eleven chapters focusing on the soil biodiversity in one of the key biodiversity hotspots of the world, i.e., the Amazon and nearby regions of Brazil. It covers both the tropical savannah and the rain forests. Also addressed are the patterns of diversity and communities of various soil organisms (i.e., earthworms, termites, nematodes, termites, ants, microfungi, arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and nitrogen fixing bacteria). The work presented is based on the Brazilian component of the project 'Conservation and Sustainable Management of Belowground Biodiversity'. This book represents a major contribution to the literature and will interest those in biodiversity conservation, soil science and ecology
