Review: The development of conservation biology and ecology continues to gather pace but there are still areas that could usefully be examined. One of these is the practical application of theoretical ideas. Clearly you can't just manipulate a population but there are times when you need to explore the underlying issues attached to a concept. That's where this book comes in. The aim is to look at a wide range of ideas and give some practical work to investigate further.

The book is a series of 32 cases divided into 6 parts. It's part of a larger project involving a companion website and an instructor's manual (from the lead author but not available for this review). We start with an introductory section with three chapters. They cover, broadly, the idea of biodiversity, the range of the topic and the importance of biodiversity. As a group the overall aim is to get the reader to appreciate the parameters of the subject and the value it has to the wider world. This last point is important - the authors are leading wildlife researchers and their focus is not just theoretical writing but getting students and other readers to actually take the knowledge and get something done with it. to this extent the book is as much a series of practical exercises as it is a call for action. Having set the scene we are moved into a number of key areas starting with genetics. This is clearly a key topic not just because of its fundamental relationship with biodiversity but also because, in a practical sense, genetic diversity is crucial in wildlife management (think of ex-situ zoo breeding programmes for example). Four cases are given which cover a wide range of situations from captive breeding issues to genetic drift and the value of wildlife corridors. Part three moves on to populations and the issues surrounding population analysis. The first four cases look at the viability of populations in terms of internal factors such as life tables and external factors such as climate and landscape ecology. The remaining three cases look at computer analyses using a set of programmes (download detailed supplied). Part four studies species. Here, the focus is quite eclectic demonstrating both the width of the subject matter and the problems of getting sufficient material into a book. Studies range from biodiversity through ex-situ and in situ conservation (zoos and plots!) and edge effects. Part five turns to landscape ecology. There is a trend through this set of cases starting with current issues (fragments and harvests) moving through methods (GIS, size/area) to future impacts (global warming). The final part looks at the key area of management. Despite all the ecological work a scheme will fail if the social and political will is not there. This might be seen as an unusual addition. It is not in the standard conservation biology texts but it is vital. It turns an idea into a reality and anything that trains students in this regard is useful.

Overall, a very interesting text. Cases are very wide-ranging and there's bound to be something of use. It covers not just the obvious such as species biodiversity but useful and less covered such as politics and management. There's a great deal to be gained from this text and it's website. As noted above, the teaching manual was not included which is a pity. Access was cited as a concern but some indication on their website would have been helpful. However, there is still very much to be gained. On conservation courses it has much to recommend it. In schools it provides stimulus for teaching especially as sustainability and environmental education is now so important. One to look out for.