Publisher Description

Epiphytes (plants which grow on other plants, not parasitically but for support), comprise more than one-third of the total vascular flora in some tropical forests. Growing within tropical forest canopies, epiphytes are subject to severe environmental constraints, and their diverse adaptations make them a rich resource for studies of water balance, nutrition, reproduction and evolution. This book synthesizes the body of information from research on epiphytes and their relations with other tropical biota, and provides a comprehensive overview of basic functions, life history, evolution, and the place of epiphytes in complex tropical communities. Tropical ecologists and zoologists as well as plant scientists will find this volume a useful guide to research on the twenty-five thousand species of epiphytes which root in the crowns of tropical trees.

Author Biography

David H. Benzing is Professor of Biology Emeritus at OberDavid H. Benzing is Professor of Biology Emeritus at Oberlin College and the Jessie B. Cox Chair in Tropical Biology lin College and the Jessie B. Cox Chair in Tropical Biology at Marie Selby Botanical Gardens. He is the author of Bromelat Marie Selby Botanical Gardens. He is the author of Bromeliaceae: Profile of an Adaptive Radiation, Vascular Epiphytesiaceae: Profile of an Adaptive Radiation, Vascular Epiphytes: General Biology and Associated Biota, and The Biology of t: General Biology and Associated Biota, and The Biology of the

Table of Contents

Preface; Abbreviations; Glossary; 1. Epiphytism: a preliminary overview; 2. Photosynthesis; 3. Water balance; 4. Mineral nutrition; 5. Reproduction and life history; 6. Mistletoes; 7. Ecology; 8. Epiphyte occurrence; References; Author index; Subject index; Taxonomic index.

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This book synthesizes the body of information from research on epiphytes.

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This book synthesizes the body of information from research on epiphytes.

Description for Bookstore

This book synthesizes the body of information from research on epiphytes and their relations with other tropical biota, and provides a comprehensive overview of basic functions, life history, evolution, and the place of epiphytes in complex tropical communities.

Description for Library

This book synthesizes the body of information from research on epiphytes and their relations with other tropical biota, and provides a comprehensive overview of basic functions, life history, evolution, and the place of epiphytes in complex tropical communities.

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