Assessing the Microbiological Health of Ecosystems

A timely exploration of the coordinated functions of microbiological communities and the impacts of global climate change on microbial life

Ecosystems function like interlocking puzzles and ultimately the health of an ecosystem depends upon the niche activities of its microbial communities.

Assessing the Microbiological Health of Ecosystems summarizes our understanding of how microbial community processes are organized and the mechanisms by which activities of their constituent species are coordinated. The authors collectively present a basis for understanding what produces healthy microbial components of an ecosystem, thereby supplying a foundation for achieving one of the eventual future goals of environmental microbiology: to diagnose and correct the integrative nature of microbial activities when ecosystems fail. Assessing the Microbiological Health of Ecosystems will prove to be a valuable resource to environmental m