Bøger af Ellen Wohl

To contemplate an alpine lake or a ribbon of white water twisting down the face of the Rocky Mountains is to appreciate the majesty of this block of bedrock thrust up from Earths interior, weathering eons of nature's assaults. To learn what humans, in our brief lifespan, have done here is to acquire a sobering sense of our place in the natural world. Ellen Wohls account of a year in the life of Rocky Mountain National Park reflects a lifelong interest in these rhythms and disruptions. Informed by a deep and intimate understanding of the landscape, her Rocky Mountain journal is a lyrical distillation of experience and knowledge that shows us the century-old national park as a microcosm of the natural world in the thrall of time and humanity. Conducting readers through the parks seasons, Wohl describes the processes that unfold over the ages as continents drift and mountain ranges rise, as glaciers carve the land and profound changes in the atmosphere alter the environment. Working on the landscape in a humbler way are beavers and elk, beetles and, not so humbly, humans, who tinker with natural rhythms in ways big and small, as obvious as logging, road building, and feedlot run-off, and as subtle in the short run as climate change. Along the way, we observe the effects of nature's more violent moments: flash floods that wash out roads and inflict damage downstream, high winds that flatten whole hillsides in minutes, wildfires that strip the woods in an instant or smolder all winter long. A work of quiet power, Rhythms of Change in Rocky Mountain National Park traces Wohls year-long journey, deftly guiding us through the changing seasons of one of Americas most awe-inspiring natural places in all its curiosity and wonderand in its exposure to the larger forces inexorably altering the natural world.

Designed for readers interested in natural and environmental history and specifically the natural history of Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado. This book draws on a wide array of scientific research to tell stories such as how streams provide energy to the adjacent forest, and how a network of fungi keeps forests healthy.

Explores the confluence of human and environmental change on ten of the great rivers of the world. Ranging from the Yellow River in China to Central Europe's Danube, this book shows us how pollution, such as in the Ganges and in the Ob of Siberia, has affected biodiversity in the water.

Sweeps across dramatic and varied terrains - volcanoes and glaciers, billabongs and canyons, prairies and rain forests - to explore how humans have made sense of our planet's marvelous landscapes. This book investigates how we live with the great shaping forces of nature - from fire to changing climates and the intricacies of adaptation.

Saving the Dammed follows the course of the seasons throughout one representative year at a beaver meadow in Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado. The seasonal changes provide a backdrop against which to explore how beavers change river valleys and how the decline in beaver populations has altered river ecosystems.

In this context, water resources refers to ecosystem services including water supply, water quality, flood control, erosion control, and riverine biota (e.g., freshwater fisheries).