The World Beneath Our Feet: A Guide to Life in the Soil.JAMES B. NARDI NARDI National Agricultural Research and Development Institute (Jamaica) Whether you walk on pavement or dirt each day, chances are you give little thought to the living world beneath your feet. Just one acre of fertile fer·tile adj. 1. Capable of conceiving and bearing young. 2. Fertilized. Used of an ovum. ground can support about 8 million earthworms, 400 million potworms, and 80 billion eelworms or nematodes. Nardi profiles more than 100 such creatures that make soil a vibrant yet hidden ecosystem. Each profile features a drawing of the specimen and details the classification, size, role in the food chain, and number of related species among microbes, invertebrates, and vertebrates. These data accompany an overview of each creature's contribution to the ecosystem and an explanation of how the organism interacts with its mineral and organic neighbors. The book also includes a summary of soil ecology Soil ecology The study of the interactions among soil organisms, and between biotic and abiotic aspects of the soil environment. Soil is made up of a multitude of physical, chemical, and biological entities, with many interactions occurring among them. and details how people enrich the soil. OUP OUP (in Northern Ireland) Official Unionist Party , 2003, 223 p., b&w photos/illus., hardcover, $35.00. |
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