Short description:

"Sterner and Elser provide the definitive text on ecological stoichiometry. This is a fundamental advance in unifying ecology across levels of organization."--Simon A. Levin, Princeton University

"Ecological Stoichiometry is a monumental undertaking without ecological precedent. Sterner and Elser offer a majestic and novel synthesis of a broad and diverse field of study that ranges from chemistry to metabolism to global ecology. These two world-class scientists have singlehandedly created a brand-new subdiscipline, one that will likely spawn new research foci, and have done so in a captivating manner. This precedent-setting treatise will be the 'go-to' reference in this poorly consolidated but relevant field of physiological ecology."----David M. Karl, University of Hawaii

"This is a work of enormous synthetic power that practically defines the field of ecological stoichiometry. It is certainly the most significant contribution to the field. Each chapter follows a logical progression, and the style is informal and very readable."--Donald L. DeAngelis, University of Miami

"A truly outstanding book. Sterner and Elser provide extremely convincing evidence in support of their hypothesis that elemental stoichiometry is a key to many central issues in ecology. The writing style is unusually clear and concise. The book is exceptionally well conceived, has eminently valuable goals, and will definitely serve a strong need in the scientific community."--Val H. Smith, University of Kansas

"This very readable, well-organized book will broaden the purview of food-web and trophodynamic studies and have a similar impact as did ecological energetics decades ago. It offers an opportunity to merge the hitherto separate fields of community ecology and biogeochemistry."--Ulrich Sommer, University of Kiel

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Long description:

All life is chemical. That fact underpins the developing field of ecological stoichiometry, the study of the balance of chemical elements in ecological interactions. This long-awaited book brings this field into its own as a unifying force in ecology and evolution. Synthesizing a wide range of knowledge, Robert Sterner and Jim Elser show how an understanding of the biochemical deployment of elements in organisms from microbes to metazoa provides the key to making sense of both aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems.


After summarizing the chemistry of elements and their relative abundance in Earth's environment, the authors proceed along a line of increasing complexity and scale from molecules to cells, individuals, populations, communities, and ecosystems. The book examines fundamental chemical constraints on ecological phenomena such as competition, herbivory, symbiosis, energy flow in food webs, and organic matter sequestration. In accessible prose and with clear mathematical models, the authors show how ecological stoichiometry can illuminate diverse fields of study, from metabolism to global change.


Set to be a classic in the field, Ecological Stoichiometry is an indispensable resource for researchers, instructors, and students of ecology, evolution, physiology, and biogeochemistry.



From the foreword by Peter Vitousek:
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"[T]his book represents a significant milestone in the history of ecology. . . . Love it or argue with it--and I do both--most ecologists will be influenced by the framework developed in this book. . . . There are points to question here, and many more to test . . . And if we are both lucky and good, this questioning and testing will advance our field beyond the level achieved in this book. I can't wait to get on with it."

"Few, if any, details of stoichiometry seem to have been overlooked by Sterner and Elser, and their book will be a useful reference to me for many years to come. . . . The hundreds of references in the bibliography are worth the price of the book alone."---David W. Schindler, Nature

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