Disturbance Ecology Bibliography

Disturbance ecology pertains to the study of disruptions in the physical environment. These disturbance, such as wild fire, landslides, insect and disease outbreaks, floods, high wind storms, and human activities have far-reaching impacts on natural resource management. This is a wide-ranging field containing elements of geography, vegetation and wildlife sciences, history, climatology, geomorphology, and numerous other fields. This bibliography was compiled by Paul C. Rogers, Director, Western Aspen Alliance at Utah State University. The content favors forest disturbance ecology, though there are many entries from other disciplines. In fact, the interdisciplinary nature of disturbance ecology is one factor which makes this collection somewhat unique. In today’s research and land management environment it is important to quickly find resources related to this topic that may not be found in traditional subject area databases. As land stewards and scientists continue to incorporate ecosystem perspectives into their respective endeavors it will become increasingly important that they link disturbance factors—periodicity, intensity, multiple disturbances, culturally-induced disturbances—in their decision making processes.