The loom of life

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In an era marked by escalating environmental challenges, ecology has evolved from a focus on simple species interactions to a discipline addressing complex global patterns of diversity and richness. The questions are intricate: why do hundreds of plankton species exist in ecosystems with few niches? What explains the high biodiversity of the tropics? How can a single introduced tree species disrupt Hawaii’s rainforests when it coexists with many others in its native South America? This book aims to clarify these complex issues in biodiversity ecology by shifting perspectives from local to global scales. It integrates community ecology with macroecology, revealing unexpected insights from natural history. As the scale broadens, traditional niche concepts seem to fade, giving way to ideas from fractal and complexity theory. However, scientists remain divided on the point at which niches lose relevance. This debate, alongside the quest for unified ecological theories, propels the narrative forward. Ultimately, the conclusion seeks to uncover insights into the globe's future by examining traces from its past.