Ponds and Pools - Oases in the Landscape [antikvár]

PrefaceFirst impressions of the varied life in and by the water are often gained while we are still at school. Treating our shoes and clothes with scant respect we explored the water and splashed around it. During the spring and autumn migrations, ornithological note books were soon filled with observations. The joys of discovery, investigations and adventure provided a stimulant for carrying out ever more observations.Nor did the water lose its attraction later on in life. Student excursions to nearby marshy woods regularly took us back to the small, still waters we know from the past. It used to be the custom to let biology students participate in collecting material for their studies so that they became familiar with the habits and way of life of heliozoans, turbellarians, sticklebacks and other water-dwelling organisms in their natural habitats. A serious study of these waters may well go beyond recording the number of species or investigating the lesser aspects of all the problems of the complex network of aquatic ecology. It will embrace topical questions about the conservation of nature and the protection of the environment as well as such basic features as the water's suitability for holidays and leisure.The idea of writing this book was born out of the worldwide problem of pollution of the waters and, particularly, the threatened extinction of the smaller bodies of still waters in many European countries. The book is meant to be seen as a contribution for the protection of the environment, and it also pays tribute to the variety and beauty of the waters' fauna and flora. The subject covers a wide field, and there are so many different points to be discussed (incidentally no claim is made on their completeness) that there was a constant danger of going beyond the subject matter or, perhaps, even losing sight of it over too many details.It was impossible to portray more than a small proportion of the innumerable species of aquatic organisms. However, the species mentioned have been carefully selected to show the great variety of forms living in stretches of water. Some examples have been chosen arbitrarily and are interchangeable with others. No doubt, the reader will find a number of "old friends" among the species of plants and animals described although he may have forgotten some of their habits.The problems of limnology, aquatic ecology, nature conservation and the protection of the environment make demands which do not stop at national borders, facts clearly demonstrated by results. Any realistic control of the waters not only embraces the extension of dams, storage basins and reservoirs needed, but also lists measures designed to serve more vigorous protection as well as the maintenance and improvement of all natural reservoirs and stretches of water. Natural accumulations of water and regulators in the water economy of the landscape are described here as wetlands. Bearing in mind the inter-k