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This book is the third in aseries of publications devoted to the biogeographieal and ecological research in the Southern Hemisphere, published in the "e;Monographiae Biologicae"e;. After dealing with Australia (vol. VIII) and Southern Africa (Vol. XIV) it was thought essential to include Antarctiea in this series. Ever since the expedition of the "e;Belgiea"e; made the first suc- cessful wintering within the antarctie circle in 1898 and brought back a very rieh harvest of scientific data, Belgium kept a vivid interest in Antarctiea and took an active part in the modern and international exploration of this vast continent. As part of their programs for the International Geophysieal Year (I. G. Y. ) twelve nations established permanent or semi-permanent bases on the Antarctie Continent or on subantarctie islands. Thus a new era of vast and free international scientific collaboration in the Antarctie was opened and it culminated in the formulation and the signing of the Antarctic Treaty (Washington 1959). It was recognized and accepted that "e;Antarctiea"e; shall be used for peaceful purposes only and "e;Freedom of scientific investigation in Antarctiea and coopera- tion toward that end, as applied during the I. G. Y. , shall continue . . "e; In order to organize this collaboration e. g. by full exchange of programs and resuIts a "e;Special Committee on Antarctie Research"e; (S. C. A. R. ) was founded in 1957.

Lake Titicaca, because of its area and volume and its situation at high attitude within the tropics, is a unique hydrological site in the world. It should be noted that it stands at the transition point between two very distinct geographical regions: the desert fringe of the Pacific coast to the west and the great Amazonian forest extending to the Atlantic coast to the east. Many scientists have been attracted to the lake in the past because of its unusual limnological features. In this book the editors have compiled an exhaustive review of current knowledge from the existing literature and from the results of more recent observations. It is certain that this book will become the essential reference work for scientists wanting to make progress in revealing the lake's secrets. It can be stated unequivocally that this work constitutes a complete review of the present state of knowledge on Lake Titicaca and that it provides the latest results of research on this habitat.

When the late Professor Joachim Illies suggested in 1980 that I edit a volume of the Monographiae Biologicae on Sri Lanka, I was glad to accept the challenge. Although I had spent only six years of my research and teaching career in Sri Lanka, I had made personal contact or corresponded with many scientists who had worked in, still work in, or who have studied material from Sri Lanka. The present domicile of the authors of the chapters in this volume shows the wide geographic spread of interest in Sri Lanka, and indicates also the dispersion of Sri Lankan scientists like myself. Sri Lanka has had a relatively long history of indigenous scientific research in the natural sciences. From the early work of Kelaart (1852, Prodromous Fauna Zeylanicae, Ceylon Govt. Press, 250 pp.) to the present time, there has been a more or less sustained research effort in the natural sciences. The Colombo Museum, which celebrated its centenary only a few years ago, and the world famous Peradeniya Botanical Gardens, served as repositories and bases for continued research on the fauna and flora. There are a number of land marks in these studies.

In 1963 the director general of the 'Office de la Recherche Scientifique et Technique Outre-Mer' (ORSTOM) asked me to form a well structured team of hydrobiologists based at Fort-Lamy (now N'Djamena) where a laboratory could be built as a branch of the already existing ORSTOM Center. The International Biological Program, IBP, had at this time recommended an integrated study of ecosystems selected in proportion to their representation of a particular zone or ecological conditions. I took this opportunity to propose Lake Chad as the model of a tropicallake in a semi-arid c1imate as part of the activity of the section Productivity of freshwater communities (PF). With the efficient help ofDr B. Dussart a research program was established involving the establishment of a permanent team of ten researchers in Chad. Apart from myself, ORSTOM only had three hydrobiologists: Mr R. Gras, Mr G. Loubens and Mr A. Iltis. These valuable researchers who had been working for the 'Centre Technique et Forestier Tropical' and had acquired considerable experience in African freshwaters, unhesitatingly accepted to join me at Fort-Lamy. It was necessary to enlarge this team with so me young and enthusiastic collaborators, namely, Mr C. Leveque, Mr C. Dejoux, Miss S. Duwat, Mr L. Lauzanne and Mr. J. R. Durand, later joined by Mr J. P. Carmouze and Mr J. Lemoalle.

The valley of the River Wye has long been famed for its natural beauty and the salmon stocks which the river supports. As one of the largest substantially unpol­ luted rivers in Southern Britain, the Wye, which rises in Wales and flows into England, is now of considerable significance in the strategy for conservation of freshwater habitats in the United Kingdom and is designated as a Site of Special Scientific 1 nterest by the Nature Conservancy Council (N. C. C. ). However, des pi te this scientific importance, published studies of the aquatic ecology of the river during the earlier decades of this century were principally restricted to the excellent series of articles and books on the salmon written by J. A. Hutton during the period 1912-47 and scattered records of the plants of the river banks. During this period the Fishery Board and successive organisations responsible for fisheries, also published reports describing general water quality and salmon catch statistics. In 1970 a survey was undertaken by the N. C. C. which provided the basis for the decision to give it special protected status. The Wye has been exploited as a major water source for Birmingham, through the development of reservoirs in the Elan Valley, since 1904. Further development of the capacity of the Elan catchment occurred in 1952 with the completion of the Claerwen Reservoir.

One of the major river systems of our country, the Purari River, finds its outlet to the sea in the Gulf of Papua on the southern coast of Papua New Guinea. All highlands provinces contribute to this mighty river: the Erave of the Southern Highlands Province joins with the Kaugel and Wahgi Rivers (Western High­ lands), the Tua River (Simbu), and Asaro and Aure Rivers of the Eastern High­ lands Province to make the Purari the third largest river in P. N. G. Unlike its rivals, the Fly and the Sepik, the distance between its escape from the mountains and its entrance to the sea is short. After winding its way mostly through deep gorges flanked by high mountains, the river leaves the foothills of the southern slopes of the central cordillera barely eighty kilometers from the sea. The energy potential of such a river is enormous. Could the waters be utilised in any way to the advantage of the nation? Twelve years ago the Electricity Com­ mission of Papua New Guinea proposed an answer to this question: the building of a dam across the river in the Wabo area of the Gulf Province. The generation of vast quantities of hydro-electric power could be fed into a national distribu­ tion grid and heavy industries could be established in the Gulf Province and other suitable localities to benefit from this power.

A large part of this book is dedicated to the geology of the Pityusic Archipelago, followed by contributions on climate and geography. Funguses, mosses and leeks are the subjects of taxonomical botany, and a further paper deals with the vegetation of the islands. Another large part of this book is concerned with zoology: faunal lists on fleas, bees, wasps, ants, butterflies, beetles, snails, amphibians and reptiles, birds and mammals, the latter with their epi- and endofaunas as well as their subfossil remains are presented in 13 different papers. Three of them deal with the special problems of isolation and evolution of new races on rocks and small islets: tenebrionid beetles, lizards and terrestrial snails. Man, as an important factor in the Pityusic Islands, is dealt with in six contributions: prehistory, which means pre-Phoenician and which is treated for the first time, folk architecture, the 'endemic' dialect of the Catalonian language, exploitation of some natural resources and finally the problems of inbreeding and related matters on Formentera. The book closes with an outlook on the present state of the Pityusic nature and tries to show ways of conserving all important parts of the archipelago, so that 'our' two islands may preserve some of their typical vegetation, plants and animals and, thus, of their character.

High altitude research is comparatively a recent development. With the notable exceptions of entomology, botany and perhaps some aspects of human acclimatization, our knowledge of high altitude environment is extremely scanty. There is at present no comprehensive handbook on the general ecology of highlands. This book aims at providing such a text for the use of the general scientist, engineer, biologist and university students. It summarizes and critically reviews current developments and focusses atten­ tion on urgent problems of highland ecology needing future studies. This book has grown out of our explorations and experiences in the highlands of Asia and South America. The results of explorations of the high altitude plants and insects on the Himalaya, Alai-Pamirs, Central Tien Shan and Caucasus by one of us (MSM), discussed in earlier publications, are reviewed here in the light of recent advances. Many years' experience of teaching and research in the University of Sucre (3400 m) and studies at Potosi (4000 m), La Paz and Chacaltaya (5000 m) in Bolivia by the second author (LEG) cover problems in physical chemistry, meteorology, engineer­ ing and other physical aspects of highland environments.

'And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. ' Genesis 1:6 Lake McIlwaine is a man-made lake. It was formed in 1952 by the Hunyani­ poort Dam and is situated on the Hunyani River some 37 km southwest of Salisbury* in the Republic of Zimbabwe**. It is a lake of many aspects: being a popular recreational site, the City's primary water supply reservoir (and the fourth largest impoundment in Zimbabwe), a source of irrigation water to downstream farms, an important fishery, and, until the 1970s, the receptacle of Salisbury's sewage effluent. It is, in short, typical of so many 'urban' lakes in Africa and throughout the world. Lake McIlwaine is also unique, to my knowledge: being amongst the first of the major man-made lakes on the continent to suffer from what is known as cultural eutrophication, and the first to be r:ehabilitated to a mesotrophic state through a rational programme of lake management. This volume synthesizes this process of eutrophication and recovery in terms of the geology and geography (Chapter 2), physics (Chapter 3), chemistry (Chapter 4) and biology (Chapter 5) of the lake, and, whilst discussion of the trophic relationships between these components is beyond the scope of this monograph, discusses its utilisation, conservation and management (Chapter 6). * Subsequent to writing, the name of the Zimbabwean capital was changed to Harare on 18 April 1982. - Ed.

H. Laffler Interest aroused in the past by Neusiedlersee, located in what was earlier the western part of Hungary, was mainly due to the enormous fluctuations in water level and the consequent threat to the livelihood of the local popula­ tion, who lived chiefly from stock-farming. Practically no tourism touched the area until 1920, about a century later than Schubert's visit to the Salzkam­ mergut lake district, the traditional resort area in Upper Austria. Probably because of its small popularity there is almost no documentation in the form of engravings or paintings. One of the exceptions is an oil painting by Schnorr-Carolsfeld, from about 1820. It is obvious that there was no Phragmites at the time he painted the view near Neusiedl. When the shallow Neusiedlersee was discovered by tourists it began to attract scientific interest, although some earlier work by mineralogists, geographers and hydrographers does exist. But it was only after the Second World War that this interest could be intensified, the lake now being an alkaline, turbid body of water confined by the vast areas of Phragmites which had come into existence after the lake last dried out in 1868. Scientific work gained considerable impetus from international activities such as the Interna­ tional Biological Programme, International Hydrological Decade, and Man and Biosphere, the results of which will be included in this volume. But in spite of all such efforts Neusiedlersee will undoubtedly remain, in many respects, a mystery.

Research was carried out in Udorn Thani beginning in September, 1975, in order to elucidate the effects of seasonal changes on the aquatic community of a rice field. Physical and chemical changes that occur during the course of a year were recorded and related to the structure and activity of the aquatic biological com­ munity. A rice field was selected that is typical of the countless habitats of this kind that are found in Northeastern Thailand (Fig. 1). For a variety of reasons these habitats and their location are of special interest (Fig. 2). Figure 1. The rice field investigated, north of the province capital, Udorn Thani, Thailand. Northeastern Thailand and a small part of Laos comprise the middle Mekong Valley. Its geographic situation and climatic conditions set this area apart as a dis­ tinct sub-region of Southeast Asia. It is unfortunate that sufficient biological research has not yet been carried out to delimit the SUb-regions according to their fauna and flora and to fully describe the various ecosystems that occur in them. The middle Mekong Valley is one of the most neglected areas of the region, and there is no comprehensive literature on its biota. Very little ecological information is available on many of the species that abound there.

The Evolution of Desert Adaptations. 190 A Comparison of Behavior Patterns. . 196 A Comparison of Behavior Patterns in: Meriones, Gerbillus and Perognathus . . . . . 210 Spacing and Communication 217 Acknowledgements 221 References . . . . . . . . 221 XI. Activity Patterns ofa Desert Rodent by N. R. FRENCH 225 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225 Methods. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226 The Microdosimeter and the Index of Activity. 227 Variation in Activity. . . . . . . . . . . . 229 Climatological Variables and Animal Activity . 229 Analysis . 232 Discussion 237 Summary 238 References 239 XII. Patterns of Food, Space and Diversity by M. L. ROSENZWEIG, BARBARA SMIGEL & A. KRAFT. 241 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . 241 Resource Allocation by Seed Selection 242 Habitat Selection in Space . . . . . 251 The Pattern of Local Species Diversity 260 Acknowledgements 266 References . . . . . . . . . . . . 266 XIII. Desert Coloration in Rodents by D. L. HARRISON. 269 Introduction . . . 269 Desert Coloration . 269 Acknowledgements 275 References . . . . 275 XIV. The Biology of so:me Desert-Dwelling Ground Squ- rels by A. C. HA WBECKER . 277 Introduction . 277 Reproduction. . . . . . 279 Food Habits . . . . . . 288 Population Characteristics 294 Habitat Factors . 297 References . . . . . . . 302 IX xv. Reproductive Biology of North ADlerican Desert Rodents by H. D. SMITH & C. D. JORGENSEN. 305 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . 305 Reproductive Biology: Species Summaries. . . 308 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 328 XVI. Rodent Faunas and EnvironDlental Changes in the Pleistocene of Israel by E. TCHERNOV . . . . . . . 331 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 331 The Main Biogeographical Changes in the Near-East since the Miocene . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 331 The Composition of the Rodents Faunas in the Pleistocene of Israel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 336 The Main Ecological Changes in the Quarternary of Israel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Fauna and flora oflakes are an integrative result of regional past history and present environmental factors. In the Lake Kinneret area where Prehistoric Man witnessed the last tectonic readj ustments of the Rift Valley, geological events do not belong only to the remote past but still strongly affect the lacustrine environment. It is therefore necessary to give a detailed picture of the regional background and limnological features of the lake (Parts I and II) before describing its planktic and benthic com­ munities (Parts III and IV) and the Vertebrate fauna of the lake and its surroundings (Part V). The trophic relationships between communities are beyond the scope of a Monograph and have consequently not been studied in detail but only mentioned occasionally. It is intentional that Man and his penetration into the Kinneret area have been treated on a purely zoological basis. It underlines the fact that Man, as any other living organism, is part of the ecosystem and ruled by its laws and that his activities have an automatic feed back on his environment. However, in contrast with other living organisms, Man is able to 'utilize' the lakes and their watersheds for his benefit if, by appropriate management, he minimizes the damaging influence of his activities. This is the main purpose of the research carried out presently on Lake Kinneret and its watershed and briefly described in Part VI.

Distribution and Range . . . 142 The Tasmanian Trout Fishery 153 Population Dynamics of Tench 163 Conservation Notes 167 Bibliography . . . . . . . . 168 VII. Littoral Biogeography by A. J. DARTNALL 171 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171 The Maugean Marine Province. . . . . . 175 Distribution Patterns of some Tasmanian Marine Animals 178 Conclusions. . . . 190 Acknowledgements 191 Bibliography . . . 191 VIII. The Zoogeography and Evolution of Tasmanian Oligochaeta by B. G. M. JAMIESON. . 195 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . 195 The Australian Region: A World Perspective 198 Earthworms and Continental Drift. . . . . 206 Tasmanian Earthworms - Relationships with the Australian Fauna. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210 Tasmanian Megasco1ecid Species and Aspects of their Evolution . 218 Bibliography . . . . . . . . . . . 226 IX. Oniscoidea (Terrestrial Isopoda) by ALISON J. A. GREEN . . . . . . . 229 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . 229 Ecological Distribution. . . . . . . 229 Comments on Ecological Distribution 235 Geographical Distribution of Species Recorded from T- mania. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237 Geographical Distribution of Genera Recorded from T- mama. . . . . . 239 Acknowledgements 247 Bibliography . . . 247 X. The Amphibia of Tasmania by M. J. LITTLEJOHN and A. A. MARTIN 251 Introduction 251 Taxonomy. 251 Distribution 265 Biology . . 268 Zoogeography . . 272 Evolution . . . . 277 Acknowledgements 282 Bibliography . . . 282 Key 1: Key to Frogs (Adults) . 286 Key 2: Key to Male Mating Calls . 287 Key 3: Key to Eggs. . 288 Key 4: Key to Tadpoles . . . . . 289 XI. Biogeography and Ecology of the Reptiles of Tasmania and the Bass Strait Area by P. A. RAWLINSON. 291 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291 Cainozoic Climates and Pleistocene Sea Levels. 292 Present Climate. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 297 Ecological Requirements of Reptiles. . . . . 299 The Reptile Fauna of Tasmania and the Bass Strait Area - Composition, Ecology and Distribution. . . .

Africa is not known as one of the more densely populated continents. Yet, the damaging marks of man's activities may be seen there dramatically. Many of Africa's ecological zones are fragile. Large scale soil erosion, resul­ tant cycles of drought and flash floods, downgrading of fauna and flora are well-known to many in general ways, as well as from detailed examination of a few areas. But large parts of Africa remain inaccessible. Very few students of Africa have the opportunity - or the tenacity - to travel over these vast areas or into the hidden corners that lie beyond the well-known routes of Africa. As FAO's Regional Wildlife and National Parks Officer for Africa, ANTooN DE Vos had the opportunity of travelling widely and studying and reporting on the acceleration of man-made changes in much of the continent. As an experienced practitioner of an important and difficult science, ecology, he has made a significant professional contribution with this book. It is our hope that those who read it will be encouraged to carryon the important work and the concern with this subject to which Dr. DE Vos has devoted so much of his knowledge, energy and personal commitments.

In 1964 the Lake Kariba Fisheries Research Institute (LKFRI) was created in Kariba, Rhodesia as a United Nations Development Program Project, and executed by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAD) in cooperation with the Governments of Rhodesia and Zambia. Dr. A. G. COCHE took charge of the Limnological Section and conducted research on the entire lake between January 1965 and January 1966. In 1966 the Central Fisheries Research Institute (CFRI) was created in Chilanga, Zambia by the Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and National Parks. It was also supported by a UNDP Project executed by FAD. Between 1967 and 1971 Dr. E. K. BALON & Dr. A. G. COCHE were in charge of the Sections of Ichthyobiology and of Limnology respectively. The results of their FAD research activities on Lake Kariba are united in this volume. In the first part A. G. COCHE presents a limnological synthesis. In the second part E. K. BALON studies in detail the fish production and succession. The views expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily coincide with those of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

The New Zealand insect fauna 508 Endemism 513 Relationships . . . . . . . . 516 Shore insects . . . . . . . . 519 Ground-dwelling and soil insects 521 Insects of dead wood and fungi. 525 Cave and ground-water insects 526 Alpine insects . . . . . . . . 529 Moss insects ....... . 531 Insects associated with vertebrates 531 Endoparasitic insects 532 Acknowledgements . 533 References . . . . 533 XIV. The freshwater insects by I. D. McLELLAN. 537 Introduction. . 537 Ephemeroptera 537 Plecoptera 540 Odonata .. 545 546 Megaloptera. Mecoptera . 547 Trichoptera . 547 Chironomidae . 551 Blepharoceridae 552 Simuliidae . . 555 Thaumaleidae . 556 Coleoptera . . 557 Population comparisons 557 References . . . . . . 558 XV. The insects in relation to plants by J. S. DUGDALE 561 Abstract .................. . 561 Introduction. . . . 561 Some characteristics of insect-hostplant associations in New Zealand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 568 . . . Associations involving warm-temperate plant genera ..... 568 Associations involving plant genera not restricted to warm-tem­ perate communities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 570 . . . Differences between North and South Island, and between these and outlying islands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 572 . Differences between New Zealand and elsewhere. . . . . 573 Some characteristic phytophage types in New Zealand 575 Defoliators. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 575 . . XIII Flower, fruit and seed-eating insects 576 Gallmakers 578 Miners 578 Live stem borers and shoot apex destroyers 579 New Zealand phytophages as botanists 584 The adventive flora and fauna. 584 Pollinators 586 References 587 XVI. Adaptation and change in Maori culture by R. C.

This book is the third in aseries of publications devoted to the biogeographieal and ecological research in the Southern Hemisphere, published in the "Monographiae Biologicae". After dealing with Australia (vol. VIII) and Southern Africa (Vol. XIV) it was thought essential to include Antarctiea in this series. Ever since the expedition of the "Belgiea" made the first suc­ cessful wintering within the antarctie circle in 1898 and brought back a very rieh harvest of scientific data, Belgium kept a vivid interest in Antarctiea and took an active part in the modern and international exploration of this vast continent. As part of their programs for the International Geophysieal Year (I. G. Y. ) twelve nations established permanent or semi-permanent bases on the Antarctie Continent or on subantarctie islands. Thus a new era of vast and free international scientific collaboration in the Antarctie was opened and it culminated in the formulation and the signing of the Antarctic Treaty (Washington 1959). It was recognized and accepted that "Antarctiea" shall be used for peaceful purposes only and "Freedom of scientific investigation in Antarctiea and coopera­ tion toward that end, as applied during the I. G. Y. , shall continue . . " In order to organize this collaboration e. g. by full exchange of programs and resuIts a "Special Committee on Antarctie Research" (S. C. A. R. ) was founded in 1957.

Baikai is the deepest lake on earth and one of the most ancient. The pronounced endemism and specific wealth of its fauna andflora has attracted the keen interest of biologists and biogeographers all over the world. A start on the Baikai studies was made more than 200 years ago, but they have been carried on with the greatest intensity in the last 30 to 40 years, and more than 1,000 scientific works devoted to it have appeared in this period. Hence there is an urgent need for a summary of the main results of more than 200 years' study of one of the most remarkable lakes of our planet, and this the author has endeavoured to provide. A zoologist and hydrobiologist hirnself, he has concentrated on the living world of the lake. The author has for many years worked at Baikai as head of the Biologo-Geographical Institute and the Baikai Biological Station of Irkutsk University. In preparing this book for the press the author has received invaluable assistance from cartographer N.V. TYUMEN­ TSEV, algologists N.L. ANTIPOVAandO. M. KOZHOVA, hydrobiologists G. L. VASILYEVA, G. J. SHNYAGINA, L. J. PROTASOVA and R. A.

In spite of its proximity to Africa (the distance between Cap Saint­ Andre and the African coast is only 300 km. ) Madagascar cannot be considered as adependent part of that continent. The Great Island has been separated from Mrica from at least the middle of the Secondary, and has evolved separately: its flora and fauna have acquired a very pronounced individuality, in spite ofsome affinities with Africa (although they also have affinities with India and the Indian archipelago). No naturallaboratory could lend itselfbetter ifnot to all, at least to the majority, of the absorbing problems offered for study by the history and evolution of plant and animallife in Madagascar. The edirors have tried to ensure that each of these problems is presented by the foremost authority in his particular field. In the first section, the natural environment, the foundation of any biogeographical study, is analysed. Professor R. BATTISTINI, Director of the Laboratoire de Geographie of the Faculte des Lettres et Sciences humaines of Tananarive opens with a description of the relief and the mairi types of landscape found in Madagascar. Professor P. BRENON, who initiated the teaching of geology and founded the Laboratoire de Geologie of the Faculte des Sciences of Tananarive presents the result often years ofresearch on the geology ofMadagascar. The climate, an essential factor, preliminary to any biogeographical study, is examined in detail by G. DONQ. UE, Maitre-Assistant at the Laboratoire de Geo­ graphie. Professor J.

Radiochemical methodology constitutes the most important base for the successful functioning of a PET group in the routine production and development of radiopharmaceuticals. Of the several hundred products which have been labelled with positron emitters during the past two decades about 35 are presently considered to be of major interest. The time for a state-of-the-art review is right, since this field has advanced over the past fifteen years to reach a level where guidelines can now be suggested. Chapters of this book deal with each of the main methodological aspects of the chemistry needed to develop an effective radiopharmaceutical, namely radionuclide production, automation and metabolite analysis. A further chapter on QA/QC is written by a broadly-based expert group and is meant to provide a guideline and a base for future monographs and regulations on major PET radiopharmaceuticals of today. This book will help the increasing numbers of scientists who are now entering the field of PET to appreciate the methodological aspects that are normally addressed by chemists in relation to PET radiopharmaceuticals; it provides many useful practical guidelines and will promote early success in their own endeavours, since these will often necessarily begin by establishing chemical methodology of the kind discussed here.

Understanding the biogeography of Australia requires knowledge of both existing and former environments. The existing environment is discussed elsewhere in the volume but a few salient points should be reiterated. Three-quarters of Australia is either arid or semi-arid and even much of the better-watered fringes has long dry seasons. Vast stretches of ocean separate it from other land masses except in the north where New Guinea and Indonesia form 'stepping stones' to and from Asia. It is also a low continent with over 99% of its area below 1000 m; even the highest summits barely exceed 2000 m. Since most of the surface has undergone prolonged weath­ ering, poor soils are the rule. The impact of man on the landscape has been less than in more densely settled continents. Aboriginal man has inhabited the continent for 40,000 years or more but agriculture and stock rearing have operated for less than two centuries and the present rural population is sparse. Large parts of the dry interior are not occupied although they are affected to some extent by introduced feral animals.