Mediterranean Ecosystems

Richard Joffre, Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionelle et Evolutive, CNRS, Montpellier, France
Serge Rambal, Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionelle et Evolutive, CNRS, Montpellier, France

Published online: October 2001

DOI: 10.1038/npg.els.0003196

Mediterranean regions are defined by their unique climate, which is characterized by a hot drought period in summer and cool wet period in winter. They partly cover the Mediterranean Basin, California, southwestern and southern Australia, central Chile and southern Africa. Mediterranean-type ecosystems present strong similarities concerning vegetation types and functioning, as well as land-use patterns and general appearance of the landscape.

Keywords: Mediterranean ecosystems; element cycles; water budget; fires; human influence

Figure 1. Map of the five regions with Mediterranean-type climate (red). For the Mediterranean Basin, the yellow area corresponds to the Mediterranean–steppe domain (mean annual rainfall between 100 and 400 mm) according to Le Houérou, 1997.
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 References
    book Arroyo MTK, Zedler MH and Fox MD (eds) (1994) Ecology and Biogeography of Mediterranean Ecosystems in Chile, California, and Australia, Ecological Studies 108. Berlin: Springer-Verlag.
    book Davis GW and Richardson DM (eds) (1995) Mediterranean-type Ecosystems. The Function of Biodiversity, Ecological Studies 109. Berlin: Springer-Verlag.
    book Di Castri F and Mooney HA (eds) (1973) Mediterranean-type Ecosystems, Ecological Studies 7. Berlin: Springer-Verlag.
    book Di Castri F, Goodall DW and Specht RL (eds) (1981) Ecosystems of the World 11. Mediterranean-type Shrublands. Amsterdam: Elsevier.
    book Joffre R, Rambal S and Damesin C (1999) "Functional attributes in Mediterranean-type ecosystems". In: Pugnaire FI and Valladares F (eds) Handbook of Functional Plant Ecology, pp. 347–380. New York: Marcel Dekker.
    book Keeley SC (ed.) (1989) The California Chaparral: Paradigms Reexamined, Science Series 34. Los Angeles, CA: Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County.
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 Further Reading
    book Blondel J and Aronson J (1999) Biology and Wildlife of the Mediterranean Region. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
    book Dallman PR (1998) Plant Life in the World's Mediterranean Climates. Berkely, CA: UC Press.
    book Groves R and Di Castri F (1991) Biogeography of Mediterranean Invasions. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
    Joffre R, Rambal S and Ratte JP (1999) The dehesa system of southern Spain and Portugal as a natural ecosystem mimic. Agroforestry Systems 45: 57–79.
    book Le Houérou HN (1997) "Biogeography of the arid steppeland North of the Sahara". In: Barakat HN and Hegazy AK (eds) Reviews in Ecology: Desert Conservation and Development, pp. 207–228. Cairo: Metropole.
    book Rodà F, Retana J, Gracia CA and Bellot J (eds) Ecology of Mediterranean Evergreen Oak Forests, Ecological Studies 137. Berlin: Springer-Verlag.

Related Sub-Topics:

Biogeography and Macroecology | Biomes and Ecosystems
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Article Title: Mediterranean Ecosystems
 
How to Cite close
Joffre, Richard, and Rambal, Serge(Oct 2001) Mediterranean Ecosystems. In: eLS. John Wiley & Sons Ltd, Chichester. http://www.els.net [doi: 10.1038/npg.els.0003196]