All plants and animals need energy and materials from the environment in order to survive. All kinds of living things or species affect the lives of others. Ecology is the study of the complex relationships between living things and between them and their environment. Humans are the most influential creatures on Earth. Our activities from mining and industry to agriculture and housing take place on such an enormous scale that the environment is being fundamentally changed. Ecologists provide ways of meeting human needs that are sympathetic to the environment like recycling and reforestation. Featuring superb photographs of animals plants and ecosystems Ecology is an exciting introduction to the discoveries that have changed our understanding of the world we live in.