An examination of nature's extraordinary biological diversity and the human activities that threaten it. Life on Earth: An Encyclopedia of Biodiversity, Ecology, and Evolution tackles the critical issue for humanity in the 21st century—our ever more menacing impact on the environment. This two-volume, illustrated set, edited by American Museum of Natural History curator Niles Eldredge, begins with biodiversity, the complex planetary web of life that has emerged through three billion years of evolution. How does it work? And why is its continued health critical to the planet and to ourselves? More than 50 top scholars examine every form of life from amoebae to elephants, from plankton to whales. But Life on Earth is more than a catalog of species. An A–Z survey explores the myriad ways humanity is diminishing that biodiversity, from industrialization to natural habitat destruction, from overpopulation in the developing world to an unsustainable consumer lifestyle in the West. Life on Earth is the essential reference work for anyone curious about our planet's extraordinary diversity of life and the unprecedented threats it faces.