The atlas of the living world

This atlas reveals the ever-changing patterns of life on Earth.

It explains where plants and animals live, and why they exist where they do.

On a global scale, the atlas charts the physical forces that have shaped the Earth, and the biological processes that have determined the life of the planet.There are stories of moving continents and dying dinosaurs, epics of how the Ice Ages transformed whole fauna, and tales of how new islands have been formed and populated.

The environment is brought into sharp focus through its many and varied habitats.From tropical and temperate forest, through savanna and scrub, ocean, shore and islands, deserts and tundra - each has its own unique identity created by the living things that flourish within its boundaries.

Comprising each habitat are the niches where creatures are engaged in the daily round of living, where resources must be shared, mates found and young reared.

But the living planet is not static. The arrival of humans has also effected great changes to the living environment, many of them documented, explained and evaluated here.Philip Whitfield is the author of "The Atlas of the Living World".