Proceedings of a conference on Tropical Forests: Botanical Dynamics, Speciation and Diversity held at the University of Aarhus, Denmark, August 8*ba10, 1988.The increasing rate of destruction of the world’s tropical forests gives grave cause for concern on several counts. In conservative terms, species are being lost at an incredible rate, many before they have even been described. In scientific terms, habitats, communities, and unique systems are lost before they can be studied and used to broaden our understanding of ecological processes in general.The meeting on which this book is based aimed to address two basic needs: to describe some of the marvellous biological treasures of tropical forests and to learn what they can tellus about processes in ecology, and to alert us all once again to the disaster which is overtaking this rich and varied environment.