(Publisher-supplied data) Bridging the gap between ecological concepts and mycology, The Fungal Community: Its Organization and Role in the Ecosystem, Third Edition addresses many of the questions related to the observations, characterizations, and functional attributes of fungal assemblages and their interaction with the environment and other organisms. This edition promotes awareness of the functional methods of classification over taxonomic methods and approaches the concept of fungal communities from an ecological rather than a fungicentric perspective. New material examines issues of global and local biodiversity, the problems associated with exotic species, and the debate concerning diversity and function.