Malaysia is one of the world's most biologically diverse regions, but in recent years vast tracts of its forests have been cleared or degraded, with serious human and environmental consequences. Vanishing Rain Forests explores four closely related themes: first it describes the country's forests and the remarkable abundance and diversity of their flora and fauna; secondly, it outlines the processes and policies by which human activity has altered these forests since the early nineteenth century; thirdly, it examines some of the environmental, biological, and cultural consequences of such changes both past and present; and finally, it looks at what has been done to conserve the region's natural wealth and recommends changes that could put Malaysia on the path to a more sustainable future. Throughout the book, the need for a historical perspective is underscored. Environmentalists, biogeographers, botanists and others will find this monograph a cogent assessment of the challenges currently facing rain forest ecology.