This book aims to assess present ecological knowledge of Morecambe Bay. Members of the Morecambe Bay Study Group prepared their individual contributions in 1980/81 for publication in 1982 by the Natural Environment Research Council in their Series C on British bays and estuaries. Regretably NERC was then affected by serious financial cut-backs and reorganization, which caused repeated delays in the appearance of this publication. When the Series C was terminated in 1986, the unpublished manuscript was returned to us and we immediately sought another publisher. We are grateful to the University of Lancaster's Centre for North-West Regional Studies for accepting it for their Resource Paper Series and we are pleased to acknowledge the substantial financial aid provided towards the cost by NERC and the Estuarine and Brackish-Water Sciences Association.
As about five years had elapsed after the chapters were written initially, authors were given a short period of time towards the end of 1986 in which to up-date their contributions if they so wished. In fact all chapters underwent minor revision except for Chapter 9, Birds and Chapter 11, Phytoplankton . N . A . Robinson edited the original version of the book for publication by NERC, but had ceased to be a member of the Morecambe Bay Study Group by 1986. I therefore have edited this revised version.