Tropical communities are recognized as among the most species-rich and dynamic in the world. Yet, far from existing as dynamic equilibria, large unpredictable disruptive events dominate the longer-term dynamics set against the background of global change. This volume challenges the dynamic equilibrium idea further by arguing for thinking on a timescale of decades to centuries, finding new ways to handle unpredictability and uniqueness, and evaluating species diversity and community change at different scales.