Ecosystem Science

A major new book overturning our assumptions about how evolution works Earth’s natural history is full of fascinating instances of convergence: phenomena like eyes and wings and tree-climbing lizards that have evolved independently, multiple times. But evolutionary biologists also point...

Wasted is a riveting exploration of the complicated, and often surprising, ways that waste occurs in our businesses, our communities, and our lives “A smart, unconventional book that takes readers far beyond what they think they know about a complex subject.”—Kari Byron, former cast member...

Species Interactions is a clear, engaging introduction to how life holds together. Written for listeners with no prior background, it reveals the everyday logic behind the living world—how species compete for resources, how predators and prey shape each other, and how microbes, plants, and animals form partnerships that make survival possible.

In this “deeply personal and lyrical book” (Publishers Weekly) from the New York Times bestselling author of The Horse, Wendy Williams explores the lives of one of the world’s most resilient creatures—the butterfly—shedding light on the role that they play in our ecosystem and in our...

Our world is changing, the climate is changing. Species that have long existed on our planet are disappearing and resources are becoming scarce. People are slowly realizing that development is not always good. We are exploiting our earth, but we should be looking after it, because we only have this one. Slowly, however, a rethink is taking place and people are trying to undo past mistakes. Attempts are being made to reduce CO₂ emissions, conserve the earth's resources and pay more attention to nature. But once we have become accustomed to a certain standard of living, it is difficult to give it up again or change our habits.

In Monarchs and Milkweed, Anurag Agrawal presents a vivid investigation into how the monarch butterfly has evolved closely alongside the milkweed - a toxic plant named for the sticky white substance emitted when its leaves are damaged - and how this inextricable and intimate relationship has been like an arms race over the millennia, a battle of exploitation and defense between two fascinating species.

By the Wainwright-Conservation-Prize-winning author of Rebirding Spend a year in an orchard, celebrating its imperilled, overlooked abundance of life. England's ancient orchards, collaborations between people and nature, are sources of hope for the future. Protecting them promises a far richer England for the centuries to come, for wildlife and for us.

In Sightlines, Kathleen Jamie reports from the field - from her native Scottish "byways and hills" to the frigid Arctic in 14 enthralling essays. She dissects whatever her gaze falls upon - vistas of cells beneath a hospital microscope, orcas rounding a headland, the aurora borealis lighting up the frozen sea. In so doing, she questions what, exactly, constitutes "nature", and upends the idea that it is always picturesque. Written with precision, subtlety, and wry humor, Sightlines urges the listener: "Keep looking, even when there's nothing much to see."

In this Very Short Introduction, Warwick Vincent outlines the essential features of lake environments and their biology, offering an up-to-date view of lake ecosystems. Vincent traces the origins of lake science (limnology) from the seminal work of Francois Forel on Lake Geneva at the edge of the Swiss Alps, to modern approaches such as environmental sensors, satellite observations, stable isotope analysis, and DNA-based technologies which are used to probe the microbial life support systems that lead from sunlight to fish.

Trees are both amazing and vital. Their intricate, complex processes benefit humanity in so many ways, especially in cities, where populations are on the rise. Why Trees? is a non-fiction book about how to keep our urban trees healthy. It is an engaging, pleasurable audiobook, packed with information about these endangered climate champions.

Permaculture gardening at its best. Permaculture is a holistic approach to living in harmony with nature. When it comes to gardening, it means growing local, fresh, organic produce that supports the environment.

The Colorado Trail in Crisis addresses the sweeping transformation of western forests and wilderness ecosystems affected by climate change. This book is equal parts trail journal and synthesis of natural and human history. Karl Ford uses research on climate impacts to forests, wildlife, hydrology, and more to stress the urgent need for an action plan to reduce greenhouse gases and save forests and watersheds.

Outdoor writer Mike Arnold takes us on an impressionistic journey through Coutada 11, a once again magnificent natural area in Mozambique's Zambeze Delta. Mike leads us from its poached-out days as a source of bush meat for starving villagers and civil war military troops to the arrival in the early '90s of hunting outfitter Mark Haldane and his partners, on their often perilous, sometimes hilarious, travails to take the defiled and uninhabitable place and make it whole again.

Do you think raising chickens is only for farmers with acres of land? In reality: You can enjoy fresh eggs and feathery companions right in your backyard, no matter the size!

For the last three billion years or so, life on Earth was shaped by natural forces. Evolution tended to happen slowly, with species crafted across millennia. Then, a few hundred thousand years ago, along came a bolshie, big-brained, bipedal primate we now call Homo sapiens, and with that, the Earth’s natural history came to an abrupt end. We are now living through the post-natural phase, where humans have become the leading force shaping evolution. This audiobook considers the many ways that we’ve altered the DNA of living things and changed the fate of life on earth.

À l'heure du questionnement sur le retour à la nature et de la prééminence des enjeux écologiques, ce coffret propose pour la première fois un entretien avec le plus grand audio-naturaliste français ; Jean-Claude Roché, mis en perspective avec les extraits sonores de chants d'oiseaux et de biotopes, qu'il a collectés tout au long de sa vie.

For over a quarter century, biologist Mark J. Rauzon has worked in the field of island restoration, traveling throughout the American Insular Pacific to eradicate invasive plants and animals introduced by humans. The region spans from Hawai'i to Samoa to Guam, and their neighbors - small, obscure, tropical islands that are hundreds if not thousands of nautical miles from each other. These little-known US possessions and territories include various islands and atolls: Jarvis, Howland, Baker, the Northern Marianas, Wake, Palmyra, Johnston, and Rose Atoll, among others.

Britain is defined by the dynamic, mysterious and fragile coastline that surrounds it. In this moving and beautiful account, Roger Morgan-Grenville tells the story of his marathon journey around that coast, explains some of the key challenges and opportunities he found and celebrates the people who are trying to protect and enhance it.

Formerly titled Slaughter the Animals, Poison the Earth. All new foreword by New York Times Bestselling author Steve Jackson. It is the extermination of the coyote—a shrewd, wily, solitary scavenger—that serves as the central theme of Jack Olsen's ragingly indignant, beautifully written and deeply moving book, perhaps the most gripping and important work of its kind since the publication of Rachel Carson's Silent Spring.

Delve deeper into the intricate workings of Earth's land-based ecosystems with Dynamics of Terrestrial Ecosystems, the second installment in The Earth's Web series. This volume unravels the complex interactions and processes that shape the balance of life on land, from the water and nutrient cycles to the competition and cooperation that define species relationships.