Invasive Aliens: The Plants and Animals From Over There That Are Over Here

The subtitle of Invasive Aliens by English author and naturalist Dan Eatherley does say The Plants and Animals From Over There That are Over Here meaning the British Isles, but it is in fact global in reach. We are all one planet Earth with one constant and that is movement. As humanity arrived in Britain so did seeds from elsewhere. A plant native the Middle East, spelt, was found at a Neolithic site in Devon and even more amazing, today’s entire global cattle head (1.5 billion cows) is believed to derive in part from ancient stock from that region! The process has clearly speeded up with modern travel and global markets. The problem of defining invasive species is well sussed out as Eatherley highlights the good that can come from so called non-native species, as well as the problematic ones. A complex problem, as where they are matters as much as what they are. Hedgehogs beloved and protected in England, when brought to the Scottish Hebrides to vanquish garden pests reproduced prodigiously and took to eating farm and wild fowl and Mrs.Tiggy-Winkle decimates their shoreline birds! He is a good story-teller as well as a scientist in fascinating tales of the many intervention disasters tempered by the successes where the interconnectedness of an environment is carefully studied and balance is found in the United States and elsewhere. There is a world wide awareness that climate change now also has to factored in. His mastery of the global natural world is impressive and his love of animals especially shines through. Sharyn Finnegan Professor, Parsons School of Design, NY