Inheritors of the Earth: How Nature Is Thriving in an Age of Extinction. Combining a naturalist's eye for wildlife with an ecologist's wide lens, Chris Thomas forces us to re-examine humanity's relationship with nature, and reminds us that the story of life is the story of change. Unabridged 9 hours, 52 minutes Read Reviews. Taking us on a round-the-world journey to meet the enterprising animals and plants that are thriving in the Anthropocene, from York's ochre-coloured comma butterfly to the hybrid American bison and the scarlet-beaked New Zealand pukeko, Thomas questions why we resist the success of so-called 'invasive species', and why we see human activities as fundamentally unnatural. Thomas overturns this loss-only view of the world's biodiversity, revealing how many animals and plants have benefited from the human-altered planet. Yet what if this gloomy narrative obscures a more hopeful truth? In Inheritors of the Earth, renowned ecologist and environmentalist Chris D.

We have altered our climate, acidified our oceans, and we are in the process of causing the sixth mass extinction. It is accepted wisdom today that human beings have irrevocably damaged the natural world. The Times, Economist and Guardian books of the year 2017. After all, if life can recover from the asteroid that killed off the dinosaurs, might it not be able to survive the onslaughts of a technological ape?Ĭombining a naturalist's eye for wildlife with an ecologist's wide lens, Chris Thomas forces us to re-examine humanity's relationship with nature, and reminds us that the story of life is the story of change.Penguin presents the audiobook edition of Inheritors of the Earth by Chris D. In so doing, he questions our irrational persecution of so-called 'invasive species', and shows us that we should not treat the Earth as a faded masterpiece that we need to restore. From Costa Rican tropical forests to the thoroughly transformed British landscape, nature is coping surprisingly well in the human epoch.Ĭhris Thomas takes us on a gripping round-the-world journey to meet the enterprising creatures that are thriving in the Anthropocene, from York's ochre-coloured comma butterfly to hybrid bison in North America, scarlet-beaked pukekos in New Zealand, and Asian palms forming thickets in the European Alps. Many animals and plants actually benefit from our presence, raising biological diversity in most parts of the world and increasing the rate at which new species are formed, perhaps to the highest level in Earth's history.

Thomas overturns the accepted story, revealing how nature is fighting back. In Inheritors of the Earth, renowned ecologist and environmentalist Chris D. Yet what if this narrative obscures a more hopeful truth? THE TIMES, ECONOMIST AND GUARDIAN BOOKS OF THE YEAR 2017

Chris thomas inheritors of the earth