Rewilding: The Radical New Science of Ecological Recovery: 14 (Hot Science)

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Five Years ago, Isabella Tree's phenomenal book Wilding started a national conversation about restoring our flat-lining landscape. The Book of Wilding, co-authored with her husband Charlie Burrell, takes that conversation to the next level. It is both brilliantly readable and incredibly hard-working, offering all of us the opportunity to get involved. Let's do it!

Rewilding certainly has a lot to offer and will become more mainstream over the years and decades ahead, particularly given the threat brought by climate change. I simply love the title of this book. It proposes that the situation facing our planet in environmental terms is so dire it can only be solved by dedicating half the earth’s surface to nature. It’s bold, it’s prescient and it hammers the message home: the biosphere does not belong to us, and if we ignore it, we will eventually, inevitably, become the perpetrators of our own extinction. I particularly appreciate his rebuttal of the ‘anthropocenists’ – those who believe we can solve our ecological crisis by high technology alone, that we can invent our way out of this mess. Wilson is a giant amongst biologists and understands biodiversity – and our impact upon it – like no other. So his words carry great traction. He is also a wonderful writer and one of those rare scientists who can communicate his inestimable knowledge with clarity and humility to the rest of us. I hope, more than anything, that the idea of ‘half earth’ is with us to stay. Roy Dennis is one of conservation’s leading lights. He recently made headlines for reintroducing white-tailed eagles to the Isle of Wight, but this achievement was merely the latest in a lifetime of successful reintroductions. The return of lost species is a key element of rewilding and Restoring the Wild is a reminder that conservationists have been doing it for decades.

Taking a more concise approach to rewilding, and acting as a sort of ‘primer’ for those new to the concepts, this is nevertheless a surprisingly good read. The highly-experienced authors cover a lot of interesting topics, including the potential of using ancient DNA to recreate extinct species, and even dry subjects are livened up with colourful stories of people and places. They go into so detail about the sorts of animals that are needed to bring about lasting and significant change to the ecosystems. It turns out that as good as apex predators are altering the dynamic, the best animals for changing ecosystems are large herbivores. In Europe we used to have large cattle breed called aurochs, these are now extinct but there is a scheme to selectively breeding older species of cattle to recreate this ancient species. The result of this is the Taurus, these have been bred with large horns, small udders and longer legs. It is intended that these will become the wild bovine to populate the rewilded areas in years to come.

We Are the Ark– Pioneer gardening rewilder, Mary Reynolds brings her warm and enigmatic style of rewilding to a wider audience in this captivating illustrated edition. Her thoughts align closely with my own on rewilding gardens, so I look forward to reading this one. There’s no shortage of opinion in this book, but it’s always supported by facts and figures, and Ben is more inclusive in his suggestions for farming reform than other rewilders. The book can be poetic at times and some may struggle with the dense content – for those, I strongly recommend the Audible version, which is well-performed, and perhaps my favourite audiobook of them all! These 'self-willed' areas will develop in ways that cannot always be predicted, and they may not conform to our traditional ideas of wildlife habitats, but they will form a robust and rich ecology which will be strong enough to withstand future climate changes and species shifts. Rewilding, says David Woodfall, is about how people “engage with their environment through the natural world.” There’s truth in that, though it will take more than engagement to reverse wildlife declines. There are counter-arguments, of course. Thoughtless rewilding could result in less wildlife, not more (not all plants and insects live in woods). But this challenging, well-written book should stimulate not only ‘wild’ thinking but also the discovery of the wild within ourselves.For anyone unfamiliar with rewilding science, Rebirding is a great place to start, as the author gives a great outline of the key literature. There’s obviously a focus on birds, given the title, but it’s tied in to the effects of wider restoration – there are almost no birds without insects, as he points out, and no insects without the plants and habitats they need to survive. The narrator of the audiobook has a beautiful Scottish brogue, which had me talking quietly to myself while walking around listening to it, regularly trying to mimic the ways he pronounces familiar words such as "book" (the "oo" is more like the sound from saying "boo" or "dew") or anything containing a soft "e," which made me realize how much more phonetic and natural the Scottish way sounds than the way I'm used to speaking. My first introduction to rewilding was through Isabella Tree’s book Wilding, which chronicled the experiences of Isabella and her husband, Charles Burrell, as they sought an alternative to the failing intensive farming of their familial estate at Knepp in Sussex. Wilding goes deeply into the experiment at Knepp and the results that they have observed, whereas Rewilding is a broader discussion of the science and developments around the world.

In the UK and Europe, rewilding typically involves the restoration of former agricultural land, sometimes via species reintroductions, sometimes not. Elsewhere, rewilding revitalises wilderness areas, many of which are protected-yet-degraded, and hinges on the reintroduction of locally extinct keystone species. Here, there are stories of efforts to restore the Marches Mosses in Shropshire and return red squirrels to North Wales. Pioneering initiatives both. Ironically, perhaps, the book serves to highlight the shortcomings of rewilding. As the chapter on the South Downs says, “The rewilding dichotomy, to intervene or not?” In the nature-ravaged British Isles, sometimes the only way to conserve rare species is to manage for them, not let nature take its course. Of the few books I have read about this topic aimed at the general public, this one is hands down the best yet. The author provided just the right amount of detail on the key ideas and concepts behind rewilding without being overly technical. Instead, it was engaging, truly inspiring and motivational for me, and I am confident readers will be converted after going through it. How can one not be excited about re-engaging with nature and doing something proactive to reverse the damage done? Do you see lessons in this for relatively small areas in Europe such as Knepp? After all, the North American beaver and the Eurasian beaver are different species, and England is a lot smaller than British Columbia, and has different topography, climate and vegetation. Rewilding is possibly the most important and empowering revolution to have evolved out of the conservation movement in the last hundred years. This book shares the knowledge and wisdom of that movement that we all need to better understand how we can all play our part in helping nature restore the planet

As an introductory text to potential students and practitioners of rewilding, this is a 5-star book. As a pop science book (which I assume is the intention, given the publisher's blurb of 'the first popular book on...'), it's a 4-star one (maybe even 3.5). For any young people anxious about the future of our planet, this is a strong and positive reminder of all the wonderful work being done to restore the natural world. I think it is important to note that I do have experience when it comes to this topic area and have somewhat of a basis of knowledge that helped me to consume this book fully. I therefor would say that this may not be the best starting point if you are looking to research into rewilding as a topic, as whilst it is comprehensive it can be overwhelming and complex at some points. Jake is very much a bloke’s bloke. He’s the kind of guy you might meet down the pub on a Saturday night chewing over what that stupid politician did now, or talking incessantly about the weather. A gamekeeper for many years, after a short, successful stint in the London club scene, he’s not someone you would expect to be at the forefront of rewilding. I met him at an event and he was exactly how I expected – honest, enthusiastic and raw. That’s what makes this book so bloody brilliant – it’s relatable.