Invasive Aliens: The Plants and Animals from Over There that are Over Here

by Dan Eatherley

A unique history of plant and animal invaders of the British isles spanning thousands of years of arrivals and escapes, as well as defences mounted and a look to the future.

As Brits we pride ourselves as stoic defenders, boasting a record of resistance dating back to 1066.

Yet, even a cursory examination of the natural world reveals that while interlopers of the human variety may have been kept at bay, our islands have been invaded, conquered and settled by an endless succession of animals, plants, fungi and other alien lifeforms that apparently belong elsewhere. Indeed it’s often hard to work out what actually is native, and what is foreign.

From early settlement of our islands, through the Roman and mediaeval period, to the age of exploration and globalisation, today’s complement of alien species tells a story about our past.

Genres: Nonfiction, Science, Nature, History, Audiobook, Biology, Environment

336 pages, Hardcover

First published August 27, 2019

About the author

Dan Eatherley is a writer, filmmaker, and environmental consultant. He has made natural history documentaries for the BBC, National Geographic, and the Discovery Channel, and worked as an assistant producer on two landmark BBC series hosted by David Attenborough. He has also published more than one hundred popular science and environmental articles. He currently resides in Exeter, England. His new book, entitled Invasive Aliens, explores the past, present and future of non-native plants, animals and other organisms in Britain’s countryside


An extract from Invasive Aliens:

Taking a stroll through Hampstead Heath one chilly autumnal morning, I was struck by just how much around me wasn’t ‘natural’ in the sense of representing native British fauna and flora.

The most obvious example was the resident flock of a hundred or so rose-ringed parakeets with their frequent shrill calls. Then there were the grey squirrels, mandarin ducks, Canada geese, alpine newts and marsh frogs, to say nothing of the crayfish and carp in the ponds or the horse chestnuts, rhododendrons and laurels growing amidst the native oak trees.

I could have gone to pretty much any park in Britain and seen the same things, and far more besides. And it’s not just parks: our rivers, lakes and streams; our forests and farmland; our estuaries and coastal waters; our homes and gardens; even our own bodies; all host a wealth of introduced species.

Reviews

[Nicky · Rating 3 out of 5]

Invasive Aliens discusses invasive organisms that are not native to Britain and how they got here, how they affect their new home, and what that implies for the future. Some of the invasives we've embraced as our own (rabbits and buddleia) while others are hated (grey squirrels)... and others, of course, we know very little about.

I actually picked this up partly because one of the reviews on Amazon complained about "snide references" to Brexit and Nazis. For your pleasure, I've pulled out those three quotations! From the introduction:

Many Brits pride themselves as stoic defenders of a green and pleasant land, boasting a record of resistance against aggressors dating back centuries, be it weathering the Spanish Armada or defying Hitler’s Blitzkrieg. This patriotic fervour, and its clarion call ‘to control borders’, may in part explain the 2016 Brexit vote. Yet, a cursory examination of the natural world reveals that while many interlopers of the human variety have been kept at bay, our islands have throughout history been colonised by a succession of animals, plants, fungi and other organisms that apparently belong elsewhere. Indeed, it’s often hard to sort out the native from foreign.

Which doesn't exactly make the book "political cant disguised as a book on nature", to my mind, given it's mentioned once in the commentary and almost never again. There's one other reference to Brexit in the entire book:

The UK has often taken a lead; for instance, in banning the sale of certain aquatic plants in 2013. But the political imperative of maintaining and boosting frictionless international trade – Brexit or no Brexit – risks trumping concerns about the unavoidable corollary of that flow of goods and people, namely, the arrival of unwanted new species.

Oh noes, the politics. Picture me with my hand to my forehead, swooning.

Finally, the book wraps up with some thoughts about how we're going to treat invasive species in the future, mentioning the contention of some people that invasives actually boost biodiversity, and trying to tease apart what policy could and should be -- and I guess this particular paragraph could come off as a bit pointed.

Public awareness of the issue is higher than ever before, with sensational news headlines stoking our fears. Giant hogweed, introduced as a horticultural curiosity from the Caucasus mountains in the 1820s, has been recast as Britain’s ‘most dangerous plant’ with sap that ‘melts’ a child’s skin. ‘Monster goldfish’ are on the prowl. ‘Sex mad Spanish slugs’ are terrorising our gardens. Emotive terminology isn’t just the preserve of tabloids: even serious scientists will talk about ‘demon shrimps’ and ‘killer algae’ with a straight face. Some of the language has a xenophobic flavour: introduced plants and animals are ‘ex-pats’ or ‘immigrants’, which ‘pollute’ our pristine environment and need to be ‘bashed’ and ‘sent home’. Perhaps it’s telling that the Nazis were among the first to take against non-natives, drafting a ‘Reich Landscape Law’ in 1941 banishing exotic plants from pure German landscapes. Some argue that the current fixation with non-indigenous wildlife is bound up with subliminal, and not so subliminal, antipathy to arrivals of the human kind. Concerns about non-natives and immigration to our small, overcrowded island are, they say, all of a piece.

Despite those snippets, I promise the rest of the book is actually focused on exactly what it suggests -- those are the sole references to Brexit or Nazis in the entire 326-page volume, and politics in general impinges very little beyond the mention of initiatives here or there to eradicate this or that organism, due to impacts on the environment or native species. And, you know, I do wonder if these remarks put their finger on something.

Overall, despite my overall feeling of entertainment about that review, the book felt a little bogged down. The chapters are roughly themed (e.g. around freshwater invasives), but the examples start to feel like a succession of "and ANOTHER thing" -- just as I felt it was wrapping up toward a conclusion, we'd look at another example (and it probably wouldn't add much). Personally, I'd have refined the chapters down a bit and stuck to 2-3 examples per chapter to illustrate the points and the particular difficulties facing a certain part of the ecosystem, and overall slimmed things down. Even finishing the chapters off with some tables of other relevant invasives would have given all the examples in a way that's a bit easier to digest...

It's not unenjoyable, taken in short bursts, but my attention did wander quite a lot. The author's voice is not super-engaging, even though he explains well and chooses good examples. Maybe I also suffer from knowing this stuff a little too well; reading popular science is sometimes the equivalent of shouting "HE'S BEHIND YOU" for an entire play, for me. Bit of a problem of preaching to the choir, except it's a very opinionated choir (with some facts backing up its opinions) that is not sure they are wholly against invasive species as a general principle.

[Aya · Rating 2 out of 5]

finally freed!

[Hayley]

Didn't keep my attention; will try reading at a later date. Wasn't the right time.

[Sarak77 · Rating 4 out of 5]

The question posed in the earlier chapters of Invasive Aliens which gallop through the natural history of the British isles, is what can really be called a native species on an island only recently (in geological time) exposed at the end of the last ice age. Many well established species are known to have been brought here by the Romans and later invaders.
The 18th and 19th centuries saw an explosion of plant and animal collecting and some astonishingly arrogant attempts to "improve" on nature, the negative consequences of which are still being seen today.
The most interesting part of this book are the case studies of new invaders. What seems undeniable is that humans, through neglect or stupidity are utterly incapable of looking after the natural world. With attempts to control Invasive species often as damaging what they were trying to eradicate we really need to think more about prevention as well as thinking more longterm.

[Ken Sampson · Rating 4 out of 5]

[2 Feb 2020] This is an interesting and engaging book about a subject that has not had a lot of coverage. The author takes you through the history of the invasive spread of various life forms; animals, birds, insects, plants etc and explains carefully where they came from and how it is thought they reached Britain. Those that are now regarded as entirely British like rabbits and pheasants are particularly interesting. It seems diligently and meticulously researched and written with the correct amount of detail and science. His style is easy - general reader stuff - and the pace is good and engaging. I would have liked more on Trees as they are obviously more impactful on the look of the landscape as opposed to microscopic insects that are more difficult to visualise and frankly care-about.

There is some attempt at a reasonable geographical spread, but the book is still somewhat south-east England dominant. I thought the use of Brexit on p-14 to 'ridicule' those who voted to keep Europeans out, (presumably in his opinion) while being unaware of the invasive nature of thousands of years of European flora and fauna was clumsy at best or offensive at worse. The other feature which I thought was a drawback was the exclusive use of metric to describe aspects of Britain. Distances between towns were strangely given in Kilometres and land size in Hectares. Both, I would guess (whether the author likes it or not) are completely meaningless to the vast majority of general readers. The other affectation that truly grates with many is the scientific elites exclusive and seemingly compulsory driving out of Christianity from dating - presumably in order not to offend - but this simply means for hundreds of thousands of ordinary readers that when you read BCE you are required to translate it in your head back to BC (Before Christ) etc. If they must be used please provide both.

Generally an interesting book, informative and easy to read book. One last point - if there is a future edition please consider a bolder more engaging cover picture.

[Mehtap exotiquetv · Rating 3 out of 5]

Invasive Tiere und Pflanzen, die sich auf globalem Wege ausgebreitet haben und das Ökosystem durcheinander bringen. Darüber handelt dieses Buch. Häufig sind die invasiven Spezien tatsächlich als versteckter Passagier in Schiffen (Ratten), in Autos mit Wasserverstecken (Tiger Mosquitos Larven), als Bakterien an Schuhsohlen unterwegs.
Und wenn die Konditionen durch Erderwärmung besonders günstig sind, dann fühlen sich die meisten Lebewesen auch wohl.
Interessanter Einblick in dieses komplexe Thema. Ich hätte mir allerdings mehr gewünscht, dass mehr in die Tiefe eingegangen wird. Welche Folgen hat es konkret in verschiedenen Regionen usw. So war das Buch eher generisch.

[Michaela · Rating 4 out of 5]

While the opening chapter was fascinating in its discussion of what constitutes a invasive species was fascinating, it was incongruous to the rest of the book which focused on discussing the various types of invasive species to Britain. I learned a lot about various invasive species and was very excited that I recognised a lot of place names! I was hoping for more references to Ireland specifically (I have been frustrated in finding many good books focused on Ireland) but was happy to learn more about the British isles in general. I was relieved that climate change was discussed, though it took 288 pages for what I thought would be a very important issue for species movement.

[Simon Dobson · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story of plants and animals invading the UK, mainly (though not entirely) with human intervention. Full of anecdotes and strange twists as species interact.

It's hard to say whether the overall impact of invasive species is positive or negative. It's remarkable that many species that invade other countries do better there than they did at home, which is a positive for global biodiversity in a sense. I also hadn't realised how deliberate a lot of introductions were, and how two-way they went between Europe and the "New World".

[Hamish Reid · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a pleasure to read! Mr Eatherly has really done a great job of bringing this topic to life. The book provides a balanced view of the issue of invasive plants and animals, I certainly learnt a lot. It's packed full of engaging stories that envelope the reader and has some hilarious moments. A real page-turner for anyone in the least bit interested in our countryside

[Viviane Elbee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting book about plants and animals in Britain that were intentionally or unintentionally introduced from abroad. It traces invasive species over centuries, and discusses various efforts to combat the most noxious invasions (not always successful, often very costly). It talks about the present and a bit about what to expect for the future too.

[Tim · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very readable and thought provoking account of species introductions around the world, though mainly focusing on the UK. As well as a history of how the introductions came about, the book also examines what harm these introductions do, and if it is desirable, or even possible, to try and eliminate them.

[Jonny Francis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Informative and fairly detailed summary of Britain’s non-native species and non-native species around the world, the history and mechanisms of invasion, and the various consequences. More of an introduction than a deep-dive, and I would have enjoyed more time spent on discussing the future rather than the past, but a great read nonetheless.

[Jonathan Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read. Really engaging and informative. My only criticism would be lack pictures or sketches as I was forever googling the various plants and creatures mentioned in the book. Learnt loads so job done!

[Claudia Dyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

An informative and interesting read on a subject I somewhat familiar with, being trained in ecology and environmental management. I found the writing really easy to absorb which is something I often find difficult with non-fiction.

[Catherine Steacy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book full of information, proving that Homo Sapiens is also an “Invasive Alien”.

[Madison · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really interesting to see what species are invasive from a British perspective - as someone who has only really focused on American invasives.

[Michael Cagle · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good summary of invasive species that have settled in the UK.

[Joan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Plants and animals that shouldn't be here, a very interesting read

[Julian Walker · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was hooked from the start of this well-written and highly stimulating read, showing that much we take for granted is not natural.

Explaining why some species take to new worlds and others don't - and indeed why some methods of 'cross-pollination' work and others are less successful, I really enjoyed his approach and learned a lot about history in the process (which was unexpected when I started the book).

A entrancing, absorbing, and highly satisfying read - very enjoyable, and most enlightening.

[Elaine · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a really interesting and informative book, I learnt a lot. It had random personal moments from the author mixed in to the text which I'm not sure worked as they weren't consistently applied throughout. I also think this book would have benefitted from a few drawings/pictures/photographs of some of the plants and animals discussed or even some maps. Overall, an interesting book worth a read if you are interested in the subject matter.

[Ross · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating book that dives deep into just how many invasive and non-native species our islands have, looking at how they got here, why they've thrived (or not), and what effects (positive and negative) they have on our ecosystems. Something new and interesting pops out on each page even if you already have a good knowledge of natural history, and you are sure to finish the last chapter with a greater understanding of just how delicate the balance of nature can be.

[Vincent Keenan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the variety of different cases of invasive species and the problems they are causing. My biggest, personal let down is that none of the cases or claims made within are referenced so I couldn't look for more details. If you're interested in invasive species it's a nice light tough introduction, but if you want more details you aren't given a suggestion to find them.