Hurricane Lizards and Plastic Squid, How the Natural World is Adapting to Climate Change reviewed

We look at this interesting book by Thor Hanson, author of Buzz the great book on bees. See more about Hurricane Lizards and Plastic Squid How the Natural World is Adapting to Climate Change here.

Hurricane Lizards and Plastic Squid, How the Natural World is Adapting to Climate Change reviewed

Thor Hanson’s book is interesting and thought provoking. Species adapt, they always have, naturally some die out and some move into new ecological niches. The huge challenge currently of course is that climate change is bring changes faster than some species are able to deal with, and it would be far better if we were not putting them under pressure to adapt or survive at a faster speed than is manageable. Hanson’s book is not suggesting that climate change is positive or desirable, but he is digging into the data to understand what is actually taking place.

This book is well worth reading, to embrace and take on the wider perspective that nature is more adaptable and able to change than we might realise. In an ideal world it would be preferable it these rapid climate driven changes were taking place, but this book is a valuable contribution to understanding where nature is currently situated, and what the future may hold for many species all over the world.

More about the book

Hurricane Lizards and Plastic Squid is the first major book by a biologist to focus on the fascinating story of how the natural world is adjusting, adapting, and sometimes measurably evolving in response to climate change. Lyrical and thought-provoking, this book broadens the climate focus from humans to the wider lattice of life.

Bestselling nature writer Thor Hanson – author of Buzz (a Radio 4 ‘Book of the Week’) – shows us how Caribbean lizards have grown larger toe pads to grip trees more tightly during frequent hurricanes; and how the ‘plasticity’ of squid has allowed them to change their body size and breeding habits to cope with altered sea temperatures.

Plants and animals have a great deal to teach us about the nature of what comes next, because for many of them, and also for many of us, that world is already here.

More about the author

Thor Hanson is a biologist whose previous books include The Impenetrable Forest, Feathers (longlisted for the Samuel Johnson prize), The Triumph of Seeds, and Buzz. He lives on an island in the Pacific Northwest, USA.

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