Eco Friendly House And Garden

‘The uncomfortable truth about Biodiversity’, he says….

Basically this book explains how looking to save just one species out of a whole ecosystem is not the way forward for saving biodiversity.

And to prove it, he opens up with an Introduction with an image of a Dodo. Are we ecologically worse off after we lost the Dodo as a species?

The Book Itself:
This book is a very easy to read description of how science works in practice. And that sometimes this results in ‘bad’ things.

The Author helps to explain even the simplest concepts about why biodiversity exists (usually due to a poor or limited environment) and how saving or losing key species can have disasterous consequences.

He also uses fantastic and sometimes unbelievable facts about species and habitats that were even a surprise to me after having read widely about these things. And he managed to put a new ‘twist’ on some already obvious facts with cited examples across the globe.

He is not out to ‘pick holes’ in conservation work or the studies of biodiversity across the globe; he just states statistical facts based on current figures that can’t really be argued with (although changes in our behaviour could always change the end results).

He also makes it clear that ‘saving the planet’ and it’s ecosystems and environments is a totally different science to ‘saving the panda’ or any single species or plot of land. Frighteningly he places an argument that we could easily and cheaply save nearly half of the worlds land surface which is currently ‘wildlands’ and where there are less than 5 humans per square kilometer.

But we don’t (or haven’t yet) as they aren’t really ‘worth’ anything to us and have very low biodiversity.

However the services they could provide (for free) for humans is priceless – but we seem to want to save every species rather than just the habitats they live in.

I totally agree that our actions are a tiny bit selfish – in general we want to save cute pandas and butterflies more than pristine but ‘boring’ plains and tundra – but he lets us know that this is quite a good option for saving ourselves. After all, we can’t live on this planet if there is no food or clean water for us all.

Result: 5/5
I couldn’t put this book down! I loved every page and every fact!

It is a reasonably small book too which made for great readability – as you knew it wouldn’t take long to glean all his wonderful and truthful facts from.

I work in one of the environments that he discusses in the book, and he certainly showed me a different side to it – as well as a new look at the principles of evolution and indicator species too.

He has also written a few others books that I can’t wait to get my hands on…..

ISBN: 978-1-900322-86-7

Give your kids the chance to become involved in their future.

I know this blog is mainly about your home – there is no reason to think that the outside world isn’t connected to that. You chose your home for it’s location and everything that came with it – but you don’t want to just live in your house for ever.

You want to go out to the local parks and woods, even travel further to other regional areas and zoos – maybe even to the other side of the world to see wildlife and natural landscapes that are unique. And that’s where the biodiversity comes in.

Without this variety, there would be no beauty in the world. Imagine if all animals were either cows or dogs, or only brown or white in color. Imagine if zoos and nature reserves only had squirrels and rabbits in them! It would be awful – and it would not inspire kids to explore the world around them.

The world needs the kids out there discovering things for themselves – as this is how things happen and changes are made. If young people don’t become involved in their surroundings and the amazing variety of wildlife and plants that it supports – then they cannot have a say in their own future or that of their own children down the line.

This Is Biodiversity.
The way that animals and plants interact to survive keeps the status quo. The classic example of ‘the plants feed the herbivores and the herbivores become food for the carnivores’ follows the basic principles but it is not a chain so to speak – it’s a web.

So add to the above that insects are needed to pollinate the plants – but they in turn need other plants for their young to live off and those plants might need to be in a certain location to thrive. They may also (in the case of bees) need to nest in tunnels dug by mice or voles which survive by eating certain other plants and insects.

The list of connections goes on and on through animals and plants of all shapes and sizes – and they all have their part to play in the natural world that we see every day. Everything has changed it’s appearance or shape of needs to fit into a gap in the web so it can survive.

The Competition:
So, why not help your kids to get active and try to capture these connections and these differences with a great photo.

You don’t even have to travel anywhere to get involved as your garden could be home to mini-beasts of amazing colors, butterflies feeding on your plants, birds looking for an easy meal and even small mammals creeping around your garden furniture.

Of course, the further afield you travel the more variety you can find. Bold patterns and bright colors are found in the tropics and larger mammals need a lot of space to thrive – but a simple brown bird can steal the show if it has a specialisation – something about it that makes it different from other birds – like really long legs or a really long beak.

Take a look at the short video on their website to get the finer details - and to find some photo-taking tips – and to see some inspiring shots that have already been added. Your entry could mean that your image is spread across the globe as the best of them all. Not only winning the first prize – but also inspiring the next generation of wildlife protectors.

Something our world is in great need of.