Silent Summer
The State of Wildlife in Britain and Ireland

Authoritative and easily accessible account of the wildlife of Britain and Ireland, what is declining, what is not, and why.

Norman Maclean (Edited by)

9780521519663, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 20 May 2010

768 pages, 128 b/w illus. 57 colour illus. 42 tables
23.5 x 16 x 4.1 cm, 1.4 kg

' … a timely review of the state of our wildlife today … having all the information on so many groups in one place means that we can reach a much more balanced assessment of the overall state of our country's wildlife and this is the great benefit of the book. … a rich source of information about the state of our fauna and flora and a copy should find its way onto the bookshelf of every entomologist in the UK. … The editor, Norman Maclean, is to be congratulated for publishing an excellent book.' British Journal of Entemology and Natural History

Over the past 20 years dramatic declines have taken place in UK insect populations. Eventually, such declines must have knock-on effects for other animals, especially high profile groups such as birds and mammals. This authoritative, yet accessible account details the current state of the wildlife in Britain and Ireland and offers an insight into the outlook for the future. Written by a team of the country's leading experts, it appraises the changes that have occurred in a wide range of wildlife species and their habitats and outlines urgent priorities for conservation. It includes chapters on each of the vertebrate and major invertebrate groups, with the insects covered in particular depth. Also considered are the factors that drive environmental change and the contribution at local and government level to national and international wildlife conservation. Essential reading for anyone who is interested in, and concerned about, UK wildlife.

List of contributors
Foreword David Attenborough
Preface
Acknowledgements
List of abbreviations
1. Introduction Norman Maclean
Part I. Factors Driving Changes in Wildlife: 2. Climate change T. H. Sparks, C. D. Preston and D. B. Roy
3. Agriculture, woodland and semi-natural habitats Ken Norris
4. Vertebrate animal introductions Christopher Lever
5. Plant introductions Andrew Lack
6. Urbanisation and development Kevin J. Gaston and Karl L. Evans
7. The great game: the interaction of field sports and conservation in Britain from the 1950s to 2008 Robin Sharp
8. Going fishing: recent trends in recreational angling Robin Sharp and Norman Maclean
9. Impacts of hormone disrupting chemicals on wildlife C. R. Tyler and R. M. Goodhead
10. Water pollution: other aspects Michael Hughes and Carl Sayer
11. 25 key questions in ecology Norman Maclean
Part II. Conservation in Action: 12. Conservation in action in Britain and Ireland Andy Clements
13. Wildlife in the UK Overseas Territories Mike Pienkowski
14. UK involvement in conservation outside UK territory N. Leader-Williams and A. M. Rosser
Part III. The Case Histories: 15. Mammals in the 20th century D. W. Yalden
16. Bats Karen A. Haysom, Gareth Jones, Dan Merrett and Paul A. Racey
17. State of bird populations in Britain and Ireland Robert A. Robinson
18. The conservation of the Grey Partridge N. W. Sotherton, N. J. Aebischer and J. A. Ewald
19. Reptiles Chris P. Gleed-Owen
20. Amphibians Tim Halliday
21. Freshwater fishes: a declining resource Peter S. Maitland and John F. Craig
22. Riverflies Cyril Bennett and Warren Gilchrist
23. Bumblebees Dave Goulson
24. Butterflies J. A. Thomas
25. Moths Richard Fox, Kelvin F. Conrad, Mark S. Parsons, Martin S. Warren and Ian P. Woiwod
26. Dragonflies (Odonata) in Britain and Ireland Peter Mill, Steve Brooks and Adrian Parr
27. Flies, beetles and bees, wasps and ants (Diptera, Coleoptera, and Aculeate Hymenoptera) Alan Stubbs
28. Hemiptera Alan J. A. Stewart and Peter Kirby
29. Grasshoppers, crickets and allied insects Judith Marshall
30. Aerial insect biomass: trends from long-term monitoring Richard Harrington, Chris R. Shortall and Ian P. Woiwod
31. Invertebrates Richard Chadd and Brian Eversham
32. Land and freshwater molluscs Ian J. Killeen
33. The sea shore S. J. Hawkins, H. E. Sugden, P. S. Moschella, N. Mieszkowska, R. C. Thompson and M. T. Burrows
34. The offshore waters John Baxter
35. Plants Andrew Lack
36. Conclusion: what is the likely future for the wildlife in Britain and Ireland? Norman Maclean
Glossary
Index.

Subject Areas: Conservation of wildlife & habitats [RNKH], Conservation of the environment [RNK], Environmental management [RNF], Applied ecology [RNC], Animal ecology [PSVS], Plant ecology [PSTS]