Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

We can protect the nature you have left, or you can recreate what we have lost. This book looks at the debates around the latter course of action. It looks at the practice of rewilding; the theories and arguments that underpin it, its practical implications, its failures, and its success. It is a hopeful argument that says we can do more than limit the damage. We can repair what humans have destroyed. At times, the detailed arguments of this book may feel dry. However, the author's enthusiasm for their subject matter is enough to make you keep reading.

From the publisher: "Summary
How rewilding has transformed the conservation movement, combining radical scientific insights with practical innovations.

Progressive scientists and conservation professionals are pursuing a radical new approach to restoring ecosystems: rewilding. By recovering the ripple effect generated by the interactions among plant and animal species and natural disturbances, rewilding seeks to repair ecosystems by removing them from human engineering and reassembling guilds of megafauna from a mix of surviving wild and feral species and de-domesticated breeds, including elk, bison, and feral horses...."

A beautiful and accessible account of current efforts to study how certain species filled an ecological niche and to understand if re-creating the species might improve current efforts with climate change.

Rewilding is the idea of reintroducing species to the environment. In most cases, humans are responsible for the disappearance of those species in the first place. This book presents the idea of rewilding by finding suitable replacements for some extinct species of megaherbivores and finding places where they can be reintroduced. This would recreate some of the natural conditions that were here prior to human intervention in the natural systems.

So, since we have removed large herbivores, can those ecosystems balance themselves without those species? The answer is usually no. To rewild those places then, we need to find out what species can live there and successfully recreate the original ecosystem over time, given a lack of human interference. The idea is not to pick and choose keystone species, but to find whole suites of species that can survive there and can help to recreate the landscape as it was before being altered.

This, of course, requires large tracts of land on which to experiment and introduce these species. It requires cooperation among landowners and any government entities that control that land. And it requires scientists to be able to understand the incredibly complex relationships among, not only the megaherbivores and their predators, but also plants, trees, grasses, smaller mammals, insects and the like. It’s a big undertaking and not one to be taken lightly. Can we do it? Can humans successfully undo the damage we have done to the land and repair these ecosystems by rewilding them?

The reintroduction of known species or those that can offer similar ecosystem functions seems to be an excellent way to accomplish the goal of rewilding these damaged landscapes. Given the climate crisis facing our future generations, lets hope that these scientists will be successful and that rewilding can reverse the trends in our favor.

The book offers several examples of places where this is already being tried. The success is promising for the future. It will be vital for us to find ways to reduce carbon emissions and to store carbon in the land. The writing style is a bit scientific, but it is readable and enjoyable. The concepts are complex, but they were presented in an easy to understand way. I recommend this book to anyone interested in nature and the environment and how we can help it be healthier.

Like many people, when I first heard the term ‘rewilding’ I thought it simply referred to the idea of ceasing to cultivate a particular piece of land and letting Nature decide what would grow there and how. There was probably a time in history when this would have been an easy and very worthwhile thing to do. Sometimes, of course, it still is. But sadly, ever since Homo sapiens came on the scene and starting using tools, big disruptions began to take place – probably starting with our far-off ancestors hunting the prehistoric megafauna to extinction. More latterly, in these last two centuries of industrial enterprise – and even more in recent decades – our species has wreaked havoc on the Earth’s ecosystems – depleting and contaminating the soil, polluting the atmosphere, removing keystone species and thereby causing trophic cascades that drove many others out of existence -- until we have now reached the point where to do any kind of repairing we have no choice but to try and give Earth’s natural processes a helping hand.

But how to do that? How do we even begin? Do we even have enough knowledge and understanding of the ways of Nature even to dare to try? The further I got into Jepson and Blythe’s book the more awestruck I became at the sheer amount of information they have packed between two covers. To read, learn and fully integrate all of it would be the equivalent of taking an entire university course. Yet it is far from being an academic tome. It is written in an interesting and easy to understand way.

One of the key things I learned from reading this book was the notion of ‘shifting baseline systems.’ The landscapes and species that make up my vision of wild Nature is determined by whatever landscapes and species have been around during my lifetime. I cannot imagine an English hedgerow without wrens or a summer sky devoid of larks. Even though there are far fewer thrushes now than there were during my childhood, thrushes to me are still part of that vision. For my grandchildren they may not be. To my great-great-grandchildren a wren-free hedge and a lark-free sky may be the norm. They won’t miss those other beings and their songs because they never knew them, never heard them.

All our past ideas on ‘restoration’ have involved restoring an area to how it was at some defined point in the not-so-distant past. But in an ever-changing – and rapidly changing – world, all such points are arbitrary. The modern science of rewilding brings a different approach. It involves the study of parts and wholes and relationships. Not just ‘what are the keystone species in this ecosystem?’ but ‘what function do the keystone species in this ecosystem perform in order to keep the system intact and in balance?’ (And ‘if I can’t bring back whoever used to do it, who can I bring in who might do the same job?’.

This latter is called ‘taxon substitution’ e.g. when it is not possible to bring back extinct species, try to find a similar species from somewhere else that you can bring in to perform the same function. The authors mention the island of Mauritius, where for example, the native tortoises had gone extinct, causing a serious disruption of the island ecosystem and a different, non-native species of tortoise was successfully brought in to fill the all-important niche and restore the balance. For as they point out: …if megafauna are once again part of ecosystems, the ‘small stuff’ will mostly look after itself.

Rewilding, they tell us, is not about turning back the clock…it is about restoring networks of interactions between communities of organisms and their physical environment, along with the ecological processes that emerge from these interactions. It is more open-ended and relaxed about ecological novelty. It embraces the view that there is no way back for ecosystems and that, as ecological interactions and processes recover, ecosystems will take on new forms. These may evoke the past, but they will be different.
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I, for one, have been very resistant to the whole concept of the ‘Anthropocene’ ever since I first heard that term. This book has helped me to understand that there is no alternative now, but to try and find ways to repair the damage we have done. And try to do it as carefully, as humbly, as skilfully and as lovingly as we possibly can.

This is an important book, exploring a new and yet not so new concept. It is, effectively, conservation in a different guise, but updated for the 21st century.

Paul Jepson and Cain Blythe present an overview of rewilding, what it is, why it matters, and how increased knowledge, understanding, and embracing of its principles can help bring about the recovery of natural ecosystems.

The chapters are well laid out but some readers may be put off by the science-heavy approach. Those like myself who come from a different background will need to take their time understanding the terms and processes; however, this is a subject well worth persevering with.

One idea put forward for restoring nature's balance is the re-introduction of mega-herbivores, with increased grazing enabling soil carbon levels to be restored and thus negating the release of methane from thawing of the permafrost (particularly needed in Arctic regions).

Rewilding science is already well advanced in the Netherlands, particularly with the way river habitats are managed. Other projects and research are referenced throughout the book and the final chapter gives ten predictions for the future.

Having found the book heavy going at first, re-reading it made me appreciate how crucial a fresh and innovative approach is if we are to preserve the world we live in for future generations.

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 was sent an advance review copy of this book by Icon Books, in return for an honest appraisal.

In Rewilding, Paul Jepson and Cain Blythe describe in detail the “rewilding” movement to restore and reinvigorate natural ecosystems. Their focus is mainly Europe, but throughout the book, they provide examples from many parts of the world.

What is “rewilding”? As Jepson and Cain explain it, rewilding seeks to create vibrant ecosystems in areas that have been sapped of this richness. To do so, they propose the introduction of “mega-herbivores”: large, wild grazing animals such as bison, wild horses (such as the Tarpan), and even new species which have been developed to be similar to much more ancient breeds, such as the Tauros, a type of wild cattle that have been bred to fill the niche left open by the long-extinct aurochs.

They differentiate “rewilding” from a earlier foci on “preservation” and “conservation” which have sought to return wild areas to the baseline set at the beginning of that human generation. Rewilding instead seeks to create something new by using large, wild grazing species to lead to the development of healthy ecosystems. When its successful, it has the potential to have positive impacts beyond its resident wildlife to restore ecosystems, counteract climate change, and provide economic and social benefits to humans.

Rewilding was at its best when exploring case studies of rewilding projects that have taken place. At times, particularly when laying out science concepts, it had a tendency to be a bit dense which requires that the reader come to the book with a basic knowledge of ecology concepts and vocabulary.

It’s clear Cain and Jepson are proponents of rewilding and so I found the book made only passing mentions of the criticisms of this perspective. More than anything, the book aims to be a persuasive text on the merits of this approach rather than a balanced dissection of the positives and negatives. If this is something you are interested in getting more deeply into, then Rewilding would be a good, not-to-long read.

Thank you to Icon Books and NetGalley for this eARC in exchange for a review.

I've been watching re-wilding for a very long time and it seems to be taking hold in some cases. I do worry about the effect of living among wild, and sometimes dangerous animals in my community. In my community, it's coyotes, wild turkeys, black bears, and hawks. They really weren't around, that I know of, 40 years ago, but have been steadily increasing in number over the past 30 year. I love watching nature take over once built over land, now returned to nature. I think it's wonderful to read about fish returning to streams, rivers and lakes with the help of releases and dams being removed to improve their chances of survival and health of the waterways. I've even been glad to see Canada Geese, once endangered, returned in such numbers they are considered a nuisance by some of my neighbors! I love them myself! I think re-wilding has been a great boost for restoring the natural order on Earth. It still needs a lot of world in developing and 3rd world countries. But it's a start! Good book, quick, easy and informative read.

I really enjoyed this book on the science behind the theories and practices of rewilding and the addition of practical examples and details of up to the minute technology made it a fascinating read. I hope the predictions in the final chapter come true!

Longer review to appear on my blog on 23 Sept.

Written by two ecologists this book is an interesting introduction to rewilding, a a progressive approach to conservation. They make the case for letting nature take care of itself, enabling natural processes to shape And repair land and sea, and letting the world take care of and thrive without chemical intervention. I was first introduced to this subject by Isabella Tree in her wonderful book ‘Wilding’, That book was set close to her home in Sussex, this one is more general, less personal and at times a bit dry. Nevertheless, for those interested in this area, this book is a great addition and deserves to be studied. Thank you for the opportunity to read,

This is an incredible book that made me immediately want to give up my job, move to the countryside and watch nature grow wild. It's part of a wider trend but is a useful addition.

As we live in the midst of a climate catastrophe it can be hard to find hope, but we must. Rewilding as a concept feels like it can be a vital source of positivity in dark times. It seems to hold not only a potential way to help repair the damage of our past actions, but also a way to transform our future relationship with the natural world and that is exciting.

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.

I would highly recommend both books for these reasons. Wilding is great for providing inspiration and hope around the dynamic changes that take place when humans remove themselves, or considerably reduce their involvement, in land management and let nature have its way. Rewidling opens up the much wider opportunities that exist across the world to transform what we think of as the natural environment, but which is really just a shadow of what once was, before we started impacting it.

What I find exciting about rewilding, apart from the opportunities for resurrection in our natural world, is the way that it changes the way that we think about the world around us. For example, one criticism of rewilding is that it can lead to de-domesticated fauna dying in their environment, such as cattle dying from the cold, in ways that are considered inhumane and should not be allowed. This highlights both our arrogant relationship with nature and also our hypocrisy given the many cruel deaths (and lives) we happily inflict on such animals to provide cheap food.

Maybe we don’t need to just re-wild our landscape but also ourselves, to find a more natural space in which to exist away from our plastic wrapped food and constantly fluttering screens. There are a number of ethical and practical challenges as we move down the path of rewilding and the book does well to bring these forwards and seek debate, so that buy-in can be achieved and the issues can be navigated in a thoughtful and considered way.

As the notion and language of wilding permeates out day to day culture, even in my semi-rural corner of Nottinghamshire we talk about rewilding gardens and public spaces, this is an excellent book to broaden understanding of both the threats and opportunities. On the one hand we are faced with a disaster that is largely of our own making and yet on the other we have an incredible opportunity to reposition ourselves into a more humble but deeply satisfying place in the world.

The principles, arguments and ethics of rewilding

Rewilding: the Radical New Science of Ecological Recovery covers the history of re-wilding, bringing us to the current day with case studies in the Netherlands, Wales and Yellowstone Park in the United States, and provides a roadmap for the future.

In the process, Jepson and Blythe cover evolutionary biology, ecology, political issues and various theories of rewilding in an unbiased, accessible and informed way. Natural and systems approaches are assessed, drawing on recent research and innovations such as the wildlife economy model in South Africa, de-domestication and wildlife banks.

My thanks to NetGalley and Icon Books for the ARC.

An interesting book on a fascinating topic. I have been reading articles and translated a few German studies into English over the years so I think I am fairly well-grounded in the subject. And this book is certainly a great introduction into the subject, why ultimately, I did not give it a higher rating was the reason that it was all rather delivered very dryly, so you really have to want to read this to keep going. Still, the information is all there, some fascinating facts and overall a recommended read if you are interested in the topic.

I loved this! I know nothing of the topic, did not study conservation or anything, but found it fairly accessible and incredibly interesting. It offers a bold and optimistic approach to protecting endangered species and environments, and I had no idea of the connections the book made clear between herbivores, plants, other animals, global warming... It was fascinating and well-written.

I’m one of those college graduates who did not seek a career in their major (environmental policy and management), but I do enjoy revisiting the field and studies on occasion out of personal interest. Some of my favorite courses covered topics pertaining to earth ethics, conservation biology, and restoration ecology. Naturally, this seemed like a book I would enjoy. I wish that this work had been published while I was a student because I’m sure it would have added greatly to classroom discussions and research I conducted with my peers. Unless you are an environmental major of some kind, or truly have an interest in ecology and rewilding programs, I’m not sure if this would be your cup of tea; however, it was up-to-date, thought-provoking, and, quite frankly, wouldn’t hurt for future college-level environmental programs to better incorporate these concepts (or even this particular book) into course curriculums.

From the perspective of someone studying in this field (Animal Management with a potential career in Conservation) this book was a refreshingly new perspective on the issues that we are facing today in regard to ecosystem degradation and biodiversity loss. I will definitely be recommending my college library adds a copy of this book to their shelves as it is well researched, logically structured and overall, very thought provoking.
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.
That being said I really enjoyed this book and highlighted many sections that I cannot wait to discuss with friends and peers, as I can definitely see it opening up a lot of interesting conversations. It is hopeful in essence, whilst being realistic which is something, I think the sector is severely lacking.
Rewilding has prompted me to stay engaged with projects and inspired me to explore unconventional non linear thought processes in a way I am not sure I would have if I hadn’t have read it.

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).

I'm not a specialist in this subject myself - more of a very interested lay person - and I was delighted to learn so much from reading Jepson and Blythe's book. It has a multi-disciplinary feel to it, with both ecological and social framings. There were a few mind-blowing parts, such as the body of evidence building to indicate that South American rainforests may have been deeply ecologically impoverished by the extinction of herbivorous megafauna even before modern man arrived (I was aware that rainforest was not as "pristine" as once believed, but this was a more radical knowledge-shift for me). The book is very up to date, describing developments as recent as early 2020, and it introduced me to new concepts such as "ecospace" (and I say that as someone who attended an excellent rewilding conference in early 2019). I enjoyed, also, the final part of the book in which the authors speculated on how conservationists and the public might embrace the possibilities and excitement of rewilding - it certainly makes me want to go back to university and pick up where I left off with my Masters thesis...

All that said, the book is pretty dry in places. Very short bios are provided for the authors at the beginning, but I would've been fascinated to hear their stories - how they came to become rewilding proponents. I felt the book could also have hugely benefited from a sprinkling of in-person vignettes from rewilding projects. Even when citing specific projects such as Knepp in England, and the OVP in the Netherlands, the narrative remains at an extreme distance. And I fear that this will put some potential readers off.

A fascinating and thought provoking read. Gives a person insight into what our world may look like in the coming years if more country’s and governments follow through with more rewilding programs. I am totally ok with most of it although, the proposal of reintroducing the cheetah to the North American plains would give me pause.

Great places to go, can’t wait to try a few of the trails,. I loved the how to pack or what is needed if gave me some great advice for my next outing.