'lively and punchy.you walk away from this book feeling flushed and a bit bruised.' -the Sunday Times, 'Fascinating, provocative. This is a timely, instructive and controversial book that delivers unexpected answers. He discusses, too, whether fear of invasive species could be getting in the way of conserving biodiversity, and especially of responding to the threat of climate change. But do we need to fear invaders? And indeed, can we control them, and do we choose the right targets? In Where Do Camels Belong? Ken Thompson puts forward a fascinating array of narratives on invasive and natural plants and animals to explore what he sees as the crucial question - why only a minority of introduced species succeed, and why so few of them go on to cause trouble. This is a classic example of the problems that underlie the issues of natural and invasive species, a hot issue right now, as the flip side of biodiversity. They evolved and lived for tens of millions of years in North America, while today they retain their greatest diversity in South America and have their only wild populations in Australia.

Where do camels belong? In the Arab world is the obvious answer.

He discusses, too, whether our fears could be getting in the way of conserving biodiversity, and responding to the threat of climate change.

Ken Thompson puts forward a fascinating array of narratives to explore what he sees as the crucial question – why only a minority of introduced species succeed, and why so few of them go on to cause trouble. We have all heard the horror stories of invasives, from Japanese knotweed that puts fear into the heart of gardeners to brown tree snakes that have taken over the island of Guam.īut do we need to fear invaders? And indeed, can we control them, and do we choose the right targets?

This is a classic example of the contradictions of 'native' and 'invasive' species, a hot issue right now, as the flip-side of biodiversity. They evolved in North America, retain their greatest diversity in South America, and the only remaining wild dromedaries are in Australia.

Where do camels belong? In the Arab world may seem the obvious answer, but they are relative newcomers there.

Where Do Camels Belong by Ken Thompson