Ecological Explosions

Name: Ecological Explosions
Price: 99.95 AUD
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ISBN: 9780226842578

The History of Biological Invasions and Invasion Science

Daniel Simberloff

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Paperback

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English

University of Chicago Press
21 March 2026

History of science; Ecological science, the Biosphere; Applied ecology

A leading biologist offers a comprehensive and accessible history of invasive species science, from its earliest antecedents through its current research foci and controversies.

From the arrival of the naval shipworm in the Black Sea in the first millennium BCE to the escape of the Burmese python in Florida in 1992, humans have moved species to new locations, deliberately or inadvertently, for thousands of years. Agricultural and environmental impacts of some invasions were evident early, although whether observers recognized that the cause was an introduced species is uncertain. The history of invasion biology truly begins in the sixteenth through eighteenth centuries, when explorers noticed European species on various distant islands and in North America. In the nineteenth century, biogeographers, studying species distributions across the globe, introduced the first native and non-native species categorizations, and prominent researchers like Charles Darwin began to describe the impacts of introduced species. In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, as humans moved increasing numbers of species across the globe, the advent of modern ecology deepened our understanding of the scope of the problem.

In Ecological Explosions, invasive species expert Daniel Simberloff provides a thorough overview of the development of invasion science, from early research—including from the perspectives of leading scientists like Aldo Leopold—to the field's future. Simberloff explores the work of pioneering ecologists like Charles Elton, antecedents of what became today's invasion biology, before discussing the field's true emergence in the 1980s, its explosive methodological and theoretical expansion, its integration with other disciplines, and its increasing visibility, not only within the biological literature but also in government policies across the world in the 1990s. Finally, he investigates current controversies, such as the debate over whether the entire science is xenophobic, and asks how ecosystems might adapt to a rapidly globalizing world and ever-increasing numbers of introduced species—including the joro spider, lionfish, spotted lanternfly, phragmites, and Asian carp.

By: Daniel Simberloff
Imprint: University of Chicago Press
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 254mm, Width: 178mm, Spine: 46mm
Weight: 1.247kg
ISBN: 9780226842578
ISBN 10: 0226842576
Pages: 640
Publication Date: 21 March 2026
Audience: Professional and scholarly , College/higher education , Undergraduate , Further / Higher Education
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Daniel Simberloff is the Nancy Gore Hunger Chair of Excellence in Environmental Studies at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. His books include Invasive Species: What Everyone Needs to Know and Encyclopedia of Biological Invasions. He was formerly editor in chief of Biological Invasions.

Reviews for Ecological Explosions: The History of Biological Invasions and Invasion Science

“This is a big, fascinating book on a huge, important subject. The breadth of its historical scope, the depth of its science, the authority of its insights—and its steady, graceful voice—reflect the special strengths of Simberloff.” -- David Quammen, New York Times best-selling author of ""Spillover,"" ""The Tangled Tree,"" and ""Breathless"" “Ecological Explosions provides an authoritative and comprehensive historical account of biological invasions and the science directed at understanding and managing them. It describes human-mediated species movements from prehistory and antiquity through to the present day, detailing how a ‘trickle’ of introductions became a ‘flood.’ It delivers an engrossing insider’s view of the controversies, key questions, and rapid developments that continue to shape the exciting field of invasion science.” -- David M. Richardson, Centre for Invasion Biology, Stellenbosch University, South Africa “Invasive Species will reward those who demand well-documented information. . . . By extending his wide-ranging survey of biological invasions beyond their biology, Simberloff acknowledges the crucial human dimensions of invasive species.” * Science, on ""Invasive Species"" *