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The Lost Rainforests of Britain
From the Sunday Times-bestselling author of Who Owns England?, a mesmerising chronicle of our forgotten rainforests � and an inspiring intervention to help restore them to the places they once were.
In 2020, writer and campaigner Guy Shrubsole moved from London to Devon. As he explored the wooded valleys, rivers and tors of Dartmoor, Guy discovered a spectacular habitat that he had never encountered before: temperate rainforest. Entranced, he would spend the coming
months investigating the history, ecology and distribution of rainforests
across England, Wales and Scotland.
Britain, Guy discovered, was once a rainforest nation.
This is the story of a unique habitat that has been so ravaged, most people today don’t realise it exists. Temperate rainforest may once have covered up to one-fifth of Britain and played host to a dazzling variety of luminous life-forms, inspiring Celtic druids, Welsh wizards, Romantic poets, and Arthur Conan Doyle’s most loved creations. Though only fragments now remain, they form a rare and internationally important habitat, home to lush ferns and beardy lichens, pine martens and pied flycatchers. But why are even environmentalists unaware of their existence? And how have we managed to so comprehensively excise them from our cultural memory?
Taking the reader on an awe-inspiring journey through the Atlantic oakwoods and hazelwoods of the Western Highlands and the Lake District, down to the rainforests of Wales, Devon and Cornwall, The Lost Rainforests of Britain maps these under-recognised ecosystems in exquisite detail � but underlines that without immediate political and
public support, we risk losing them from the landscape, and perhaps our collective memory, forever. A rich, elegaic and boundary-pushing feat of research and reportage, this is the extraordinary tale of one person’s quest to find Britain’s lost rainforests, and bring them back.
In 2020, writer and campaigner Guy Shrubsole moved from London to Devon. As he explored the wooded valleys, rivers and tors of Dartmoor, Guy discovered a spectacular habitat that he had never encountered before: temperate rainforest. Entranced, he would spend the coming
months investigating the history, ecology and distribution of rainforests
across England, Wales and Scotland.
Britain, Guy discovered, was once a rainforest nation.
This is the story of a unique habitat that has been so ravaged, most people today don’t realise it exists. Temperate rainforest may once have covered up to one-fifth of Britain and played host to a dazzling variety of luminous life-forms, inspiring Celtic druids, Welsh wizards, Romantic poets, and Arthur Conan Doyle’s most loved creations. Though only fragments now remain, they form a rare and internationally important habitat, home to lush ferns and beardy lichens, pine martens and pied flycatchers. But why are even environmentalists unaware of their existence? And how have we managed to so comprehensively excise them from our cultural memory?
Taking the reader on an awe-inspiring journey through the Atlantic oakwoods and hazelwoods of the Western Highlands and the Lake District, down to the rainforests of Wales, Devon and Cornwall, The Lost Rainforests of Britain maps these under-recognised ecosystems in exquisite detail � but underlines that without immediate political and
public support, we risk losing them from the landscape, and perhaps our collective memory, forever. A rich, elegaic and boundary-pushing feat of research and reportage, this is the extraordinary tale of one person’s quest to find Britain’s lost rainforests, and bring them back.
326 pages, Hardcover
First published October 27, 2022
275 people are currently reading
4,318 people want to read
About the author
Guy Shrubsole
9Ìýbooks66ÌýfollowersGuy Shrubsole works as a campaigner for Friends of the Earth and has written for numerous publications including the Guardian and New Statesman. Who Owns England? (2019) was his first book.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 228 reviews
July 5, 2023
When people think of rainforests the Amazon is the place that immediately comes to mind, it does for me. But did you know that this country is also a rainforest nation? We are, and we have what is called temperate rainforests, these exist in the latitude bands between the tropics and the poles.
I have known about this for a little while now, but one person who discovered this for himself was Guy Shrubsole. After moving to Devon, he came across this spectacular habitat for the first time. And then having discovered it, he realised just how little of it was left across the country. This book is his story of the discovery of these unique places. Utilising the power of modern mapping systems he realised that at its peak, temperate rainforests would have covered around 20% of the UK.
Now there are only fragments left.
He launched this on Twitter and with the assistance of people all over the UK he has collated a map of all the places that still have this left. He travels around to some of them left, like the spectacular Wistman’s Wood and outlines what we can do to protect them.
I thought this book was excellent. Not only is Shrubsole is an excellent writer and his passion for this subject in particular, comes through on every page. Not only is he bringing this to our attention in this book, but he is actively involved in practical solutions to increase the coverage of these forests on the western seaboard of our country. Highly recommended. 4.5 stars
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I have known about this for a little while now, but one person who discovered this for himself was Guy Shrubsole. After moving to Devon, he came across this spectacular habitat for the first time. And then having discovered it, he realised just how little of it was left across the country. This book is his story of the discovery of these unique places. Utilising the power of modern mapping systems he realised that at its peak, temperate rainforests would have covered around 20% of the UK.
Now there are only fragments left.
He launched this on Twitter and with the assistance of people all over the UK he has collated a map of all the places that still have this left. He travels around to some of them left, like the spectacular Wistman’s Wood and outlines what we can do to protect them.
I thought this book was excellent. Not only is Shrubsole is an excellent writer and his passion for this subject in particular, comes through on every page. Not only is he bringing this to our attention in this book, but he is actively involved in practical solutions to increase the coverage of these forests on the western seaboard of our country. Highly recommended. 4.5 stars
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December 18, 2022
This book is not just a love letter to the amazing woodland habitat which is temperate rainforest and still exists in places in the west of Scotland, Wales and England, but the tip of an iceberg of campaigning to reverse the decline and restore the lost rainforests to full health. The book is well researched and well written and a wonderful read, but much more than that because it's roots are not in descriptive journalism but in activism and research and the long, ongoing work to save these riches for the benefit of all by making us aware - of what we still have, what we have lost and what we might still destroy - or restore.
And now I have to hurry my copy back to the library because although I want to browse through it again there is a queue of other people waiting to read it. I hope they are inspired as much as I am about rainforests and also the possibility of making changes for the better in our world.
And now I have to hurry my copy back to the library because although I want to browse through it again there is a queue of other people waiting to read it. I hope they are inspired as much as I am about rainforests and also the possibility of making changes for the better in our world.
May 16, 2023
Inspiring. Everyone should read it.
February 1, 2024
As a local of Dartmoor and visitor of Wistmans woods, I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. The author makes a case for the importance of rewildling British countryside and the challenges conservation efforts like this come up against. I shall be much more aware of these efforts in Dartmoor especially moving forward. The author’s enthusiasm for the subject matter is apparent too which makes the book very readable.
May 31, 2023
This could've been a journal article. He basically just repeats himself in every chapter. And also I'm irked that he presents some of these ideas as his own when - for example - there are plenty of literature scholars that have looked at ecocriticism in the works of romantic poets and myths/folktales
June 13, 2023
So many incredible places, people and projects mentioned.
Highly readable. Highly interesting. Capturing the energy and optimism of conservationists.
10/10!
Highly readable. Highly interesting. Capturing the energy and optimism of conservationists.
10/10!
November 7, 2022
I loved this book! It brought together so many elements to make a vividly beautiful, rich and holistic story of our rainforests and how to save them. Having a background in ecological sciences and having grown up in rainforest territory of the West Highlands, these environments are so precious to me, its exciting to be able to learn more about them in such an accessible way. Despite my personal interest I really don't think you need any prior knowledge/expertise to enjoy reading this! It was also refreshing to see a focus on the importance of people within these environments too (especially in the context of rural depopulation challenges and cultural heritage preservation). The amount of LOTR references firmly secured this as one of my favourite books of the year!
October 10, 2023
3.5 because it was really well written and had interesting content, but I was happy when it was over
March 17, 2024
Gorgeous. If everyone read this book, the future of the UK's rainforests would be in safe hands.
April 13, 2024
I really enjoyed this! Got me all enthusiastic about moss and lichen and ferns. Always liked the rain anyway but now I'm super excited about how rainy it is in West Wales. Basically it succeeded in converting me to temperate rainforest nerdiness and I have two new mortal enemies: sheep and rhododendron ponticum. Tbf sheep were already in my bad books.
March 15, 2024
This book is educational and horrifying, inspiring and enchanting all in equal measure. I absolutely loved learning all about Britain’s rainforests, especially since so many of the places mentioned are close by in the West Country. It took me a surprisingly long time to finish because I kept putting it down to pull on walking boots and go adventuring in the woods. Read mostly on the train, in bed, and on holiday exploring the west coast of Ireland.
An important must read for everyone.
An important must read for everyone.
May 1, 2023
At its heart, this book is about what damage we have done to our very own temperate rainforests over the centuries, what damage we are still doing, and what we can do to implement the restoration of a mysterious, but very precious ecosystem. Really the message is quite simple, and echoes the core idea of the Countryside Code: take only pictures, leave only footsteps. The trouble is, how do you get everyone to live by that principle?
Warning: long review (sorry).
In his own words, Guy Shrubsole is a "troublemaker", referring to his life as an activist. It's a bit of an ironic adjective to pin on yourself when you write a 300 page book showing just how deeply concerned you are for the fate and future good health of the planet you live on, and the flourishing of all living things on it -- but it's what he's gone for.
Acknowledging the enormous challenges that we face today to tackle a crisis that not everyone sees as such, he knows that you're going to piss off a hell of a lot of very important people who like things just the way they are, thank you very much.
I loved reading the lively stories about Shrubsole's recent explorations with his partner Louisa (who works for Greenpeace) into the old woodlands of the western British Isles. From Cornwall to Devon, Wales to Cumbria and into the Scottish highlands, there is amazing, tangible evidence of rare, ancient temperate rainforests -- perhaps almost as old as the end of the last ice age -- still living on, albeit in a quiet, diminutive, often ghostly existence.
The spectre of ancient forests and primal beginnings is touched on in the literature of the land and in popular culture. With ancient folktales and epics, like The Mabinogion; Tolkein's Ents, Doyle's Lost World and his wolfish hound on the bleak dark moors; Spielberg's Jurrasic Park with Goldblum profoundly declaring that "Life finds a way": Shrubsole does a double whammy, sharing not only what role entertainment and storytelling plays in the troubling truths of battles between man and the natural world, but how we might reach a wide audience to capture their imaginations for future mass projects for big change. Personally, I think it's already happening, with David Attenborough's documentaries doing a good lot of the lifting.
Everyone Shrubsole talks to and explores the wilderness with -- from the campaigners and rabble rousers, to the amateur naturalists, the scientists-turned-farmers, the plant nerds who know all the Latin names, the forward-looking investors, the landowners and the politicians and legislators -- all of them have something to contribute to the long-term, generation-spanning goal of restoring a very special type of habitat that few people in Britain likely even know exists. I certainly didn't.
We've all heard of the tropical rainforests of the Amazon, Borneo, et al. But temperate rainforest? It's rare, covering perhaps as little as 1% of Earth's landmass. What makes it temperate is it's subjection to the effects of the ocean.
The early pages of the book delve into the microcosmic slow life of plants that live on other plants in temperate rainforest: mainly lichens and ferns. ("Shit that lives on shit living on other shit," one of the author's friends calls it.) It's an education and a celebration of the wonders of a kinds of plants that aren't particularly planty, but which utterly obsessed the Victorians to the point where they were destroying habitats by taking specimen samples back home. Many things have contributed to the gradual vanishing of Britain's rainforests. So much of what we could yet have is gobbled up by livestock, all thanks to laissez-faire grazing rights. It's been this way for hundreds of years. I was surprised Shrubsole didn't mention Thomas Moore's attack on sheep in the 16th century, in his book Utopia, condemning the rampant grazing practices. It's an old problem, but like all the others in the book, a solvable one.
That's what this book's all about. It's not perfect, but the ideas for how to restore a prized piece of the natural world are there.
A phrase keeps coming back throughout: "...if given half a chance."
Warning: long review (sorry).
In his own words, Guy Shrubsole is a "troublemaker", referring to his life as an activist. It's a bit of an ironic adjective to pin on yourself when you write a 300 page book showing just how deeply concerned you are for the fate and future good health of the planet you live on, and the flourishing of all living things on it -- but it's what he's gone for.
Acknowledging the enormous challenges that we face today to tackle a crisis that not everyone sees as such, he knows that you're going to piss off a hell of a lot of very important people who like things just the way they are, thank you very much.
I loved reading the lively stories about Shrubsole's recent explorations with his partner Louisa (who works for Greenpeace) into the old woodlands of the western British Isles. From Cornwall to Devon, Wales to Cumbria and into the Scottish highlands, there is amazing, tangible evidence of rare, ancient temperate rainforests -- perhaps almost as old as the end of the last ice age -- still living on, albeit in a quiet, diminutive, often ghostly existence.
The spectre of ancient forests and primal beginnings is touched on in the literature of the land and in popular culture. With ancient folktales and epics, like The Mabinogion; Tolkein's Ents, Doyle's Lost World and his wolfish hound on the bleak dark moors; Spielberg's Jurrasic Park with Goldblum profoundly declaring that "Life finds a way": Shrubsole does a double whammy, sharing not only what role entertainment and storytelling plays in the troubling truths of battles between man and the natural world, but how we might reach a wide audience to capture their imaginations for future mass projects for big change. Personally, I think it's already happening, with David Attenborough's documentaries doing a good lot of the lifting.
Everyone Shrubsole talks to and explores the wilderness with -- from the campaigners and rabble rousers, to the amateur naturalists, the scientists-turned-farmers, the plant nerds who know all the Latin names, the forward-looking investors, the landowners and the politicians and legislators -- all of them have something to contribute to the long-term, generation-spanning goal of restoring a very special type of habitat that few people in Britain likely even know exists. I certainly didn't.
We've all heard of the tropical rainforests of the Amazon, Borneo, et al. But temperate rainforest? It's rare, covering perhaps as little as 1% of Earth's landmass. What makes it temperate is it's subjection to the effects of the ocean.
The early pages of the book delve into the microcosmic slow life of plants that live on other plants in temperate rainforest: mainly lichens and ferns. ("Shit that lives on shit living on other shit," one of the author's friends calls it.) It's an education and a celebration of the wonders of a kinds of plants that aren't particularly planty, but which utterly obsessed the Victorians to the point where they were destroying habitats by taking specimen samples back home. Many things have contributed to the gradual vanishing of Britain's rainforests. So much of what we could yet have is gobbled up by livestock, all thanks to laissez-faire grazing rights. It's been this way for hundreds of years. I was surprised Shrubsole didn't mention Thomas Moore's attack on sheep in the 16th century, in his book Utopia, condemning the rampant grazing practices. It's an old problem, but like all the others in the book, a solvable one.
That's what this book's all about. It's not perfect, but the ideas for how to restore a prized piece of the natural world are there.
A phrase keeps coming back throughout: "...if given half a chance."
February 27, 2025
Guy Shrubsole knows what he's talking about and not only this knowledge, but also his love and passion for the temperate rainforests (their existence, protectik and restoration) of britain are inspiring.
A brilliant book!
A brilliant book!
December 15, 2024
This is an interesting topic no doubt, and I’m better informed for reading this book, but I can’t help but wonder if there are better books out there on it.
Firstly, Guy Shrubsole is not a gifted writer. This work also lacked a competent editor. The use of the phrase ‘ancient British rainforest� or similar could account for fifty pages alone, and the opening chapter in particular is a repetitive mess which needed restructured.
I enjoyed the author’s enthusiasm. Informing us of the rainforests is one (very interesting) thing; telling us how he got there with such and such a pal is simply uninteresting. This only works if the author is famous.
This reached a peak when Guy told us how a friend did an impression of Gollum from a cave in Snowdonia whilst looking for a forest. Maybe Guy is easily amused.
Perhaps read Monbiot’s Feral instead.
Firstly, Guy Shrubsole is not a gifted writer. This work also lacked a competent editor. The use of the phrase ‘ancient British rainforest� or similar could account for fifty pages alone, and the opening chapter in particular is a repetitive mess which needed restructured.
I enjoyed the author’s enthusiasm. Informing us of the rainforests is one (very interesting) thing; telling us how he got there with such and such a pal is simply uninteresting. This only works if the author is famous.
This reached a peak when Guy told us how a friend did an impression of Gollum from a cave in Snowdonia whilst looking for a forest. Maybe Guy is easily amused.
Perhaps read Monbiot’s Feral instead.
January 25, 2024
I really liked everything this book said - the delve into mythology, the history of Britain’s landscape, the adventures of the author�. Until it felt like he was telling me the same thing over and over again. I felt like each chapter was basically the same as before but with a slightly different shade. It could have been a 10,000 word essay, but instead I slogged through the book for 2 weeks (slow). Ah well. I’m still kinda glad I read it? Just wish I’d had other books on the go at the same time.
December 21, 2022
Fairly interesting, nice descriptions. Made me want to go walking in the woods, but not to petition the government about farming, which I think he wants me to do. An enjoyable and calming audiobook experience.
May 13, 2024
Listened to the audiobook by the author itself. My mind is blown learning about temperate rainforests of Britain and a people whose heritage is engraved in its ancient woods. A lot of this knowledge will guide my upcoming PhD "Forgotten Forests". I can't wait to hopefully work with Shrubsole!!!
July 13, 2024
While 'The Lost Rainforests of Britain' is no doubt an interesting read, the whole book felt like it could have been summised in a long article. Many chapters feel like we're trailing along in the author's day to day life while he's researching this book, and thus 'Lost Rainforests' feels repetitive and somewhat sloggish.
Nonetheless, Shrubsole did educate me on the history of britains rainforests, how they became so close to extinction (overfarming, disregard for the environment, and... sheep), and how we can regain them rather than just maintain what remains. Also, the cover art is beautiful.
“Destroying rainforest for economic gain is like burning a Renaissance painting to cook a meal.� � E.O. Wilson
Nonetheless, Shrubsole did educate me on the history of britains rainforests, how they became so close to extinction (overfarming, disregard for the environment, and... sheep), and how we can regain them rather than just maintain what remains. Also, the cover art is beautiful.
“Destroying rainforest for economic gain is like burning a Renaissance painting to cook a meal.� � E.O. Wilson
January 14, 2025
Excellent stuff. Really nice to have coincidentally visited Dartmoor last year and to recognise a lot of the places!
July 10, 2024
I’ve been heart sick over our lost forests for a long time, must be the celt blood in my veins. I guarantee this book will make you see Britain afresh. Informative and beautifully written.
March 9, 2025
Earlier this year I read James Rebank’s English Pastoral, a beautifully written and compelling account of how industrialised farming had ruined the countryside which laid out how that might be rectified to benefit rural communities.
Rebanks is a farmer from a farming family and he loves the land but he is also profoundly practical which gives him credibility.
It was interesting then to read Guy Shrubsole’s The Lost Rainforests of Britain. In ancient times the entire west coast of Britain was covered by temperate rain forests. Shrubsole travels around looking at some of the fragments that remain.
Yet though these fragments could be protected and restored restoring them completely would involve reversing not just the industrial revolution but also the process by which humans first cleared and farmed the land.
This might well make a sweet dream for stoned hippies after a good few spliffs, but to me, at least is not really a practical solution to anything. That's not what Shrubsole argues but he is no man of the soil and it shows. We need environmentalists working with farmers and understanding their perspective. If we are to tackle the climate crisis I’d rather we followed the common sense guidance of people like Rebanks.
Rebanks is a farmer from a farming family and he loves the land but he is also profoundly practical which gives him credibility.
It was interesting then to read Guy Shrubsole’s The Lost Rainforests of Britain. In ancient times the entire west coast of Britain was covered by temperate rain forests. Shrubsole travels around looking at some of the fragments that remain.
Yet though these fragments could be protected and restored restoring them completely would involve reversing not just the industrial revolution but also the process by which humans first cleared and farmed the land.
This might well make a sweet dream for stoned hippies after a good few spliffs, but to me, at least is not really a practical solution to anything. That's not what Shrubsole argues but he is no man of the soil and it shows. We need environmentalists working with farmers and understanding their perspective. If we are to tackle the climate crisis I’d rather we followed the common sense guidance of people like Rebanks.
December 21, 2024
This took some reading but was worthwhile and I’ve learned a lot in the process. Obviously mainly about the temperate rainforests that we still have in Britain, and about those that we’ve lost. I feel that I should have known more about them already but this book plugged the gap well.
A few sections that I highlighted
“the term 'Gaelic' itself derives from a word meaning 'forest people. The Clearances not only removed people from the land; they sundered their connection to nature. The landowners who expelled them introduced ecological monocultures in their place, for profit and sport. Sheep, deer and rhododendron ravaged many of the surviving rainforests, erasing places once cherished by the Gaelic-speaking peoples who lived in their midst. Given such a heritage, restoring Scotland's rainforests seems less like an exotic imposition and more a mission of national reclamation.�
“rainforest restoration has be done with people at its heart. If we're to bring back our lost rainforests, it'll prove impossible to do so without the active engagement of the communities who live in and around them: the people who will walk in them, root out invasive species, mend fences, cull deer, plant trees, nurture saplings. In short, the people who will love them and care for them.�
I wish I’d taken more notes about the percentages that should be rainforests as compared to those that are. I might try and find them actually.
The coda has some useful resources to refer to, from organisations who are working in the area, to botanists to follow.
A few sections that I highlighted
“the term 'Gaelic' itself derives from a word meaning 'forest people. The Clearances not only removed people from the land; they sundered their connection to nature. The landowners who expelled them introduced ecological monocultures in their place, for profit and sport. Sheep, deer and rhododendron ravaged many of the surviving rainforests, erasing places once cherished by the Gaelic-speaking peoples who lived in their midst. Given such a heritage, restoring Scotland's rainforests seems less like an exotic imposition and more a mission of national reclamation.�
“rainforest restoration has be done with people at its heart. If we're to bring back our lost rainforests, it'll prove impossible to do so without the active engagement of the communities who live in and around them: the people who will walk in them, root out invasive species, mend fences, cull deer, plant trees, nurture saplings. In short, the people who will love them and care for them.�
I wish I’d taken more notes about the percentages that should be rainforests as compared to those that are. I might try and find them actually.
The coda has some useful resources to refer to, from organisations who are working in the area, to botanists to follow.
July 13, 2023
The Lost Rainforests of Britain is a non-fiction investigation into Britain’s temperate rainforests. These are primarily located in small pockets along the western regions from Cornwall and Devon, through Wales and along the Western coast and isles of Scotland.
Author Guy Shrubsole puts forward a realistic case with positive solutions to help combat the climate crisis in our own back yard. I am sure that I am not alone in discovering that Britain had and has its own rainforests. However, like those in the Amazon, they are under serious threat. In Britain over-grazing from sheep and deer, coupled with fern loving Victorians, mass conifer forests and the introduction of Rhododendrons have endangered our own carbon absorbing ancient woodlands.
Turning the past around is multi-pronged; it’s not just planting more trees and effects won’t happen overnight but small comebacks are beginning and more awareness is needed if Britain is to restore it’s much needed rainforests.
This book has been on my wish list for a while and I am glad that I finally got a copy. It is very readable, while highlighting how our rainforests have been endangered. With more public awareness, I’d like to hope that our own rainforests can be part of our future.
Author Guy Shrubsole puts forward a realistic case with positive solutions to help combat the climate crisis in our own back yard. I am sure that I am not alone in discovering that Britain had and has its own rainforests. However, like those in the Amazon, they are under serious threat. In Britain over-grazing from sheep and deer, coupled with fern loving Victorians, mass conifer forests and the introduction of Rhododendrons have endangered our own carbon absorbing ancient woodlands.
Turning the past around is multi-pronged; it’s not just planting more trees and effects won’t happen overnight but small comebacks are beginning and more awareness is needed if Britain is to restore it’s much needed rainforests.
This book has been on my wish list for a while and I am glad that I finally got a copy. It is very readable, while highlighting how our rainforests have been endangered. With more public awareness, I’d like to hope that our own rainforests can be part of our future.
July 29, 2023
A brilliant book about the sometimes not so lost rainforests of Britain. Having been to many of the places described, it breaks my heart how much they are under threat and how much work has to be put into saving them. If you'd like to learn more about the UK, its native rainforests, which are not tropical, go read this book. It will tell you a lot about geography, climate change and Victorians fucking up the UK by bringing invasive species (fuck rhododendron, I know rich coming from me who also has it in her garden). I learned a lot, well written, informative, just very well done. 5 stars
May 18, 2023
Highly readable book with lots of practical calls to action. I love this guy and agree with everything he says. Also it was nice to read some compelling nature writing, I usually find it too dry to stick with, even though I’m so interested in the subject, but this was a different story. Full of facts and figures but also very human and accessible; tales of ancient Welsh woods and landowner skirmishes keep it interesting! Love love love- I want everyone to read it and then we can get our rainforests back?!
September 17, 2024
It’s not the book’s fault - well written and researched it just turns out I’m not that interested in lichens
But the general message that temperate rainforests need restoring is important
But the general message that temperate rainforests need restoring is important
Read
April 15, 2025Beautiful book, and so uplifting to learn Britain has an incredible rainforest ecosystem. Also energising to know that these spaces can grow rapidly by being given room and relief from grazing pressures.
Emphases the importance of moving from a sheep-based livestock preference to cattle and leveraging subsidies to support farmers in the transition away from high levels of meat consumption.
Bracken and other AWIs can leave behind signs of forestation in ‘Ghost Forests�.
Introduction of apex predators has a downward pressure on deer numbers and activity through the creation of a ‘landscape of fear�, controlling browning habits and extents. We need less than 3 deer per square KM to allow for woods to regenerate.
EPIPHYTES BABY
Emphases the importance of moving from a sheep-based livestock preference to cattle and leveraging subsidies to support farmers in the transition away from high levels of meat consumption.
Bracken and other AWIs can leave behind signs of forestation in ‘Ghost Forests�.
Introduction of apex predators has a downward pressure on deer numbers and activity through the creation of a ‘landscape of fear�, controlling browning habits and extents. We need less than 3 deer per square KM to allow for woods to regenerate.
EPIPHYTES BABY
September 15, 2023
This is an almost desperate call to action and it has drawn me right along with it.
April 8, 2025
Slow one, very beautifully written but did not always have my attention. Lots to think about, mainly sheep
June 25, 2023
Dwells at times, much of the same. But a very interesting read with gorgeous photographs by the author.
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