Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
For readers of An Immense World, this thrilling book unveils a new scientific technology that tracks animal movements from space and "could fundamentally reshape the way we understand the role of mobility on our changing planet."--New York Times
Animal senses are finely tuned to their environments. Rats are known to flee hours before an earthquake and birds to take flight before a tornado. Yet, animal movements themselves are rarely glimpsed by humans, save for a flattened patch of grass here or a snapped twig there. What if we could track secret animal movements all over the world? What would they tell us about how our planet is changing? Would humans be more prepared for natural disasters and disease? Could we prevent further species loss and climate catastrophe?
These questions are closer to being answered than ever before. As part of a groundbreaking new project called ICARUS, scientists all over the world have begun equipping animals with tracking devices that weigh less than 5 grams and are solar-powered. The data they collect feeds up to satellites and back to computers on the ground, creating a living map of animal behavior previously thought impossible to obtain. In this page-turning book, the founder of ICARUS, Martin Wikelski, shares this compelling story for the first time.
In witty, heartfelt prose, Wikelski reveals intimate and delightful insights into the behavior of animals from lone foxes in the Arctic to wild elephants in Thailand. He describes the exciting process of getting his project off the ground, from securing funding from NASA to tagging animals himself in remote corners of the world. Finally, he reveals what his research means for our future. ICARUS may usher in a new epoch more hopeful than the Anthropocene, an epoch Wikelski calls the Interspecies, when humans finally listen to animals and respond to what they have to say about the health of our world.
Synopsis
An illuminating account of animal migration and the stunning new science that reveals the source of their infinite, untapped knowledge.
What do animals know that we don't? Why do rats flee before an earthquake and birds before a hurricane? In The Internet of Animals, renowned scientist Martin Wikelski convincingly argues that animals possess a unique "sixth sense" that humans are only beginning to grasp ...
All we need to do is give animals a voice and our perception of the world could change forever. That's what author Martin Wikelski and his team of scientists believe and this book shares their story for the first time. As they tag animals around the world with miniscule tracking devices, they link their movements to a space station that taps into the 'internet of animals' an astonishing network of information made up of thousands of animals communicating with each other and their environments.
Down on the ground, Wikelski describes animals' sixth sense first-hand. On Africa's Serengeti plains, he watches columns of migrating wildebeests and zebras stretching 50 miles long, with each animal knowing the quality of grass consumed at the front of the line--even those straggling behind. In South America, Flamingoes head south just when they sense the weather changing thousands of miles away in the Andes. And in Angola, a flock of cuckoos meet only to separate--one going to the UK, one to Western Russia, and the other to Mongola--based on unique information about each destination.
As Wikelski shares his deep love of animals and what they can tell us, he describes each group's unique culture. Yes, animals have culture, just like humans. Their migratory rhythms are not triggered by genes encoded in their DNA but by elaborate cultures that are long established. What does this mean for us? It means that, by paying attention to animal cultures, we can learn more about our environments. We can better prepare for natural disasters, such as earthquakes, floods, and hurricanes. Most of all, we can learn to live alongside animals in harmony for the betterment of our future, their future, and the future of the planet.
Synopsis
An illuminating account of animal migration and the stunning new science that reveals their infinite, untapped knowledge. "A loving ode to science itself, told with wit and wonder.--Thor Hanson, author of Hurricane Lizards and Plastic Squid
What do animals know that we don't? How do elephants detect tsunamis before they happen? How do birds predict hurricanes? In The Internet of Animals, renowned scientist Martin Wikelski convincingly argues that animals possess a unique "sixth sense" that humans are only beginning to grasp ...
All we need to do is give animals a voice and our perception of the world could change forever. That's what author Martin Wikelski and his team of scientists believe, and this book shares their story for the first time. As they tag animals around the world with minuscule tracking devices, they link their movements to The International Space Station, which taps into the 'internet of animals' an astonishing network of information made up of thousands of animals communicating with each other and their environments. Called the International Cooperation for Animal Research Using Space, or ICARUS, this phenomenal project is poised to change our world.
Down on the ground, Wikelski describes animals' sixth sense first-hand. Farm animals become restless when earthquakes are imminent. Animals on the African plains sense when poachers are on the move. Frigatebirds in South America depart before hurricanes arrive ...
As Wikelski shows, animal migratory rhythms are not triggered by genes encoded in their DNA, as previously thought, but by elaborate cultures that are long established. What does this mean for humans? It means that, by paying attention to animal cultures, we can learn more about our environments. We can better prepare for natural disasters, such as earthquakes, floods, and hurricanes. Most of all, we can learn to live alongside animals in harmony for the betterment of our future, their future, and the future of the planet.