Peter Marren

The real story behind the best-known—and least-understood—battle in British history. If ever there was a year of destiny for the British Isles, 1066 must have a strong claim. King Harold faced invasion not just from William and the Normans across the English Channel, but from King Harald Hardrada of Norway. Before he fought the Normans at Hastings in October, he had fought at York and neighboring Stamford Bridge in September. It was a year of dramatic changes of fortune, heroic marches, assaults by land and sea. This concise history, with maps included, tells the full story.

The Battles of York, Stamford Bridge & Hastings

1066

Three Centuries of Delight in British Butterflies

Rainbow Dust

Michael McCarthy

Jeremy Mynott

Nature took on a new importance for thousands of people when the coronavirus pandemic arrived in Britain, providing solace in a time of great anxiety - not least because the crisis struck at the beginning of spring, the season of hope and renewal; and furthermore, in an extraordinary conjunction, the spring of 2020 turned out to be the loveliest spring ever recorded in Britain. Three nature writers, living like everyone else under lockdown, but walking out each day to exercise, resolved to record their experiences of the coronavirus spring, in widely contrasting parts of the country. They did so to share with others their sense of the wonder, inspiration and delight the natural world can offer, and The Consolation of Nature is the enthralling account of what they discovered by literally walking out from their front doors.

Spring in the Time of Coronavirus

The Consolation of Nature

Like fluttering shards of stained glass, butterflies possess a unique power to pierce and stir the human soul. Indeed, the ancient Greeks explicitly equated the two in a single word, psyche, so that from early times butterflies were not only a form of life, but also an idea. Profound and deeply personal, written with both wisdom and wit, Peter Marren’s Rainbow Dust explores this idea of butterflies—the why behind the mysterious power of these insects we do not flee, but rather chase. At the age of five, Marren had his “Nabokov Moment,” catching his first butterfly and feeling the dust of its colored scales between his fingers. It was a moment that would launch a lifetime’s fascination rivaling that of the famed novelist—a fascination that put both in good company. From the butterfly collecting and rearing craze that consumed North America and Europe for more than two hundred years (a hobby that in some cases bordered on madness), to the potent allure of butterfly iconography in contemporary advertisements and their use in spearheading calls to conserve and restore habitats (even though butterflies are essentially economically worthless), Marren unveils the many ways in which butterflies inspire us as objects of beauty and as symbols both transient and transcendent. Floating around the globe and through the whole gamut of human thought, from art and literature to religion and science, Rainbow Dust is a cultural history rather than merely a natural one, a tribute to butterflies’ power to surprise, entertain, and obsess us. With a sway that far surpasses their fragile anatomy and gentle beat, butterfly wings draw us into the prismatic wonders of the natural world—and, in the words of Marren, these wonders take flight.

Three Centuries of Butterfly Delight

We are in the midst of an extinction event: the sixth mass extinction on earth and one entirely caused by mankind. All species become extinct sooner or later, but we have accelerated that natural process several hundredfold and now, it is happening right in front of our eyes. Extinction has a terrifying finality to it. And many species have already been lost to us forever; there is little we can do about that. What we can do, however, is love, reflect, acknowledge and remember. From birds to animals to coral; plants to fungi to invertebrates. We have to celebrate the world as it is, love the world as it was, and avoid despairing of the world as it will one day become. Above all, we must remain hopeful, and what better way to do that than revel in all the natural world has to offer, before we forget how.

After They're Gone

Richard Mabey

From sea squirts to slugs to Swallowtails, Bugs Britannica is the third beautifully illustrated book in Richard Mabey's landmark series, a companion volume to the bestselling classics Flora Britannica and Birds Britannica. Like those much-loved books, Bugs Britannica is not a biological guide but a richly illustrated cultural one, where British bugs are seen through the eyes of writers, musicians, artists, photographers and naturalists - from the great Tudor naturalist, Thomas Muffet (father of Little Miss Muffet) to Irvine Welsh's talking tapeworm in Filth - with vivid contributions and observations by members of the public, fascinated by creepy-crawlies of all kinds. Taking British invertebrates as its subject, the book is structured along a roughly evolving path, from simple cell life-forms - amoeba, worms, crustaceans (proof, say the authors, of `just how far you can go on very little') - to bugs we all might recognise - spiders, butterflies, bees - and back into the water to meet the molluscs and `almost-fish'... It works so triumphantly because author Peter Marren has examined bugs in the dusty corners of our houses and gardens as well as traversing mountains, lakes, fields and the seashore. He observes not only the fascinating habits of the bug world, but also the eccentric behaviour of the human bug obsessives. But, of course, the true heroes of the book are the bugs themselves: the nimble dicks, lady clocks, coffin-cutters and multitudes of others. From the Boring Sponge (its official name) to the Mermaid's Glove and Penis worm, via the Dark Crimson Underwing and Ruby-tailed wasp - this rich compendium of bugs is a must, not only for naturalists but for anyone who cares about the crawling, buzzing swarms which make up the estimated 40,000 species of bugs that live on or around Britain.

Bugs Britannica

There has never been an accessible and comprehensive guide to the names of our butterflies and moths, both English and Latin. This beautiful book, written with Peter Marren's usual wit and insight, takes you on a journey back to a time before the arts and science were divided. When entomologists were also poets and painters, and when a gift for vivid language went hand-in-hand with a deep pre-Darwinian fascination for the emerging natural world. Many have remarked on the poetic names of our butterflies andmoths. Their beauty fires our imaginations. Some are named after human occupations and social rank: Emperors, footmen, a miller, quakers, lackeys, 'rustics' and chimney-sweepers. Stillmore are named after animals: tigers, hawks, goats, sharks, even pug dogs. There are species named after jewels, musical instruments, fabrics, letters, carpets, flowers, heraldry andshells. Some names are downright baffling. Why was onebutterfly called an 'admiral' and another an 'argus'? Why, forthat matter, are they called 'butterflies'?The scientific names, too, contain many allusions. One wholesubset of moths is named after weddings. Another group is named after souls. A great many names are cherry-picked fromclassical tales and legends, often with relevance to a particularbutterfly or moth. Some names are spooky, even sexy. Or funny, for Latin names contain word games and jokes.

The Weird and Wonderful Names of Butterflies and Moths

Emperors, Admirals and Chimney-Sweepers

A history of the most successful, significant and long-running natural history series in the world.

The New Naturalists (Collins New Naturalist Library, Book 82)

A beautifully illustrated and accessible book on the naming of butterflies and moths.

The Naming of Butterflies and Moths

Woodland Heritage

This volume provides a comprehensive study of wildlife conservation in Britain, concentrating on events in the last 30 years of the 20th century. As our environment is subjected to increasing assault from climatic changes and pollutants, conservation has become a growing concern. The first chapter of this text considers the political and institutional development of nature conservation and reviews the physical and biological nature of Britain, its geology, climate and wildlife habitats.

A Review of the Conservation of Wildlife in Britain, 1950-2001

Nature Conservation

This book looks at the background and philosophy of National Nature Reserves and at the role they play in protecting wildlife and landforms, providing outdoor laboratories for environmental research and demonstrating the techniques of land management for nature conservation.

England's National Nature Reserves

A study of rare plants and their world in Britain. The author describes their discovery and the places they are found as well as looking at species which have died out completely, others which became naturalized long ago, and the discovery of new native plants in recent years. Conservation projects past and present are examined, and comments made on whether or not they have been successful.

Britain's Rare Flowers

This latest volume in the New Naturalist series provides a comprehensive study of wildlife conservation in Britain, concentrating on events in the last 30 years.

Nature Conservation (Collins New Naturalist Library, Book 91)

Mushrooms, the first of a major new series of books on British natural history, provides a remarkable insight into the natural and human world of fungi. Peter Marren, in his inimitable, relaxed style, guides the reader through the extraordinary riches of this often overlooked group, from the amazing diversity of forms and lifestyles that populate the fungal landscape, to the pursuit of edible fungi for the pot, and the complexities of identification thrown up by our modern understanding of DNA. Throughout the book, the author tells a story rich in detail about how we have come to appreciate and, in some cases, fear the mushrooms and toadstools that are such an integral part of the changing seasons. Marren also provides a refreshingly candid view of our attempts to name species, the role of fungi in ecosystems, and our recent efforts to record and conserve them.

The natural and human world of British fungi

Mushrooms

At the age of five, British writer and naturalist Peter Marren had what he refers to as his Nabokov moment, catching a butterfly and feeling its dust between his fingers. As he writes, The hands of 5-year-olds are damp and clumsy. When the butterfly slithered and shot out from between my fingers, I noticed that some of its colours had been left behind on my sweaty palm, like the imprint of a chalk drawing. I held my hand up to the sun and watched the particles shine and flicker: orange, yellow and black, in shimmery, summery specks....Of all the inconsequential things that happened to me when I was 5 falling down the rockery, piling cold Yorkshire sand into my Mickey Mouse bucket, sniveling over my uneatable school dinner this one stays bright after all the others have faded... It was a Nabokov Moment because only he could put into words what most of us can only feel: the frankly sensual moment in a child s life when the full force of nature is felt for the first time. It marks the first time when, to your vast surprise, the colours and scents and sounds of the natural world seem to imprint themselves inside you . Rainbow Dust celebrates the role that butterflies have played in engaging humans in the wonders of the natural worldin collecting, in taxonomy, and more recently in conservation. Mr. Marren is a gifted storyteller, and he in this literary net he captures the joy of discovery, the challenges of taxonomy, and the perils of climate change."

A Regional Guide to Britain's Ancient Woodland

The Wild Woods

**ONE OF THE GUARDIAN’S BEST BOOKS OF 2018** Join renowned naturalist Peter Marren on an exciting quest to see every species of wild plant native to Britain. The mysterious Ghost Orchid blooms in near darkness among rotting leaves on the forest floor. It blends into the background to the point of invisibility, yet glows, pale and ghostly. The ultimate grail of flower hunters, it has been spotted only once in the past twenty-five years. Its few flowers have a deathly pallor and are said to smell of over-ripe bananas. Peter Marren has been a devoted flower finder all his life. While the Ghost Orchid offers the toughest challenge of any wild plant, there were fifty more British species Peter had yet to see, having ticked off the first 1,400 rummaging in hedges, slipping down gullies and peering in peat bogs. But he set himself the goal of finding the remaining fifty in a single summer. As it turned out, the wettest summer in years. This expert and emotional journey takes Peter the length and the breadth of the British Isles, from the dripping ancient woods of the New Forest to the storm-lashed cliffs of Sutherland. He paddles in lakes, clambers up cliffs in mist and rain, and walks several hundred miles, but does he manage to find them all? Partly about plants, partly autobiography, Chasing the Ghost is also a reminder that to engage with wild flowers, all we need to do is look around us and enjoy what we see. Praise for Chasing the Ghost: ‘Peter Marren is the unsung hero of Britain’s nature writers’ Stephen Moss, author of Dynasties ‘Jolly, quixotic and ends with real poignancy’ Guardian ‘A poignant reminder to us all to engage with the wild flowers that grow around us’ i Newspaper

Peter Marren

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