Completed Projects |
The charges are theft, property destruction, disturbing the peace, and battery. The suspects: animals. What’s going on, and who’s to blame? As cities spread into wilderness, animals respond by exploiting human environments—and they do so in devious ways. Foxes and squirrels snatch property from yards in the Midwest of the U.S., while bears in California and baboons in South Africa burglarize homes for meals. Some animal intrusions are mere nuisances, but others are major threats. Global travel and commerce help wild invaders cross borders and claim new territories. Asian carp are poised to wipe out the Great Lakes' native fish species; hordes of red imported fire ants are wreaking havoc in the southern United States; and aggressive swarms of Africanized "killer" bees are a potentially lethal menace in the Southwest. This entertaining sequel to Animals Behaving Badly is a cautionary tale that probes the motives behind the mischief. What looks like bad behavior is simply an animal's natural reaction to the growing human footprint on the planet. We ourselves are aiding and abetting Animals Behaving Badly.