Once and Future Giants

Levy, a freelance science writer, discusses human impact on large animals ranging from as far back as the Pleistocene to the present and how these extinctions affected the ecosystems in which they lived. Most important, what do these historic extinctions and resulting ecological impacts suggest for the modern die out of large predators and herbivores such as tigers and elephants? We know that human pressure is driving many animals to extinction and are now seeing it also impact local environments in unexpected ways. The book tackles the often conflicting theories and research in such a way that lay readers can understand what scientists think happened in the past and what they see happening now. But the big question is whether we can reverse these trends. Levy outlines possible methods to save some of the living megafauna and rebalance ecosystems.