London's Changing Natural History Classic Papers from 150 Years of the London Natural History Society

About this book

Chosen from the many important contributions to the Society's journals, these papers range from 1916 to 1997, and cover taxa from algae to mammals.

Other papers cover topics such as a survey of four London churches made before World War II. Bomb damage to the city provided a window of opportunity to survey the succession of plant and animal life which the members eagerly seized and wrote about. The same was true of the bomb craters at Bookham Common, a site the Society has been surveying for over 60 years. The rivers hidden under London streets, the disappearance of starlings from Trafalgar Square, the effects of air and water pollution with their later amelioration, and the evidence for climate change are also the subjects of papers included in this volume. Photographs of some past members are included.

Most papers are preceded by commentaries by present members. Notable among these is a reminder of the many contributions that members of the Society have made and continue to make to Collins's New Naturalist series. Other commentaries provide a valuable conspectus of the present state of nature in London and highlight the challenges of the twenty-first century.

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