BOOK OFFER:
Pests and Pestilence
by Phil Lester
Offer Price: NZ$34.99 (incl. GST)
Pestilence’ is a word that conjures up destruction at a large scale. It can be a plague of ravenous rabbits, millions of wilding pines that swallow up landscapes, a virus that brings the world to its knees within weeks of emergence.
In Phil Lester’s new book we dive deep into the world of pestilence. We learn the stories of pests that are plants, animals and pathogens, and consider how we can manage their spread in Aotearoa and around the world.
The human movement of diseases and pests has affected every corner of the globe, even Antarctica. We need effective management approaches that cause the least possible harm, especially as our population grows and we become increasingly connected. Lester explores the problems of international movement, methodologies designed to limit the unintentional introduction of species across
borders, New Zealand’s biosecurity legislation, the limits and possibilities of eradication as a goal, the means of population control, and the management of pathogens in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Illuminating this discussion are stories of cats on parachutes, angry hippos, cannibalistic cane toads, and a cook who unwittingly gave typhoid to at least 51 other people.
Fascinating and lucidly written, Pests and Pestilence draws on many strands of history and science to ask how we can best manage the pathogens, animal and plant species that can do us harm.
'An engaging and well-illustrated insight into the impacts that pests and diseases have on the whole biosphere, and the challenges of managing them.' —Dan Tompkins, Director of Predator Free 2050
'Pests and Pestilence is in many ways the book for the age. It makes the point that all options have potential consequences, as does doing nothing.' —Travis Glare, Professor of Applied Entomology, Lincoln University
A professor in ecology and entomology at Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand, Phil Lester has published around 150 papers on invasive species and their management. He has specialised in the management of invasive ants and wasps and the parasites and diseases affecting bees. Phil has won Fulbright and Royal Society Te Apārangi James Cook Research Fellowships. He is an appointed member of the Environmental Protection Authority’s Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Committee, which considers the use of hazardous substances and new organisms for pest control in New Zealand.
His previous books are The Vulgar Wasp (2018) and Healthy Bee, Sick Bee (2020).
Cover photograph: Stephen Jaquiery
In this book, entomologist Phil Lester explores the wonderfully complex and sometimes brutally efficient life history of honey bees, and the problems they face in New Zealand and around the globe. What causes a beehive to collapse? Are pesticides as big a problem as they appear? What can we do to improve the health of our honey bees? With intelligence, insight and entomologist jokes, Healthy Bee, Sick Bee tells the story of this much-loved little insect and offers new ways of thinking about how to ensure they will stick around in the future.
'A very readable, enlightening text, interwoven with many delightful anecdotes and personal touches. . . . Incredibly well written, with persuasive evidence-based analyses. It will certainly change the way you view AFB and very potentially revolutionise the way AFB is both taught and monitored. I highly recommend this book.' —Judith de Wilde, New Zealand Beekeeper
'If you want to learn about popping bee penises (and honestly, who doesn’t), and where not to get stung, then this is the book to read. But obviously this book contains much more than a string of very amusing anecdotes. Phil Lester not only shows us his love of honey bees, but also his deep knowledge of everything that plagues them. I can easily see this book becoming the go-to-book for anyone interested in honeybees and their demons, large and small. Highly recommended.' —Prof. Madeleine Beekman, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney
'Lester’s book is an impeccably researched analysis of the health of the honey bees of New Zealand by one of the world’s greatest bee pathologists. Lester pulls no punches when discussing controversial topics like the effects of neonicotinoids on bees, or the (un)likelihood of eradicating AFB from New Zealand. Packed with anecdote and cautionary tales, the story is told with immense style. This will be a valuable resource for beekeeper and scientist alike.' —Prof. Ben Oldroyd, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney
More About the Author
Phil Lester is a Professor in Ecology and Entomology at Victoria University of Wellington. He is the author of The Vulgar Wasp (VUP, 2018) and has published more than 140 articles on invasive ants, bees and wasps and other insects in journals that include Biology Letters, Ecology, and Proceedings of the Royal Society. Phil sits on the editorial boards of several journals, including Biological Invasions. He has won Fulbright and Royal Society Te Apārangi James Cook Research Fellowships.
Cover photo by Phil Lester
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