Book: The Secret Wisdom of Nature

Like Lewis Thomas' pivotal "Lives of a Cell" (1974), Peter Wohlleben describes the interconnectedness of ecosystems in short, readable essays. With chapters like "How Earthworms Control Wild Boar" and "Salmon in the Trees" the author draws surprising connections between unrelated species, and lays out the delicate nature of "the web of life." Farmers, ranchers, park rangers and ecologists who think they can alter an ecosystem to their own advantage usually end up causing unintended consequences, which can sometimes -- but not always -- be reversed by returning the park or farmland to its previous balance. When somebody thinks they have all the answers, they're always wrong.

It's a lesson few people seem to have learned.

A great example is The Great Barrier Reef.

Quote :

"We’re not saying the Barrier Reef is doomed, but it is on a new trajectory. The way it’s connected, the mix of species, it’s all changing.”

The cause of the collapse in coral recruitment is the death of adult coral stock.