Book Review of Ecological Imperialism

In his book, Ecological Imperialism: The Biological

Expansion of Europe, 900-1900, Alfred W. Crosby investigates the

roots of European domination over the western world. He calls

the places where early Europeans settled "Neo-Europes" with

special emphasis on North and South America , Australia , and

New Zealand . In his prologue he ponders whether Europeans

dominated their environment and other cultures because of their

technology, or whether the consistent “success of European

imperialism has a biological, [and] an ecological, component”

(7). Crosby ’s thesis is that Europeans were successful

imperialists because wherever they went their agriculture and

animals thrived; and the indigenous populations and local

ecosystems collapsed under their biological advance.

Crosby begins at the beginning, discussing the one big

continent, Pangaea, supposed to have existed in pre-history and

the slow development of life forms other than reptilian, in

particular Homo sapiens. The break up of Pangaea (this

hypothetical super-continent) caused the “the decentralization

of the process of evolution,” that is, when the land cracked

apart flora and fauna were spilt between the newly created

continents. That continental split is the reason similar

species are found in Europe and North America (11-12).

Eventually Crosby brings the reader up to the end of the

Ice Age. Ten thousand years ago humans were exploring the

islands of the Eastern Atlantic including Australia . Once on

these islands humans domesticated plants, piled up mounds of

garbage, spread disease, and hunted animals into extinction.

Normally the despoilment of indigenous flora and fauna occurs

over tens of thousands of years. In locations where humans

arrived with mature hunting skills a sudden extinction of local

plant and animal life occurred. These sudden prehistoric, or

Pleistocene, overkills were the first concentrated impact humans

had on virgin ecosystems.

The virgin ecosystem of Porto Santo Island was the

destination of Portuguese settlers during the 1400s. Porto

Santo Island was completely uninhabited and filled with

untouched flora and fauna. One Portuguese ship captain brought

a mother rabbit and her babies to the island. The rabbits loved

Porto Santo and thrived in the island environment. So much so

that soon the settlers were blasting away at the rabbits in an

attempt to exterminate the entire local rabbit population. It

seems the rabbits could not determine the difference between the

crops meant for human consumption and the crops meant for bunny

consumption. The rabbits won in this instance and for a time

the settlers moved elsewhere, “defeated by their own ecological

ignorance” (75).

The experience of Spanish invaders in the Canaries showed

them that no matter where they went, even if they could not out-

fight their opponents, Europeans could dominate their enemies

anyway. “In all these [new] places, the newcomers would conquer

the human populations and Europeanize entire ecosystems.” The

Spanish learned from their experiences in the Canaries that

their livestock and crops would succeed in these new

environments; they also learned they could easily defeat the

local natives without traditional warfare. The various

“plagues” and “sleeping sicknesses,” which the Spanish called

peste and modorra, killed off and weakened natives who had no

natural immunity to ailments common to the Spanish. In essence,

sore throats and colds were the winning weapons of the

conquerors; it was the flu that subjugated the Canaries (92-95).

The unfortunate natives of the Canary Islands , the

Guanches, did not survive their meeting with the Spanish

sailors. These previously isolated people died rapidly from

dysentery, pneumonia, and venereal disease. According to Crosby

“few experiences are as dangerous to a people's survival as the

passage from isolation to membership in the worldwide community

that included European sailors, soldiers, and settlers" (99).

When the Spanish conquered the Canaries the Guanches lost their

land and therefore their livelihood. Some Guanches joined the

Spanish army and went to fight in the Americas ; the Spanish

sold others into slavery. The majority of Guanches however died

of disease and the entire population became extinct (97-99).

Unlike the Guanches of the Canaries, the Maoris of New

Zealand did survive despite great odds. When invaded by

Europeans the Maoris assumed they would become extinct.

European rats annihilated the Maori rat, an animal that was a

food staple for the natives. The Maori fly might have help ward

off the incursion of sheep that quickly destroyed the local

flora, but invading European houseflies wiped out the local

flies. Clover took over where ferns had been, and the Maori

waited for their own extinction. The Maori population hit

bottom in 1890 but then began a mysterious recovery and 280,000

people claim to be Maori by 1981 (266-268).

In the 1500s Europeans arrived in the Americas with horses,

technology (weapons), domesticated plants (crops), farm animals,

germs, insects, diseases, weeds, and varmints. The garbage

piled up by farmers encouraged varmint populations (mainly mice

and rats) which spread disease and attacked human food supplies

(29-30). Crosby devoted an entire chapter to the spread of

weeds around the world. Weeds are not specific plants. “Weed”

is a general term applied to a plant that spreads rapidly and

encroaches on other plants. The study of where specific weeds

appeared and when, aids in tracking population movements. The

weeds brought by Europeans were actually another unintentional

imperial victory. Weeds repaired damaged top soils and provided

feed for livestock. “ Rye and oats were once weeds” (149).

“Weeds are the Red Cross of the plant world; they deal with

ecological emergencies” (169). “Weeds thrive on radical change,

not stability. That, in the abstract, is the reason for the

triumph of European weeds in the Neo-Europes…” (170). Weeds were

resilient and thrived in soils laid bare by European plows, and

damaged by drastically altered ecosystems.

European populations exploded in the Americas and Australia

. What distinguished these Neo-Europes were the large food

surpluses they generated. Neo-Europes led the world in food

production “relative to the amount locally consumed” (4). Other

cultures actually produced more food per capita and per hectare,

but the Neo-Europes exported more food than any other society.

Especially successful exports from Neo-Europes were wheat,

soybeans, pig products, and beef. Europeans consistently chose

to settle in temperate climates where their animals and crops

thrived. This was prudent and logical, it would have made no

sense for Europeans to settle in torrid climates where their

livestock would have suffered, and their favorite crops could

not be grown.

The wind also aided European imperialists. When faced with

strong winds the Portuguese marinheiros, true sailors, did not

turn around and go home or sit sail-less in the water until the

winds changed. Marinheiros would “sail around the wind.”

Sailors would tack close enough to the contrary wind to keep

moving and then find a wind that they could use to continue

their course. The Portuguese who perfected this “crabwise

slide” called it the volta do mar, literally “going back to the

sea”. This understanding of winds allowed marinheiros to sail

out on trade winds and back home on the westerlies (116-119).

Smallpox was the big killer of the Aztecs and the Incas in

Peru ; the Huron and Iroquois in Mexico ; and the Amerindians of

the United States . Crosby claims the victories of the

Conquistadors over the Amerindians were “in large part the

triumphs of the virus of smallpox” (200). Besides smallpox

Europeans brought dysentery and influenza; those epidemics

killed almost the whole indigenous population of North America .

In effect, the domination over ecology and culture by European

invaders was more of a biological accident, than a well-executed

military takeover.

Virgin soil epidemics spread through populations who had no

prior contact with European diseases. These populations had no

immunity to protect them. Virgin soil epidemics had many

dramatic consequences. First, the epidemics effectively

committed genocide, killing entire populations of native people

around the world. Second, certain diseases (measles, influenza,

tuberculosis) effected people fifteen to forty years of age more

than others. These young adults were responsible for most of

the labor involved in supplying food, procreation, raising

children, and defending the society. The third and fourth

effects of virgin soil epidemics were cultural optimism on the

part of the conquerors, and cultural fatalism on the part of the

conquered. When Europeans arrived and slew their rivals without

raising a sword they believed that God must be on their side and

this belief affirmed the rightness of their imperialistic

actions. When the indigenous people died by the hoard from

mysterious ailments they developed a fatalistic view of their

own destiny and supposed the white man’s Gods were the more

powerful.

Ecological Imperialism is interesting, occasionally

humorous, and easy to read. Crosby accomplishes his goal of

writing a big book. This author presents a convincing and

encompassing explanation for the incredible success of European

imperialists. The book leaves the reader with more questions.

How aggressively imperialistic were the original conquerors if

all they had to do was show up and their opponents fell to the

wayside? Crosby argues convincingly that Europeans were

triumphant because the places they chose to conquer had

ecosystems and indigenous populations that surrendered to the

biology of the invaders.

START Amazon Review:

Review
'Crosby argues his case with vigour, authority and panache ... 'Ecological
Imperialism' could not ask for a more lucid and stylish exponent.' The Times Literary
Supplement

'The biological bases of radically changing historical ecosystems must never be

forgotten - and Crosby has made them intelligible as well as memorable.' Natural
History

'Required reading for politicians worldwide.' The Guardian

'Crosby has unfolded with great power the wider biopolitics of our civilisation.'
Nature

'One of the best illustrations of big history.' David Christian, New York Times

Product Description
People of European descent form the bulk of the population in most of the
temperate zones of the world - North America, Australia and New Zealand. The
military successes of European imperialism are easy to explain; in many cases they
were a matter of firearms against spears. But as Alfred Crosby explains in his highly
original and fascinating book, the Europeans' displacement and replacement of the
native peoples in the temperate zones was more a matter of biology than of military
conquest.

This book sets out what Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies does, but in
a less original way. It basicaly sets up a straw man by claiming that most people think
Europeans conquered the New World and Oceania through weapons but in fact they were
'biologically' programmed to win. This thesis begins in the 10th century A.D. But here the
author misses something. The Vikings that landed in Labrador and in Greenland were
unsuccessful. They dwindled and died out. SO if they were biologically programmed to
suceed then why didn't they. Inferior weaponry?

Then we jump ahead to the 16th century. Now the book misses another important point.
Only in North America and Australia were the natives completely decimated by disease. In
Mexico and New Zealand many of the native Aztecs and Maoris and Mayas survived. In
Mexico today most people are descended from them. It was the sparsely populated natives
that succombed to disease and this 'biological' issue. The conquest of Mexico and the mixing
of peoples has a parellel in the Arab conquest of North Africa or the Turkish conquest of
Anatolia. It is not simply a matter of disease and biology.

Thus this book falls short on several points. It is not an original thesis. It also suffers from
severe problems of history, in trying to curve the data to fit the idea.
"Ecological Imperialism: The Biological Expansion Of Europe, 900-1900"
by Alfred W. Crosby. Cambridge University Press, 1986.
The implication of this book's theory is that the Europeans succeeded in the "New" World
due to the imperialistic strength of European flora and fauna. European cattle and European
horses conquered the plains of both North America and Argentina, making them "neo-
Europes". When Columbus introduced the pig, (either inadvertently or consciously), he knew
that that the porcine animal species would "conquer" their local environment. The author's
excellent writing follows this theme throughout his book, but, in my opinion, he spends too
much time on New Zealand ... pages 217 to 268.

Yet, if the author's thesis is correct, the book becomes a disparaging comment on human
efforts. For example, compare the Pilgrims' landing in 1620 with the landing of Hernando De
Cortez (1485-1547) at Vera Cruz in 1519. The Pilgrims snuck ashore, onto that Rock in
Plymouth, on a cold winter's day. There was no one to meet them, as the locals (or
"indigenes" as Crosby likes to call them) had all been killed off by strange and new
diseases. The diseases were probably brought over by Englishmen; otherwise where did
Squanto, the Indian chief, learn his rudimentary English? (Just as my aside, if the Scots,
who first settled in Ulster, Ireland and then came to North America, are known as Scots-
Irish, why weren't the Pilgrims known as "Anglo-Dutch"?)

In February 1519, more than a century before the Pilgrims, Hernando De Cortez landed at
the Rich Villa of the Holy Cross, Vera Cruz, with some 500-600 men, to face not thousands,
but hundreds of thousands. To instill courage in his men, Cortez burnt his boats. The
Spanish had to go forward and they conquered an empire. On the other hand the Pilgrims
occupied a dead village. In both cases, European diseases were the deciding factor, but the
achievement of either group was entirely different. Crosby's book treats them as if they
were equal.

I believe that Alfred W. Crosby has hit on something that bears further investigation. In the
late summer of 2004, I attended a wedding in Slovenia. As we drove through Germany, I
noticed goldenrod by the sides of the corn fields. I asked and I was told that goldenrod was
introduced as a flowering plant but was not doing so well in Europe. I wonder if Crosby's
thesis was borne out by the lack of success of goldenrod ...and other American plants?
Don't get me wrong: since I am allergic to goldenrod, I am happy it was NOT successful in
German farm fields, but why?

Alfred Crosby is widely credited for popularising the ecological dimension of the history of
imperial expansion. For this reason, and perhaps this reason alone, his book is worth a
read.

The book, first published in 1986, revolutionised the way we think about European imperial
expansion into the New World. How a few hundred disoriented Europeans armed with
spears and misfiring guns managed to overwhelm entire Inca and Aztec civilisations in the
early sixteenth century, for example. Crosby convincingly casts aside traditional political or
military explanations by attributing the astonishing Portuguese and Spanish victories to
bacteriology: how diseases such as smallpox and measles that the Europeans unwittingly
carried with them wiped out thousands of New World inhabitants, severely crippling their
defences.

The larger point that Crosby drives across is a profound one. Historical events - in this case,
European expansion and imperialism - can be explained predominantly by ecological factors.
In the clash of `biotas' between the Old and the New World, the Old World won.
Convincingly. Hence the presence not just of Europeans in the Americas, but also of pigs
and dandelions. According to this thesis, ecology shaped European expansion; creating
`Neo-Europes' in the New World that facilitated European migration, precipitating the
`Caucasian wave' from the 1820s to the 1930s. Unlike in most other histories, in Crosby's
ecological history, humans form the backdrop and inexorable ecological forces take centre-
stage.

Refreshing as this perspective is, the way that Crosby has rendered it is problematic in on a
number of accounts. By excluding humans from the picture; or at best relegating human
developments to the sidelines, Crosby emerges with a dangerously reductive picture of
historical development. Deterministic ecological explanations cannot alone account for
European expansion - after all, we must not forget that the first European transoceanic
voyages were motivated by curiosity rather than necessity. More problematic is the book's
implicit assumption that ecological influence was unidirectional. In concentrating on
explicating the Old World's ecological victory over the New, Crosby neglects to examine the
influence that New World ecology had on the Old.

Nonetheless, Crosby's work remains a landmark study that deserves a read. Moreover, it
packs a punch as a piece of writing - its lucid narratives and provocative assertions laid out
with the bold and elegant strokes of a master-artist. Yet Crosby's work is also increasingly a
dated study that has been qualified over and over by new works in the field, or in the
related field of environmental history. Those interested in the subject should by no means
stop at Crosby's book.

Book Review: "Ecological Imperialism"

In his book, Ecological Imperialism: The Biological Expansion of Europe, 900-1900, Alfred
W. Crosby investigates the roots of European domination over the western world. He calls
the places where early Europeans settled "Neo-Europes" with special emphasis on North and
South America , Australia , and New Zealand . In his prologue he ponders whether
Europeans dominated their environment and other cultures because of their technology, or
whether the consistent "success of European imperialism has a biological, [and] an
ecological, component.". Crosby 's thesis is that Europeans were successful imperialists
because wherever they went their agriculture and animals thrived; and the indigenous
populations and local ecosystems collapsed under their biological advance.
Crosby begins at the beginning, discussing the one big continent, Pangaea, supposed to
have existed in pre-history and the slow development of life forms other than reptilian, in
particular Homo sapiens. The break up of Pangaea (this hypothetical super-continent)
caused the "the decentralization of the process of evolution," that is, when the land cracked
apart flora and fauna were spilt between the newly created continents. That continental split
is the reason similar species are found in Europe and North America.
Eventually Crosby brings the reader up to the end of the Ice Age. Ten thousand years ago
humans were exploring the islands of the Eastern Atlantic including Australia . Once on
these islands humans domesticated plants, piled up mounds of garbage, spread disease,
and hunted animals into extinction. Normally the despoilment of indigenous flora and fauna
occurs over tens of thousands of years. In locations where humans arrived with mature
hunting skills a sudden extinction of local plant and animal life occurred. These sudden
prehistoric, or Pleistocene, overkills were the first concentrated impact humans had on
virgin ecosystems.
The virgin ecosystem of Porto Santo Island was the destination of Portuguese settlers during
the 1400s. Porto Santo Island was completely uninhabited and filled with untouched flora
and fauna. One Portuguese ship captain brought a mother rabbit and her babies to the
island. The rabbits loved Porto Santo and thrived in the island environment. So much so
that soon the settlers were blasting away at the rabbits in an attempt to exterminate the
entire local rabbit population. It seems the rabbits could not determine the difference
between the crops meant for human consumption and the crops meant for bunny
consumption. The rabbits won in this instance and for a time the settlers moved elsewhere,
"defeated by their own ecological ignorance."
The experience of Spanish invaders in the Canaries showed them that no matter where they
went, even if they could not out-fight their opponents, Europeans could dominate their
enemies anyway. "In all these [new] places, the newcomers would conquer the human
populations and Europeanize entire ecosystems." The Spanish learned from their
experiences in the Canaries that their livestock and crops would succeed in these new
environments; they also learned they could easily defeat the local natives without traditional
warfare. The various "plagues" and "sleeping sicknesses," which the Spanish called peste
and modorra, killed off and weakened natives who had no natural immunity to ailments
common to the Spanish. In essence, sore throats and colds were the winning weapons of
the conquerors; it was the flu that subjugated the Canaries.
The unfortunate natives of the Canary Islands , the Guanches, did not survive their meeting
with the Spanish sailors. These previously isolated people died rapidly from dysentery,
pneumonia, and venereal disease. According to Crosby "few experiences are as dangerous
to a people's survival as the passage from isolation to membership in the worldwide
community that included European sailors, soldiers, and settlers." When the Spanish
conquered the Canaries the Guanches lost their land and therefore their livelihood. Some
Guanches joined the Spanish army and went to fight in the Americas ; the Spanish sold
others into slavery. The majority of Guanches however died of disease and the entire
population became extinct.
Unlike the Guanches of the Canaries, the Maoris of New Zealand did survive despite great
odds. When invaded by Europeans the Maoris assumed they would become extinct.
European rats annihilated the Maori rat, an animal that was a food staple for the natives.
The Maori fly might have help ward off the incursion of sheep that quickly destroyed the
local flora, but invading European houseflies wiped out the local flies. Clover took over
where ferns had been, and the Maori waited for their own extinction. The Maori population
hit bottom in 1890 but then began a mysterious recovery and 280,000 people claim to be
Maori by 1981.
In the 1500s Europeans arrived in the Americas with horses, technology (weapons),
domesticated plants (crops), farm animals, germs, insects, diseases, weeds, and varmints.
The garbage piled up by farmers encouraged varmint populations (mainly mice and rats)
which spread disease and attacked human food supplies. Crosby devoted an entire chapter
to the spread of weeds around the world. Weeds are not specific plants. "Weed" is a general
term applied to a plant that spreads rapidly and encroaches on other plants. The study of
where specific weeds appeared and when, aids in tracking population movements. The
weeds brought by Europeans were actually another unintentional imperial victory. Weeds
repaired damaged top soils and provided feed for livestock. " Rye and oats were once
weeds." "Weeds are the Red Cross of the plant world; they deal with ecological
emergencies." "Weeds thrive on radical change, not stability. That, in the abstract, is the
reason for the triumph of European weeds in the Neo-Europes..." Weeds were resilient and
thrived in soils laid bare by European plows, and damaged by drastically altered
ecosystems.
European populations exploded in the Americas and Australia . What distinguished these
Neo-Europes were the large food surpluses they generated. Neo-Europes led the world in
food production "relative to the amount locally consumed." Other cultures actually produced
more food per capita and per hectare, but the Neo-Europes exported more food than any
other society. Especially successful exports from Neo-Europes were wheat, soybeans, pig
products, and beef. Europeans consistently chose to settle in temperate climates where
their animals and crops thrived. This was prudent and logical, it would have made no sense
for Europeans to settle in torrid climates where their livestock would have suffered, and
their favorite crops could not be grown.
The wind also aided European imperialists. When faced with strong winds the Portuguese
marinheiros, true sailors, did not turn around and go home or sit sail-less in the water until
the winds changed. Marinheiros would "sail around the wind." Sailors would tack close
enough to the contrary wind to keep moving and then find a wind that they could use to
continue their course. The Portuguese who perfected this "crabwise slide" called it the volta
do mar, literally "going back to the sea." This understanding of winds allowed marinheiros to
sail out on trade winds and back home on the westerlies.
Smallpox was the big killer of the Aztecs and the Incas in Peru ; the Huron and Iroquois in
Mexico ; and the Amerindians of the United States . Crosby claims the victories of the
Conquistadors over the Amerindians were "in large part the triumphs of the virus of
smallpox." Besides smallpox Europeans brought dysentery and influenza; those epidemics
killed almost the whole indigenous population of North America . In effect, the domination
over ecology and culture by European invaders was more of a biological accident, than a
well-executed military takeover.
Virgin soil epidemics spread through populations who had no prior contact with European
diseases. These populations had no immunity to protect them. Virgin soil epidemics had
many dramatic consequences. First, the epidemics effectively committed genocide, killing
entire populations of native people around the world. Second, certain diseases (measles,
influenza, tuberculosis) effected people fifteen to forty years of age more than others. These
young adults were responsible for most of the labor involved in supplying food, procreation,
raising children, and defending the society. The third and fourth effects of virgin soil
epidemics were cultural optimism on the part of the conquerors, and cultural fatalism on the
part of the conquered. When Europeans arrived and slew their rivals without raising a sword
they believed that God must be on their side and this belief affirmed the rightness of their
imperialistic actions. When the indigenous people died by the hoard from mysterious
ailments they developed a fatalistic view of their own destiny and supposed the white man's
Gods were the more powerful.
Ecological Imperialism is interesting, occasionally humorous, and easy to read. Crosby
accomplishes his goal of writing a big book. This author presents a convincing and
encompassing explanation for the incredible success of European imperialists. The book
leaves the reader with more questions. How aggressively imperialistic were the original
conquerors if all they had to do was show up and their opponents fell to the wayside?
Crosby argues convincingly that Europeans were triumphant because the places they chose
to conquer had ecosystems and indigenous populations that surrendered to the biology of
the invaders.

The most impressive and pleasant aspect of this new approach to world history is the non-
anthropocentric perspective Crosby adopts. He tells the story of the expansion of a tightly
connected group of European organisms, which includes humans alongside with other
domesticated animals, crops, weeds, viruses and bacteria.

The book shows that humans were the leading elements in this great expansion beyond
Europe and across the oceans - but they would not have managed to successfully invade,
occupy and dominate vast areas of the planet such as America, Australia and New Zealand
if they had not been supported by a powerful combination of fauna, flora and germs. In fact,
often enough these supporting organisms even took the lead in making the "new-found"
territories hospitable for Europeans. Once they had arrived to faraway lands with similar
climatic conditions as Europe - but with much less people, germs, domesticated animals and
plants - the horses, pigs, cows, sheep, bees, rats, weeds and endemic diseases carried by
European vessels began spreading quickly in these totally unexposed areas, and thrived
mainly by destroying the native organisms.

Another important point developed by Crosby is that this apparently aggressive invasion
and occupation of other continents was actually the consequence of a long process started
many thousands of generations before, and of which Europeans were totally unaware. They
were simply the ones most prepared and willing to cross unknown oceans (in fact, for
centuries they had to painfully learn all about winds and currents - for which many a vessel
with all its human and non-human crew had to be sacrificed) and settle down many 1000 of
kilometres away from their original home, because the "old continent" had become
overpopulated, deforested and overgrazed. Their "ecological imperialism" was in the end
part of their struggle to survive and reproduce (to the disadvantage of other human and
non-human organisms).

Thus, Crosby urges his readers to think of this propagation of certain humans and their
accompanying flora, fauna and germs in detriment of others as a natural phenomenon. In
fact, he often compares the European ecological expansion with an "avalanche" or a
"bursting dam", i.e., something that had to inevitably happen given the circumstances. In
this scenario, it becomes clear that these organisms were vehicles for a great "biological
revolution" (in the words of the author), where humans were the spearhead of the
movement - but hardly the all-knowing, dominant, free agents they mostly imagine(d)
themselves to be.
Crosby brought up an argument that I've never heard before - and argued it quite well. This
book has a wealth of well-researched information that documents the ecological dominance
of nations that underwent neolithic developments over those that did not. He also is very
careful to demonstrate his technical knowledge while at the same time making the book
accessible to all students of history. Loved it.

This book had a profound impact on me as a graduate student. At the time it was a unique
take on Western Europe's success at expanding into different parts of the world. Now of
course books such as Guns, Germs, and Steel follow similar themes. But Crosby was one of
the first to idenitify multiple reasons for European success from an advanced military-
industrial complex to introducing disease-causing microbes, as well as new plants and
animals. Reading the book, you feel that you are getting a more complete account of why
the West could so successfully expand.

Always lively and perspicacious, this clever book seeks to solve a seemingly trivial puzzle:
while historians have mustered a host of plausible explanations (weapons, diseases, horses,
etc.) for why Europeans spread so thickly into North America, Australia, New Zealand and
Argentina (the lands Crosby labels "Neo-Europes"), what could possibly explain why the
dandelion did so as well? The question doesn't appear so innocuous when it is pointed out
that not just the dandelion, but the European housefly, and feral pigs, and a horde of other
weeds, pests, crops, diseases and livestock from Europe followed suit. Quite often these
organisms, even the domesticated ones, raced ahead of European explorers themselves,
rapidly proliferating into vast herds and stands that the settlers themselves could not
fathom. Why was this so? Why didn't, say, Australian weeds, their seeds inadvertently
shipped back to England, eventually carpet the meadows and fields of Europe? To answer
this odd question, Professor Crosby begins his story with Pangaea--the great supercontinent
that began to split apart about 200 million years ago into the continents we now have
scattered about the globe. These "seams of Pangaea" then forced a radical divergence in the
terrestrial flora and fauna of the planet, and set the stage for the equally radical
convergence initiated when European mariners crossed these now mid-oceanic seams.
Crosby details case after case in each category: weeds, pests, livestock, diseases and crops.
He forcefully illustrates how sudden and overwhelming the ecosystem takeover was until
the suspense is too much to bear. What is the answer? He drops clues every now and then,
and the most explicit one is in the form of a quote that begins one of the final chapters: if
weeds are to be defined as those organisms that thrive on the disturbances caused by
humans, then humans themselves must be considered the primary weed of all. Here, then
is the answer: all the opportunistic fellow-travelers of the European diaspora are exquisitely
coadapted to the scale and pace of the continuous ecological disequilibrium characteristic of
the Old World civilizations--and they, in turn, furthered and helped generate that very
disequilibrium. Together--humans, horses, cattle, pigs, rats, clover, peaches, measles and,
yes, dandelions--comprised a potent self-replicating system, dimly discerned by its
contemporaries, that could not be stopped once it spilled across the seams of Pangaea.

Cogent, thorough, poignant. Masterful expansive work. Enough adjectives -- it was simply a
marvellous trip through history of earth and man, both in large strokes and in small detailed
case examples.
This is one of the most revealing books I have ever read. Crosby has made me gasp in awe
more times in one paragraph than I have reading most entire books. He explains not only
how Eureopean plants, animals, and people are in so many places, but how they got into
such a position, what advantages they started out with, which ones they developed, and
why they failed in other places.
His thesis is convincing because he gives several examples to prove his point, to show how
his theory worked in each of these cases. I wish there were more books that were written
so clearly and irrefutably. Written with the power of a true historian yet with the thrill of an
action movie, it's a rare combination of skill.
If you liked the subject of Guns, Germs, and Steel, you'll find this book to be even more
exciting and easier to read.
...A fascinating tale about how and why Eurasian plants and animals were able to out-
compete the local fauna in most of the rest of the world--Not just the Americas, but in other
places as well, such as New Zealand. Many specific examples. It helped re-ignite a long-
dormant interest in natural history that I'm still pursuing today. Very readable, and covers
the chosen topic in just the right amount of depth.

Alfred Crosby's "Ecological Imperialism" is a provocative, well-written and definitely

fascinating book. Crosby examines the reason Europeans were able to defeat the
Indigenous people in American, Australia and New Zealand. Crosby argues that the biology
and ecology factors played tremendous roles in their win. Crosy argues that the weeds,
animals and the Europeans best allies, the germs or diseases that they brought with them
to the New World dominated the Indigenous people. The Europeans sought to make the
New World as similiar to that of the Old World. It was interesting for me because we were
taught that the military superiority of the Europeans was the main factor. In addition, Crosy
also examines the unsuccessful attempts of the Europeans at dominating Asia and Africa.

Alfred Crosby is one of the few historians who have changed the way people think. Back in
the 1960s he got the crazy idea that the *biological* expansion of Europe into the rest of
the world was the real story of the last few centuries. His book, The Columbian Exchange --
Europe sent over people and germs and got back the biological wealth of the Americas --
was rejected by a dozen publishers. This book is a restating and resharpening and
amplification of this thesis, which by now is so well accepted in its basics that I was amused
to see some of the Amazon reviewers say there was not that much new here. In a way, I
guess they're right, but this book is nonetheless full of wonderful historical connections --
why smallpox caused the slave trade, why corn changed the history of Eastern Europe --
that you would never think of otherwise. I would also want to single out Crosby's writing,
which is dryly humorous and even moving on occasion. Altogether amazing stuff, this book.

Like any other book by Crosby, this one is pretty much a must for anyone studying
environmental history. The book goes into detail about how the New and Old worlds differ
and how those changes were caused. He breaks the books into several sections and his
noteworthy topics include discussions on disease, weeds and winds. At times, Crosby's
writing is a bit boring because he tends to repeat a lot of things, but this is just his way of
drilling important points home. Even if it may not be the most exciting book, it is very
informative and deserves to be read.
This is an excellent book on how and why the Europeans were able to conquer North
America, Australia, temperate South America (particularly Argentina), and New Zealand--
the so-called Neo-Europes, in Crossby's terminology. Crossby's thesis is simple: the native
biota of those places (including humans, of course) did not coevolve with the invaders, and
were consequently naive (i.e, unequipped) to deal with them. Or, put another way, the
invaders were preadapted to deal with the new conditions, and aggresively advanced, in a
teamlike fashion, to encroach the native biota. Crossby also explains why Europeans were
not able to conquer other places (such as Greenland, the Labrador region, and the New and
Old Worlds tropics), adducing mainly climatic reasons and the lack of technological
expertise.
To be sure, Crossby's arguments are not new. However, he does a great job at synthesizing
an incredible wealth of historical data. His style, oftentimes humorous, also makes of his
book an enjoyable read. I would recommend this book to anyone teaching a comprehensive
course on the conquest of the places Crossby deals with. It is a much neglected fact that
biology played a crucial role in expanding European culture.
'Ecological imperialism: The biological expansion of Europe, 900-1900', by A. W. Crosby, is
a cogently argued and well written book. The main thesis of the book is that the expansion
by Europeans to the Americas, Australia, New Zealand, and a few other enclaves (what
Crosby calls the Neo-Europes) wouldn't have succeded if the biota the Europeans brought
with them had not suceeded. This biota included not only humans, of course, but
pathogens, weeds and grasses, and horses, cattle, goats, and pigs, among the most
important. Crosby addresses the reasons why this biota was so succesful in the new
territories, and concludes that, in general, the climatic regimes there were sufficiently
similar to those of its European origins and the indigenous biota was so 'naive' that 'victory'
was almost assured to the invaders. To be sure, this is not an original conclusion, but the
wealth of data Crosby uses, along with his synthetic power and sense of humor, makes of
this book an enjoyable and thought-provoking read. People interested in searching for the
biological causes of the successes (and failures!) of Europeans in the world should read this
engaging book.

The Europeans' displacement and replacement of native peoples in the temperate zones
were more a result of "superior" biology than military conquest, according to Crosby in this
book.
Europe held an unassailable biotic mix that some native peoples and ecosystems could not
withstand. This biota fucntioned as a team wherever Europeans took it. European germs
swept aside native peoples. Europe's cattle, pigs and horses filled native biotic niches.
European weeds and agriculture squeezed out native plants. This biological expansion of
Europe created "Neo-Europes" which still function today in North America, Australia, New
Zealand and southern South America.
European imperialism often failed or was considerably delayed in areas where Europe's biota
could not prevail. In China much the same biota was already present. Africa, the Amazon
and southeast Asia were too hot, too fecund and too disease-ridden for Europe's animals,
plants and humans. These areas were among the last to be dominated as a result, and then
only briefly, when Europe's technology gave temporary edge to its armies.
I normally hate to read nonfiction. It puts me to sleep. Not so with "Ecological Imperialism".
It was assigned as reading for an "Exploration and Empire" class I am taking, and while I
have yet to finish the book, it is already one of my favorites. I'm sure I shall treasure and
re-read my copy many times in the future.
The subject matter is facinating, and while it has been fairly common knowledge to a limited
degree (we've heard about how the European diseases killed off Native Americans quite a
bit) the degree that Crosby goes into for the expansion of plants and animals, as well as
diseases, is remarkable and gripping.
Crosby uses sources from Shakespear to Darwin to support and give examples, and his
writing style is engrossing. I have never before laughed out loud when reading a piece of
nonfiction.
Heartily suggested to anyone, whether they have an interest in history or not.
Crosby's book describes the "Europeanization" of the natural landscape in the Americas,
Australia, New Zealand, and the Canary Islands. Fascinating case studies explore the
extermination of the <i>guanches</I> of the Canary Islands, the reseeding of New
Zealand, and the transformation of the North American wilderness. You will never look at a
natural landscape in the same way again: you will realize the degree to which American
nature has been remade in the image of European ideals, economic needs, and prejudices.

Crosby sets forth some basic principles that should be taught in every history classroom.
Not only does he discuss the discovery of the America's and the underlying consequences of
discovery, he also explains how similar situations occurred in New Zealand and Australia,
too. This book is well worth the price, and worth referring to a friend as well.

I am an undergraguate at the University of Mass, Amherst and will be graduating with a BA

in history. I read this book for a European Expansion class. I thought it was an excellent
overview of Biological expansion and was clear and consise. Crosby uses specific examples
and this book is definately for the intellect. Some of his ideas may seem basic, but his
connections are thought provoking. I give this book two thumbs up, it is a bargain at this
price.

Professor Crosby is both a historian and a student of ecology; I am neither, yet I thoroughly
enjoyed this book. It concerns the unintended displacement of the native plants and animals
of the New World by European species, which hitchhiked aboard the boats of Columbus (and
other explorers). Sound dry? It's anything but. Crosby has no less a story to tell than the
biological reshaping of an entire continent. If you think that humans have only lately been
responsible for environmental disruption on a global scale, this book will show you
otherwise. Our species is an integral part of our environment, and has been shaping and
reshaping it for centuries - a colossal process that has determined which food crops we
grow, what species of trees shelter us, what diseases we suffer, even what birds we hear
sing at dawn...In short, nature itself is largely manmade.
And if an epic, true story isn't enough to lure you to read this book, consider Mr. Crosby's
prose - clear, straightforward, even moving. This book changed the way I see the natural
world, and was a pleasure to read in the bargain. You can't ask for much more than that.
END Amazon Review