AFTER MAN ZOOLOGY OF FUTURE HC

First published in 1981, After Man is paleontologist Dougal Dixon's vision of an 'alternative evolution': one without mankind. In the foreword for this edition, he notes, 'the book was about the natural forces of evolution, and man … had too much of an influence …. With the removal of this interference I was able to let nature get back to work'. While some of the creatures seem fantastical, others don't seem so very far-fetched. Dixon: 'There are now the walking bats of New Zealand … (and) then there are the snakes in Mexico that live in caves and snatch flying bats out of the air, just like 'The Anchorwhip''.