How animals and plants are evolving in cities

Although this book is already more than 25 years old, it tells the story of rapid evolution (but in natural, not urban settings) in a compelling and gripping way. By following the careers of the famous biologist couple Rosemary and Peter Grant, the book shows us how field research is done (in this case, on the amazing Darwin's finches of the Galápagos), and how stunned the scientific world was to see that evolution can be observed, measured and predicted.

This website allows you to explore how a wilderness, the island Mannahatta, was transformed into urban Manhattan. There is a Google Earth-like interface that allows you to see how Manhattan looked and felt four centuries ago, before it was settled by Europeans and then let today's streets be superimposed on this natural landscape. You can select a block of the city and ask the website to generate a list of flora and fauna that must have lived there when, in 1609, Henry Hudson first set eyes on it, and scribbled in his log, "as pleasant a land as one can tread upon."

A series of videos, which together make up a feature-lentgh movie about the dark-eyed junco, a bird that has become the poster child for urban evolution. The story follows the lives of juncos in urban environments and the biologists who do field work among the joggers and traffic to understand how these birds are coping with the trials but also the blessings of a city-slicker lifestyle.