Britain’s wildlife is in trouble. Wild creatures that have lived here for thousands of years are disappearing, because of pollution and persecution, competition with alien species, changing farming and forestry practices, and climate change.

It’s not just rare creatures such as the Scottish wildcat or the red squirrel that are vanishing. Hares and hedgehogs, skylarks and water voles, even the humble house sparrow, are in freefall.

But now, at last, there is hope. In Wild Kingdom, Stephen Moss tells a different story. He has travelled the length and breadth of the United Kingdom to see just how Britons are fighting back to save the wildlife they love. In Newcastle, he sees otters that have returned to the river Tyne and red kites flying over the Metro centre; in Devon, beavers on the River Otter; and in London, peregrines – the fastest living creature on the planet – which have taken up residence in the capital.

Elsewhere in the British countryside things are changing too. What were once nature-free zones are being ‘rewilded’; giving our wild creatures the space they need – not just to survive, but also to thrive.

As Britain’s wildlife begins its long, slow fightback, perhaps, Stephen Moss argues, we are beginning to realise that nature is no longer a bolt-on luxury – and that it is absolutely essential for our well being, both as individuals and as a nation.

英国的野生动物正处于困境。由于污染和迫害、与外来物种的竞争、不断变化的耕作和林业做法以及气候变化，在这里生活了数千年的野生生物正在消失。

消失的不仅仅是像苏格兰野猫或红松鼠这样的稀有生物。野兔和刺猬、云雀和水田鼠，甚至是不起眼的家雀，都在自由落体。

但现在，终于有了希望。在《野生王国》中，斯蒂芬-莫斯讲述了一个不同的故事。他走遍了英国的各个角落，看看英国人是如何反击以拯救他们所爱的野生动物的。在纽卡斯尔，他看到回到泰恩河的水獭和在地铁中心上空飞翔的红风筝；在德文郡，奥特河上的海狸；在伦敦，地球上最快的生物--游隼已经在首都定居。

在英国乡村的其他地方，情况也在发生变化。曾经的无自然区正在被 "重新野化"；给我们的野生动物提供它们所需要的空间--不仅是为了生存，而且是为了繁荣。

斯蒂芬-莫斯认为，随着英国的野生动物开始其漫长而缓慢的反击，也许我们开始意识到，自然不再是一种附加的奢侈品--无论是作为个人还是作为一个国家，它对我们的福祉是绝对必要的。