In the 19th century, European colonists formed "acclimatisation societies" that tried to "improve" nature by releasing foreign species into new lands. The Jardin d'Acclimatation opened in Paris in 1860. In Australia, rabbits released in 1859 for hunting multiplied into a plague. In the US, around 60 European starlings were released in Central Park in 1890 in a story often linked to a man who wanted to import every bird in Shakespeare's plays, though the account is debated. Starlings now number in the tens of millions in North America and compete with native birds. The ecological and economic costs were huge.

Hampi is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Karnataka, India, with more than 1,600 surviving remains spread over 4,100 hectares. It was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire from 1336 to 1565. Travellers from Persia and Portugal described it as a prosperous, wealthy and grand city with temples, markets and farms along the Tungabhadra River. By 1500 it was estimated to be the world's second-largest city after Beijing, and probably India's richest at the time. In 1565 a coalition of Muslim sultanates defeated the Vijayanagara Empire, its capital was conquered and destroyed, and the city was left in ruins. Hampi remains a religious centre, with the active Virupaksha Temple at its heart.