A crew of three men sent to survey the ecology of a planet where a human had lived among an apparently sentient reptile race for decades find that his theories regarding the aliens and the planetary ecology don't stand up to rigorous scrutiny, and resolve to solve the riddle.
Word count is around 16,500, a novelette. The cover of New Worlds (US), July 1960 also describes it as a "novelet" [sic].
| Date | Publication | Publisher | Type | Page | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 1958 |
|
New Worlds Science Fiction, July 1958 | Nova Publications Ltd. | MAGAZINE | 4 |
| July 1960 |
|
New Worlds Science Fiction, July 1960 | Great American Publications, Inc. | MAGAZINE | 32 |
| 1961 |
|
Equator | Digit Books | Collection | 107 |
| 1963 |
|
The Airs of Earth: Science Fiction Stories | Faber and Faber | Collection | 184 |
| 1963 |
|
Equator | Digit Books | Collection | 105 |
| July 1963 |
|
Galassia, #31 | Casa Editrice La Tribuna | MAGAZINE | 3 |
| January 1964 |
|
Starswarm | Signet / New American Library | Collection | 53 |
| January 1964 |
|
Starswarm | Signet / New American Library of Canada | Collection | 53 |
| January 1965 |
|
The Airs of Earth | The Science Fiction Book Club (UK) | Collection | 184 |
| February 1965 |
|
Airs de Terre | Denoël | Collection | 185 |
| September 1965 |
|
The Airs of Earth | Four Square Books | Collection | 138 |
| 1968 |
|
Sterrenhoop | Meulenhoff | Collection | 74 |
| 1971 |
|
Starswarm | Signet / New American Library | Collection | 53 |
| May 1971 |
|
The Airs of Earth | New English Library | Collection | 138 |
| 1972 |
|
The Airs of Earth | New English Library | Collection | 138 |
| June 1973 |
|
Equator and Segregation | New English Library | Collection | 86 |
| June 1973 |
|
Equator and Segregation | New English Library | Collection | 86 |
| May 1975 |
|
The Airs of Earth | New English Library | Collection | 138 |
| 1976 |
|
Starswarm | Signet / New American Library of Canada | Collection | 53 |
| January 1977 |
|
Equator and Segregation | New English Library | Collection | 86 |
| June 1978 | Starswarm | Gregg Press | Collection | 53 | |
| June 1978 |
|
Sciame stellare | Armenia Editore | Collection | 81 |
| 1979 |
|
Starswarm | Panther / Granada | Collection | 63 |
| January 1982 |
|
Science Fiction Story Reader 17 | Heyne | Anthology | 172 |
| September 1982 |
|
Dunkler Bruder Zukunft | Bastei Lübbe | Collection | 89 |
| 1985 |
|
Starswarm | Panther / Granada | Collection | 63 |
| December 1985 |
|
Starswarm | Baen Books | Collection | 67 |
| December 1985 |
|
Starswarm | Baen Books | Collection | 67 |
| August 1990 |
|
Starswarm | VGSF | Collection | 63 |
| 2000 |
|
The Airs of Earth | House of Stratus | Collection |