Lost Worlds: Adventures in the Tropical Rainforest
Language: English
Pages: 272
ISBN: 0300158335
Format: PDF / Kindle (mobi) / ePub
Perhaps it is not possible to experience all the mysterious sounds, the unfamiliar smells, and the spectacular sights of a tropical rainforest without ever visiting one. But this exhilarating and honest book comes wondrously close to taking the reader on such a journey. Bruce M. Beehler, a widely traveled expert on birds and tropical ecology, recounts fascinating details from twelve field trips he has taken to the tropics over the past three decades. As a researcher, he brings to life the exotic rainforests and the people who inhabit them; as a conservationist, he makes a plea for better ways of managing rainforests—“a resource that the world cannot do without.”
Drawing on his experiences in Papua New Guinea, India, Madagascar, Indonesia, the Philippines, Panama, and the Ivory Coast, Beehler describes the surprises—both pleasant and unpleasant—of doing science and conservation in the field. He explains the role that rainforests play in the lives of indigenous peoples and the crucial importance of understanding local cultures, customs, and politics. The author concludes with simple but tough solutions for maintaining rainforest health, expressing fervent hope that his great-grandchildren and others may one day also hear the rainforest whisper its secrets.
Irian. They were as excited as we were by the biodiversity potential of this province. Today, in 2008, we realize we are stilljust scratching the surface of Papua's biodiversity. We have made a lot of progress on the conservation front, which has led to the designation of new conservation areas. In addition, some of the existing protected areas have management plans and resources to ensure their protection. But there is still a long way to go. Getting the job done is the work of a lifetime.
a daily basis with the "dirt" on us. In retrospect we could understand why. Here was an ambitious Indian civil servant, who probably had dreamed of a power posting in Calcutta, Mumbai, or Delhi. Instead, he was sent to Itanagar-India's version of Siberia. One can only imagine the bitterness that might well up, seeking some form of release. Documenting our wrongdoing became this pseudonatural-ist's passion. He had little or no interest in the natural world and, with his suspicious nature, it
at the hotel, I gazed out the window of my room at the fluttering forms of the little white-rumped swifts racing by in small parties -so vital and animated. Below was an ornate three-part pool complex with lots of children and parents taking the waters, and a wonderful garden and forest plantings in the background. From my high window it had the look of some earthly paradise. My room in the Grand Hotel ofAbidjan was starting to seem like squatter's quarters. What I had learned from my trek
diminishing the place's friendliness. On this day in 1993 we were all quite satisfied to spend time watching some of the world's most beautiful birds shaking their booty for the ladies. The raucous cawing, the shimmering orange flank plumes, the unearthly postures of these birds of paradise, and the rich greenery of the ravine forest made for a memorable morning. Monday broke cloudy and windy, with a sprinkle of rain. It was our last day of preparation for the summer's field trip. Francine and
or roosters) are lovingly fed and handled and encouraged to fight in home practice bouts. Those with the most aggressive nature become favored gamecocks to be entered into formal competitions. Cockfighting builds on the pugnacious dispositions of these birds, a product of the species'social behavior. In nature, cocks of the Red Jungle Fowl (native to India and Southeast Asia) are polygamous and manage a harem of females. Each cock keeps his harem by driving off any other cocks who attempt to