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by the second decade of the twentieth century； the birds had been so relentlessly huntedthat only a few remained alive in captivity。 the last one； named inca； died in the cincinnatizoo in 1918 （not quite four years after the last passenger pigeon died in the same zoo） andwas reverently stuffed。 and where would you go to see poor inca now？ nobody knows。 thezoo lost it。
what is both most intriguing and puzzling about the story above is that peale was a lover ofbirds； and yet did not hesitate to kill them in large numbers for no better reason than that itinterested him to do so。 it is a truly astounding fact that for the longest time the people whowere most intensely interested in the world鈥檚 living things were the ones most likely toextinguish them。
no one represented this position on a larger scale （in every sense） than lionel walterrothschild； the second baron rothschild。 scion of the great banking family； rothschild was astrange and reclusive fellow。 he lived his entire life in the nursery wing of his home at tring；in buckinghamshire； using the furniture of his childhood鈥攅ven sleeping in his childhoodbed； though eventually he weighed three hundred pounds。
his passion was natural history and he became a devoted accumulator of objects。 he senthordes of trained men鈥攁s many as four hundred at a time鈥攖o every quarter of the globe toclamber over mountains and hack their way through jungles in the pursuit of newspecimens鈥攑articularly things that flew。 these were crated or boxed up and sent back torothschild鈥檚 estate at tring； where he and a battalion of assistants exhaustively logged andanalyzed everything that came before them； producing a constant stream of books； papers； andmonographs鈥攕ome twelve hundred in all。 altogether； rothschild鈥檚 natural history factoryprocessed well over two million specimens and added five thousand species of creature to thescientific archive。
remarkably； rothschild鈥檚 collecting efforts were neither the most extensive nor the mostgenerously funded of the nineteenth century。 that title almost certainly belongs to a slightlyearlier but also very wealthy british collector named hugh cuming； who became sopreoccupied with accumulating objects that he built a large oceangoing ship and employed acrew to sail the world full…time； picking up whatever they could find鈥攂irds； plants； animalsof all types； and especially shells。 it was his unrivaled collection of barnacles that passed todarwin and served as the basis for his seminal study。
however； rothschild was easily the most scientific collector of his age； though also themost regrettably lethal； for in the 1890s he became interested in hawaii； perhaps the mosttemptingly vulnerable environment earth has yet produced。 millions of years of isolation hadallowed hawaii to evolve 8；800 unique species of animals and plants。 of particular interest torothschild were the islands鈥櫋olorful and distinctive birds； often consisting of very smallpopulations inhabiting extremely specific ranges。
the tragedy for many hawaiian birds was that they were not only distinctive； desirable； andrare鈥攁 dangerous bination in the best of circumstances鈥攂ut also often heartbreakinglyeasy to take。 the greater koa finch； an innocuous member of the honeycreeper family； lurkedshyly in the canopies of koa trees； but if someone imitated its song it would abandon its coverat once and fly down in a show of wele。 the last of the species vanished in 1896； killedby rothschild鈥檚 ace collector harry palmer； five years after the disappearance of its cousin thelesser koa finch； a bird so sublimely rare that only one has ever been seen： the one shot forrothschild鈥檚 collection。 altogether during the decade or so of rothschild鈥檚 most intensivecollecting； at least nine species of hawaiian birds vanished； but it may have been more。
rothschild was by no means alone in his zeal to capture birds at more or less any cost。
others in fact were more ruthless。 in 1907 when a well…known collector named alansonbryan realized that he had shot the last three specimens of black mamos； a species of forestbird that had only been discovered the previous decade； he noted that the news filled him with鈥渏oy。鈥�
it was； in short； a difficult age to fathom鈥攁 time when almost any animal was persecuted ifit was deemed the least bit intrusive。 in 1890； new york state paid out over one hundredbounties for eastern mountain lions even though it was clear that the much…harassed creatureswere on the brink of extinction。 right up until the 1940s many states continued to paybounties for almost any kind of predatory creature。 west virginia gave out an annual collegescholarship to whoever brought in the most dead pests鈥攁nd 鈥減ests鈥潯as liberally interpretedto mean almost anything that wasn鈥檛 grown on farms or kept as pets。
perhaps nothing speaks more vividly for the strangeness of the times than the fate of thelovely little bachman鈥檚 warbler。 a native of the southern united states； the warbler wasfamous for its unusually thrilling song； but its population numbers； never robust； graduallydwindled until by the 1930s the warbler vanished altogether and went unseen for many years。
then in 1939； by happy coincidence two separate birding enthusiasts； in widely separatedlocations； came across lone survivors just two days apart。 they both shot the birds； and thatwas the last that was ever seen of bachman鈥檚 warblers。
the impulse to exterminate was by no means exclusively american。 in australia； bountieswere paid on the tasmanian tiger （properly the thylacine）； a doglike creature with distinctive鈥渢iger鈥潯tripes across its back； until shortly before the last one died； forlorn and nameless； in aprivate hobart zoo in 1936。 go to the tasmanian museum today and ask to see the last of thisspecies鈥攖he only large carnivorous marsupial to live into modern times鈥攁nd all they canshow you are photographs。 the last surviving thylacine was thrown out with the weekly trash。
i mention all this to make the point that if you were designing an organism to look after lifein our lonely cosmos； to monitor where it is going and keep a record of where it has been； youwouldn鈥檛 choose human beings for the job。
but here鈥檚 an extremely salient point： we have been chosen； by fate or providence orwhatever you wish to call it。 as far as we can tell； we are the best there is。 we may be allthere is。 it鈥檚 an unnerving thought that we may be the living universe鈥檚 supreme achievementand its worst nightmare simultaneously。
because we are so remarkably careless about looking after things； both when alive andwhen not； we have no idea鈥攔eally none at all鈥攁bout how many things have died offpermanently； or may soon； or may never； and what role we have played in any part of theprocess。 in 1979； in the book the sinking ark； the author norman myers suggested thathuman activities were causing about two extinctions a week on the planet。 by the early 1990she had raised the figure to some six hundred per week。 （that鈥檚 extinctions of all types鈥攑lants； insects； and so on as well as animals。） others have put the figure even higher鈥攖o wellover a thousand a week。 a united nations report of 1995； on the other hand； put the totalnumber of known extinctions in the last four hundred years at slightly under 500 for animalsand slightly over 650 for plants鈥攚hile allowing that this was 鈥渁lmost certainly anunderestimate；鈥潯articularly with regard to tropical species。 a few interpreters think mostextinction figures are grossly inflated。
the fact is； we don鈥檛 know。 don鈥檛 have any idea。 we don鈥檛 know when we started doingmany of the things we鈥檝e done。 we don鈥檛 know what we are doing right now or how ourpresent actions will affect the future。 what we do know is that there is only one planet to do iton； and only one species of being capable of making a considered difference。 edward o。
wilson expressed it with unimprovable brevity in the diversity of life： 鈥渙ne planet； oneexperiment。鈥�
if this book has a lesson； it is that we are awfully lucky to be here鈥攁nd by 鈥渨e鈥潯 meanevery living thing。 to attain any kind of life in this universe of ours appears to be quite anachievement。 as humans we are doubly lucky； of course： we enjoy not only the privilege ofexistence but also the singular ability to appreciate it and even； in a multitude of ways； tomake it better。 it is a talent we have only barely begun to grasp。
we have arrived at this position of eminence in a stunningly short time。 behaviorallymodern human beings鈥攖hat is； people who can speak and make art and organize plexactivities鈥攈ave existed for only about 0。0001 percent of earth鈥檚 history。 but surviving foreven that little while has required a nearly endless string of good fortune。
we really are at the beginning of it all。 the trick； of course； is to make sure we never findthe end。 and that； almost certainly； will require a good deal more than lucky breaks。
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