On the Backs of Tortoises Darwin, The Galápagos, and the Fate of an Evolutionary Eden

An insightful exploration of the iconic Galápagos tortoises, and how their fate is inextricably linked to our own in a rapidly changing world   The Galápagos archipelago is often viewed as a last foothold of pristine nature. For sixty years, conservationists have worked to restore this evolutionary Eden after centuries of exploitation at the hands of pirates, whalers, and island settlers. This book tells the story of the islands' namesakes-the giant tortoises-as coveted food sources, objects of natural history, and famous icons of conservation and tourism. By doing so, it brings into stark relief the paradoxical, and impossible, goal of conserving species by trying to restore a past state of prehistoric evolution. The tortoises, Elizabeth Hennessy demonstrates, are not prehistoric, but rather microcosms whose stories show how deeply human and nonhuman life are entangled. In a world where evolution is thoroughly shaped by global history, Hennessy puts forward a vision for conservation based on reckoning with the past, rather than trying to erase it.

ISBN:	9780300232745
Publisher:	Yale University Press
Imprint:	Yale University Press
Published date:	14 Jan 2020
DEWEY:	508.8665
DEWEY edition:	23
Language:	English
Number of pages:	xix, 310
Weight:	644g
Height:	165mm
Width:	243mm
Spine width:	27mm

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