Life at the Edges of the World
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Köp båda 2 för 531 kr"A globe-trotting, eye-opening journey to view and understand rare creatures living in some of the most extreme places on Earth. In the process Berger reveals how even these remote areas are being affected by climate change and people. One of the must-read books of the month."--John R. Platt "The Revelator" "At the top of the world, extreme beasts are perfectly adapted. We are not. Practicing extreme conservation pushes one to the outer limits of human capacity--to a point where only the heartiest of wills survive and death always chimes at your doorstep. It is these inhospitable landscapes where Berger finds adaptation and evolution at its most refined. This story is not about a quest to test one's bravado, it is simply to reveal answers to a series of scientific questions with a purpose to serve effective conservation at large. During these biological journeys to the ends of the earth he not only discovers unlocked truths but comes face to face with our own species, humanity, and perhaps answers the age-old question, 'Why should we care?'"--John Banovich, artist and conservationist "Publishers Weekly" "Berger is an excellent guide, a respected ecologist and a gifted storyteller. It's an important combination in environmental advocacy: scientists who can tell compelling stories can elevate their research outputs. . . . He opens our eyes to what it takes for such animals to cling to the edges of existence."--Huw Lewis-Jones "Nature" "Berger's encounters with wildlife take place under the harshest of conditions, and a major part of his story includes the rigors of getting to a site and figuring out how to study an elusive subject in truly brutal surroundings. Readers interested in conservation and climate will not be disappointed, but Berger, who writes with humor and self-awareness, also gives lessons on geography, culture, and politics. . . . For armchair conservationists, an expertly guided trip into remote landscapes that will hopefully spur much-needed action."--Terry Tamminen "Kirkus Reviews" "In language by turns lyrical, despairing, and hilariously funny, conservation biologist Berger relates stories from a life spent studying little-known animals. The touchstone of his work is the musk ox, 'an Arctic apparition, a Pleistocene remnant, ' which as a species 'define these turbulent lands, and an uncertain future' threatened by climate change. Berger goes to extreme lengths to research the musk ox and other animals living in inhospitable locales in Bhutan, Mongolia, Russia, and the United States. He is perpetually cold; equipment freezes, as does food. Tasked with reaching up the anus of a musk ox to retrieve scat at the source, he counts on the warmth to revive his numbed fingers. The people he finds, including Inuit hunters and Wyoming cattlemen, are often committed to saving the biological diversity around them, heartening Berger, who is adamant that, without human commitment, the species he studies won't survive. The narrative is sprinkled with quotes from early Arctic explorers and anecdotes from other scientists, with Berger's own wry humor added to the mixture. His experiences while wearing a bear suit to get closer to the musk ox, to pick one particularly delightful example, are pure slapstick. Informative and impassioned, this will be enjoyed by adventurers and environmentalists alike."--Terry Tamminen "Publishers Weekly" "The high arctic, the Gobi Desert, and the mountains of Tibet would seem to have little in common, but all are lands of extreme temperatures, rarefied air, and limited access to water. They are also the lands of large ungulates adapted to living in and with the harsh conditions and humans who compete with these animals. Berger, one of the world's preeminent field biologists and an eloquent writer, addresses conservation in extreme climates, asking the basic questions a scientist asks when doin
Joel Berger is the Cox Chair of Wildlife Conservation at Colorado State University and a senior scientist with the Wildlife Conservation Society. He is coauthor of Horn of Darkness and the author of The Better to Eat You With: Fear in the Animal World and Wild Horses of the Great Basin, the latter two published by the University of Chicago Press.