A Short History of Nearly Everything-第105章

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ird　so　sublimely　rare　that　only　one　has　ever　been　seen：　the　one　shot　forrothschild’s　collection。　altogether　during　the　decade　or　so　of　rothschild’s　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“joy。”

it　was；　in　short；　a　difficult　age　to　fathom—a　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—and　“pests”　was　liberally　interpretedto　mean　almost　anything　that　wasn’t　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’s　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’s　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“tiger”　stripes　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—the　only　large　carnivorous　marsupial　to　live　into　modern　times—and　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’t　choose　human　beings　for　the　job。

but　here’s　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’s　an　unnerving　thought　that　we　may　be　the　living　universe’s　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—really　none　at　all—about　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’s　extinctions　of　all　types—plants；　insects；　and　so　on　as　well　as　animals。）　others　have　put　the　figure　even　higher—to　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—while　allowing　that　this　was　“almost　certainly　anunderestimate；”　particularly　with　regard　to　tropical　species。　a　few　interpreters　think　mostextinction　figures　are　grossly　inflated。

the　fact　is；　we　don’t　know。　don’t　have　any　idea。　we　don’t　know　when　we　started　doingmany　of　the　things　we’ve　done。　we　don’t　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：　“one　planet；　oneexperiment。”

if　this　book　has　a　lesson；　it　is　that　we　are　awfully　lucky　to　be　here—and　by　“we”　i　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—that　is；　people　who　can　speak　and　make　art　and　organize　plexactivities—have　existed　for　only　about　0。0001　percent　of　earth’s　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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