Richard Nelson (1)
Autor(a) de The Island Within
Para outros autores com o nome Richard Nelson, veja a página de desambiguação.
Richard Nelson (1) foi considerado como pseudónimo de Richard K. Nelson.
Obras de Richard Nelson
Foram atribuídas obras ao autor também conhecido como Richard K. Nelson.
Patriotism and the American Land (The New Patriotism Series, Vol. 2) (1720) — Contribuinte — 45 cópias
Etiquetado
Conhecimento Comum
- Sexo
- male
Membros
Resenhas
Prêmios
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Associated Authors
Estatísticas
- Obras
- 3
- Membros
- 273
- Popularidade
- #84,854
- Avaliação
- 4.0
- Resenhas
- 6
- ISBNs
- 117
- Idiomas
- 2
Nelson visits many areas in turn: first an island in Alaska where deer are being studied, and discusses the impacts of various types of studies in general- including whether or not their means are considered humane. (Some studies have deliberately allowed deer to starve, others subject wild deer to a lot of stress). He visits an island off the California coast, and another near New York, where deer populations have far outgrown the space, looking at the various methods used to attempt controlling population numbers and why they don’t work. He goes to an area of Texas that has a very healthy deer population, where the wildlife live alongside cattle on ranches (they eat different plant types) and then are thinned each year by hunters who pay for access- and it’s very specifically managed.. He accompanies several Wisconsin hunters on public lands, where the control is slightly different, and contrariwise, also goes along with a group of animal rights activists in a different part of Wisconsin, whose aim is to interrupt the hunters (very civilly done, I might add). The varied hunts include stalking deer through the forest on foot, sitting in tree platforms near open areas where deer might visit, and walking with a group of men on a drive across fields and hillsides. Finally, he visits farmland in southern Wisconsin, where deer are also hunted- in this case mostly to protect the crops. Which is a very serious thing- it sounds like not a single crop grown could be brought to reasonable harvest if deer are not fenced out (which is often impractical) or shot.
Overall I felt like this was a really well-rounded look at the deer situation, one approached with admiration for the animal, honest friendliness towards various types of people the author visited and interviewed, willingness to try and understand other points of view, interpretation of the science for laypeople like myself, and finally, a love for the beauty of the land and wildlife. I was struck by how time and time again, occasions were reported where deer that were troublesome in suburban areas were relocated in attempts to control their numbers- and what a failure that is. Some die of shock during handling, and most or all of the rest die within the first year of being moved. And it’s expensive. Birth control for deer doesn’t work, which is explained. Natural predators are for the most part missing, so it leaves human hunters to keep the population in check. Otherwise the deer destroy habitat leaving it unfit for other animals as well. Oh, and there’s a chapter about forest growth, and how monocultures of trees replanted after logging usually don’t support deer or other wildlife and why. The author himself personally witnessed the state of deer starving in winter in an overpopulated area; it sounds like the misery and suffering of the emaciated animals deeply affected him. He not-so-subtly hints that he disagrees with the animal rights people who assert that starvation is nature’s way of handling the problem, opining that a hunter’s precise mark which ends their lives quickly and gives them purpose as someone’s dinner (for a family, it can supply a year’s worth of protein) is a far more humane option.
This is one of those books I lingered over, then read through the pages of references in the back, to add more to my never-ending, always-growing TBR. Including now several other titles by the author which look just as good.
from the Dogear Diary… (mais)