Extinction, Invasion, and Belong essay

Extinction, Invasion, and Belong

Collectively, these readings examine the place of human and non-human beings in the natural setting and how the concept of belonging enables some creatures to be considered as being more important than others.  These readings by Emma Maris, Karen Middleton, and Jill Constantino all seem to examine the themes of existence, belonging, the human-nonhuman conflicts, endemism, and extinction of species, sustainability, and conservation, the role of scientists and conservationists and saving the exotic species of the natural environment.

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Summary of Jill Constantino’s Article

According to this author, it is the whalers, buccaneers and conquistadors who are considered as among the first visitors to the Galapagos Islands.  They later formed settlement colonies and in the following centuries, fishing and tourism have flourished in the island. However, it is unfortunate that the human beings inhabiting the island do not have the full rights to exploit the resources on the island. Instead, due to the conservation efforts for the non-human creatures such as the tortoise going on in the island by international bodies and the Charles Darwin Research Station, these other beings have been given priority when it comes to belonging to the Isle.  According to the author, Charles Darwin’s theory of natural selection the contributions of these beings to the biodiversity of the island, and the animals’ unique behavior have all contributed to the value and fame accorded to these non-human beings on the Galapagos. In essence, because of this, “the 25000 humans who live in the Galapagos are less celebrated” (Constantino 91).  Thus, to gain legitimacy as inhabitants of the island and demonstrate belonging, the human fishermen identify themselves as being the native or endemic creatures of the island alongside the tortoises. They also gain recognition by restructuring and criticizing the values that restrain their lives and dehumanize them. The author argues that though there may be an attempt to conceive of the archipelago as being a place without any human habitation and evolution, this comprehension of the non-human and human systems being distinct or autonomous is not only misleading but also precarious.  Alongside this struggle by fishers in the archipelago, the conservationists are vaulting the nonhuman species “to superhuman status; tortoises are anthropomorphized into dynasty rulers” (Constantino 94).

The other point made by this author is that the refusal by the Isabela’s to make an alignment with the nonhuman beings on the archipelago has led to them finding themselves “on the wrong side of natural history” (Constantino 95) and also face demonization by the international media as a result.

Summary of Emma Marrs’s Article

In her article, Marris identifies the problem of invasion of habitats by exotic plant and animal species in different parts of the world including the United States.  According to this author, these wild species of plants and animals are usually intentionally or accidentally transported by human beings as they travel from part of the world to the other. The problem with these “invasive species” is that some of them have awful traits that can have harmful effects on human beings.  As these species invade and habitat, there are several other consequences on the existing native plants and animals in a particular region. For example, as the invasion occurs, “the ecosystem collapses, species go extinct. Moreover, complexity and diversity are replaced with a monotonous and weekly landscape dominated by invaders” (Marris 97).  However, these exotic species may also be beneficial in that some of them such as the fruit bat and the songbirds on the Rodrigues Island play a major role in the pollination and reproduction of fruit trees growing on the island.  Also, it is not that all these exotic animal and plant species are all wrongas science is slowly discovering that some of them can have beneficial uses. It is also increasingly recognized that some of these species can be helpful, innocuous and well behaved and that there is no point in spending millions of money trying to get rid of them while they can be harnessed for their beneficial purposes.  Ecologists also explain the concept of invasive species through the idea that these plant and animal varieties are able ‘to thrive because they have found a land where their predators are absent” (Marris 104).

Summary of Karen Middleton’s Article

In this article, the author explores an event in the colonial Madagascar in which a cochineal insect led to a cactus species in Madagascar during the colonial period and how this must have been intentionally done. She argues that the eradication of this rare species of the cactus profoundly affected the lives of the local people in the country and also caused ripples in the nation’s political economy.  To her, the Malagasy cactus’ demise was motivatedby the exploitation of natural and human resources and the efforts by scientists to control the plant and insect.  The Malagasy cactus or raketagasy as it was locally known “was a necessary subsistence resource” (Middleton 216).  The loss of this plant led to the spread of drought in the affected region after the introduction of the insect.  According to Middleton, some informers she talked to during her fieldwork in Madagascar told her that it is the foreigners or the vazah who had introduced the insect that led to the death of the Malagasy cactus. The author argues that it is not a coincidence that the events leading to the demise of this cactus took place during the colonial period and under Marcel Olivier as the Governor of the colony.  However, he concedes that opinions differ as to the exact person or group of individuals responsible for the extinction of this plant.

My Own Analysis of Jill Constantino’s Article

This author’s article has both robust and weak points.  The first strong point is that the Galapagos island inhabitants are being treated less favorably than the nonhuman creatures such as the tortoises. Further, the author is right when he says that this treatment of the archipelago’s fishermen has led to some tension between the human and non-human beings.  Also, his other strong point is that this struggle has put the people of this island on the wrong side of history. On the contrary, one of his weak pointsincludes the suggestion that the non-human beings have more belonging rights than the human settlers. Moreover, it is not accurate to say as Jill does that to gain legitimacy; the fishermen have to align themselves with the tortoises. This is too demeaning and dehumanizing in itself. He, however, seems to agree that to get a sense of belonging, the humans have to struggle but disagrees with the notion that these creatures can be more important than human beings.

My Own Analysis of Emma Marris’s Article

Marris has strongly argued for the fact that given the changing nature of global climate and ecological systems, the exotic species considered as being invaders should not be prejudiced but allowed to evolve. For, they will form the new natural ecosystem of tomorrow when the native plant and animal species will have become extinct. His argument that ecologists should look at the valuable aspects of the species too is an important point that would help save these plant and animal varieties facing elimination. However, the author’s main weakness is that she does not provide alternative ways of dealing with plants and animal species whose existence threaten other native species.  She seems to agree that there is need not to prejudice these exotic species but does not agree that all of them are good for the ecosystem.

My Own Analysis of Karen Middleton’s Article

Karen’s strong point is when she argues that it was not coincidental that the elimination of the Malagasy cactus took place during the colonial administration when there was exploitation of resources by the rulers. However, the only weak point is that she relies more on historical fact than concrete evidence to substantiate her claims on the cactus’s disappearance. The author seems to agree that the destruction of the cactus species was motivated by political reasons but does not agree that it was necessary for the colonial administration to eliminate the Malagasy cactus.

Bigger Picture

These articles relate to the broader themes of sustainability, belonging, invasion, extinction and social tensions in the ecosystem in all of them, the authors have tried to examine a particular plant or animal species from a historical perspective. These authors have also related this historical perspective to the extinction, and belonging aspects.

Works Cited

Constantino, Jill. Tortoise soup for the soul: Finding a space for human history in evolution’s        laboratory. In Anthropology of extinction, Genese M Sodikoff, ed., 2012: 89-102. Print.

Marris, Emma. Learning to love exotic species. In the RambunctiousGarden, 2011. Print.

Middleton, Karen. Who killed ‘Malagasy cactus’? Science, Environment and Colonialism in         Southern Madagascar (1924-1930). Journal of Southern African Studies 25.2(1999): 215-      248. Print.