All Creatures: Naturalists, Collectors, and Biodiversity, 1850-1950

Description

We humans share Earth with 1.4 million known species and millions more species that are still unrecorded. Yet we know surprisingly little about the practical work that produced the vast inventory we have to date of our fellow creatures. How were these multitudinous creatures collected, recorded, and named? When, and by whom? Here a distinguished historian of science tells the story of the modern discovery of biodiversity. Robert Kohler argues that the work begun by Linnaeus culminated around 1900, when collecting and inventory were organized on a grand scale in natural history surveys. Supported by governments, museums, and universities, biologists launched hundreds of collecting expeditions to every corner of the world. Kohler conveys to readers the experience and feel of expeditionary travel: the customs and rhythms of collectors' daily work, and its special pleasures and pains. A novel twist in this story is that survey collecting was rooted not just in science but also in new customs of outdoor recreation, such as hiking, camping, and sport hunting. These popular pursuits engendered a wide scientific interest in animals and plants and inspired wealthy nature-goers to pay for expeditions. The modern discovery of biodiversity became a reality when scientists' desire to know intersected with the culture of outdoor vacationing. General readers as well as scholars will find this book fascinating. Cover Title Copyright Dedication Contents List of Illustrations Preface CHAPTER ONE: Nature Natural History Survey Inner Frontiers Twilight Zones Impressions Conclusion CHAPTER TWO: Culture Nature-Going Middle-Class Vacation: From Leisure to Recreation Recreation and Natural Science Nature Essay and Diorama The Science of Art Conclusion CHAPTER THREE: Patrons Natural History Surveys Museum Exhibition and Collecting Museum Collecting: An Overview Research Museums and Their Patrons Conclusion CHAPTER FOUR: Expedition The Field Party System Communication Infrastructure Mobility and Automobility Conclusion CHAPTER FIVE: Work Work and Skill Pleasures Pains Careers Women in the Field Identity Conclusion CHAPTER SIX: Knowledge Species and Survey Collecting Taxonomists: A Natural History Subspecies and Practice Subspecies: The History Subspecies in Crisis Conclusion CHAPTER SEVEN: Envoi From Collecting to Observing A Changing World Biodiversity Revisited Abbreviations Notes Selected Bibliography Index