THERE are 45 tortoise species left on Earth, most of them endangered. 鈥淭here is no group of vertebrates for which extinction risk in the 21st century is more real and more imminent,鈥� argues Craig Stanford, professor of biology and anthropology at the University of Southern California. As Stanford makes his case in this engaging little book, it鈥檚 hard to disagree.
In a world where rapid development places ever greater pressure on tortoise habitat and where humans covet these 鈥渞eptilian rhinos鈥� for their sweet meat and as pets, the only race that their slow and steady approach to life will win is the one towards extinction. Though Stanford promises 鈥渢o show that there are solutions to all but the most dire problems鈥�, his upbeat ending is depressingly thin. This book is more a work of prophecy than panacea, a soulful requiem for these extraordinary creatures.
The Last Tortoise: A tale of extinction in our lifetime
Harvard University Press