Monday, May 31, 2010

On The Memorial Daze

Extinction of Wisdom
The list of extinct species is too long for a year of posts.

So, below we mention only a few of those who died at the hands of "civilization".

These are simply innocent species of the Earth that were murdered.

Yes, they were murdered as they obeyed the laws of the environment, which are a subset of the laws of the cosmos.

What horrid ideology would actively promote the willing destruction of these valid members of the habitat, members that have something we need - the healthy environment we must have in order to survive on this planet?

What cognition would dare to call itself intelligent as it slowly smothers those it claims to love who depend on the natural world?

The answer is a mind that has become toxic with the intoxication of power, the amnesia of ignorance, and the lust of selfishness.

Extinct modern bird species come from many groups: Struthioniformes, Anseriformes, Galliformes, Charadriiformes, Gruiformes, Podicipediformes, Ciconiiformes, Pelecaniformes, Procellariiformes, Sphenisciformes, Columbiformes, Psittaciformes, Cuculiformes, Falconiformes, Strigiformes, Caprimulgiformes, Apodiformes, Coraciiformes, Piciformes, Passeriformes, Struthioniformes, Tinamiformes, Anseriformes, Galliformes, Charadriiformes, Gruiformes, Ciconiiformes, Pteroclidiformes, Columbiformes, Psittaciformes, Cuculiformes, Falconiformes, Strigiformes, Caprimulgiformes, Apodiformes, Coraciiformes, Piciformes, Passeriformes.

Enough of the old language, here are some modern names to go along with the art & graphics: King Island Emu, Elephant Bird, Upland Moa, Kangaroo Island Emu, West Coast Spotted Kiwi, Labrador Duck, Korean Crested Shelduck, Réunion Shelduck, Mauritian Shelduck, Amsterdam Island Duck, Saint Paul Island Duck, Mauritian Duck, Mariana Mallard, Finsch's Duck, Pink-headed Duck, Réunion Pochard, Auckland Islands Merganser, New Zealand Quail, The Double-banded Argus, The Pile-builder Megapode, The Viti Levu Scrubfowl, Raoul Island Scrubfowl, Himalayan Quail, Great Auk, Javanese Lapwing, Tahitian Sandpiper, White-winged Sandpiper, Eskimo Curlew, Slender-billed Curlew, Canarian Black Oystercatcher, Leguat's Giant, Tahitian Red-billed Rail, Antillean Cave-rail, Hawkins' Rail, Red Rail, Rodrigues Rail, Bar-winged Rail, New Caledonian Rail, Wake Island Rail, Tahiti Rail, Dieffenbach's Rail, Vava'u Rail, The Norfolk Island Rail, Chatham Rail, Réunion Rail or Dubois's Wood-rail, Ascension Flightless Crake, Saint Helena Crake, Laysan Rail, Hawaiian Rail, Kosrae Island Crake, Miller's Rail, Saint Helena Swamphen, Lord Howe Swamphen, Réunion Swamphen or Oiseau bleu, Marquesas Swamphen, The North Island Takahē, New Caledonia Swamphen, Samoan Wood Rail, Makira Wood Rail, Tristan Moorhen, Mascarene Coot, Fernando de Noronha Rail, Tahitian "Goose", Bokaak "Bustard", Colombian Grebe, Alaotra Grebe, Atitlán Grebe, Bermuda Night Heron, Réunion Night Heron, Mauritius Night Heron, Rodrigues Night Heron, Ascension Night Heron, New Zealand Little Bittern, Réunion Sacred Ibis, Spectacled Cormorant, Small Saint Helena Petrel, Bermuda Shearwater, Large Saint Helena Petrel, Jamaica Petrel, Guadalupe Storm-petrel, The Chatham Islands Penguin, Saint Helena Dove, Passenger Pigeon, Bonin Woodpigeon, Ryukyu Woodpigeon, Réunion Pink Pigeon, Rodrigues Turtle-dove, Liverpool Pigeon, Sulu Bleeding-heart, Norfolk Island Ground-dove, Tanna Ground-dove, Thick-billed Ground-dove, Choiseul Crested Pigeon, Red-moustached Fruit-dove, Mauritius Blue Pigeon, Rodrigues Grey Pigeon, New Caledonian Lorikeet, Society Parakeet, Black-fronted Parakeet, Paradise Parrot, The Oceanic Eclectus Parrot, Seychelles Parakeet, Newton's Parakeet, Thirioux's Grey Parrot, Mascarene Parrot, Broad-billed Parrot, Rodrigues Parrot, Glaucous Macaw, Cuban Red Macaw, Carolina Parakeet, Guadeloupe Parakeet, Martinique Amazon, Guadeloupe Amazon, Guadalupe Caracara, Réunion Owl, Mauritius Owl, Rodrigues Owl, New Caledonian Boobook, Laughing Owl, The Puerto Rican Barn-owl, The Bahaman Barn-owl, Siau Scops-owl, Jamaican Pauraque, Cuban Pauraque, Vaurie's Nightjar, Coppery Thorntail, Brace's Emerald, Gould's Emerald, Bogota Sunangel, Turquoise-throated Puffleg, Ryūkyū Kingfisher, Giant Hoopoe, Imperial Woodpecker, Stephens Island Wren, Bush Wren, Táchira Antpitta, Kioea, Chatham Island Bellbird, Lord Howe Gerygone, Mangarevan Whistler, Maupiti Monarch, Nuku Hiva Monarch, Ua Pou Monarch, Guam Flycatcher, Short-toed Nuthatch Vanga, North Island Piopio, South Island Piopio, White-eyed River Martin, Red Sea Swallow, Moorea Reed-warbler, Rueck's Blue Flycatcher, Chatham Islands Fernbird, Tana River Cisticola, Lord Howe White-eye, Black-browed Babbler, Rodrigues Bulbul, Aldabra Brush-warbler, Rodrigues "Babbler", Kosrae Island Starling, Mysterious Starling, Tasman Starling, Pohnpei Starling, Bay Starling, Bourbon Crested Starling, Rodrigues Starling, Grand Cayman Thrush, Bonin Thrush, Cozumel Thrasher, Black-lored Waxbill, Slender-billed Grackle, Bachman's Warbler, Semper's Warbler, Réunion Fody, Tawny-headed Mountain Finch, Bonin Grosbeak, Lanaʻi Hookbill, Pila's Palila, Lesser Koa Finch, Greater Koa Finch, Kona Grosbeak, Greater ʻAmakihi, Nukupuʻu, Hawaiʻi ʻAkialoa or Lesser ʻAkialoa, Greater ʻAkialoa, to name a TINY FRACTION of the extinct bird species.

Next Memorial Day we will list some mammals and fish, like the Bottom-dwelling Pancake Batfish to remind ourselves once again that we are destroying more species each year than at any time in our knowledge.

Frankly, it may already be too late in the sense that The Damage Has Been Done ...

The next post in this series is here.

3 comments:

  1. The next-to-last link in this post goes to a thread that has this: "There are species out there that haven't been described, and they're going to disappear" ...

    I guess we need a memorial to the Unknown Species We Have Murdered?

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  2. I wonder how long until homo sapiens joins the list? Can it possibly be much longer?

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  3. It could be that homo sapiens never join the list, but it also could be that homo sapiens join quite soon, in cosmic terms.

    If it is up to the elite of homo sapiens the answer is clear, but if it is up to the rest of us, the answer is still blowing in the wind.

    ReplyDelete