Comments on: What Is Truth?

By: Seal Away « Great Auk - or Greatest Auk?

Seal Away « Great Auk - or Greatest Auk? — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 22:45:22 +0000

[...] The temptation as always is to ask if it is hiding, but it’s just that, a temptation and a dodge. In any case, the example of its close cousin the Mediterranean monk seal shows that hiding doesn’t help; that species has adapted to give birth in caves with underwater entrances, to avoid rapacious humans, but they are still a contender for most endangered mammal and bidding fair for the distinction of second pinniped to be exterminated by humankind. The New Moon’s Arms has a plot that revolves around finding things thought lost; but it also deals with real, permanent loss. The main character can’t choose what she finds again, and past mistakes can’t always be fixed. Let it stand in memoriam. [...]

By: Palm Harbor, Florida: Electric Lizardland « Great Auk - or Greatest Auk?

Palm Harbor, Florida: Electric Lizardland « Great Auk - or Greatest Auk? — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 03:17:53 +0000

[...] suppose that after a picture like this, even if I do ever see an Ivory-billed Woodpecker, the ABA will never buy it. The dining establishment in question is Tarpon Turtle Grill and Marina. [...]

By: pinguinus

pinguinus — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 03:23:03 +0000

I’m glad you liked the Mermaid Story, Jochen – it’s based on fact, inasmuch as there really is a fake mermaid in a museum in Germany that is (no spoilers) made from those raw materials, but no one knows the real story behind it.

Mike – It’s a good book. You definitely should give it a look.

By: Jochen

Jochen — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 12:24:52 +0000

Having gone through most of Carrie’s blog posts and her Mermaid Story, that – Mike – is unlikely, but I am sure the book is still okay.

By: Mike

Mike — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 15:18:03 +0000

If the book is anywhere as good as this review, I’ll have to pick it up!

By: Jochen

Jochen — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 14:59:51 +0000

What does it mean to see something?
That depends on what is connected to the sighting. To you in person, seeing something might mean everything. As soon as others and their interests get involved and your seeing something might have an impact, seeing might not be enough to those outside you and mean nothing.

What is a species?
Okay, biological details aside, this depends on what you strive to find.
If you strive to see a living Huia, cloning will produce exactly this: a living Huia (if indeed it can be done). If a Marbled Murrelet per se will make you happy, it doesn’t matter where you see it. If however you want to experience the wild West Coast with Marbled Murrelets being a vital part of the picture you strive to grasp, a healthy population in Alaska won’t be of any significance to you if all you find in Oregon are toothpicks.

A species is an entity in a specific niche of an ecosystem and is thus not only defined by its genes but also by what it is to other creatures and its ecosystem. And that includes us as well: if to us the tiger is not only a neat striped cat but a vital part of our image of Asia, a captive population is nothing. If however all we want is to see an impressive cat with stripes, a trip to the local zoo might be satisfying.

I was being a smart-ass coward! That’s the easy way out of tricky questions: It depends…

I found “Something in the Mermaid Way” online. Quite a story.