Life in the Balance [Hardcover]

Niles Eldredge (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 20, 1998 | ISBN-10: 0691001251 | ISBN-13: 978-0691001258 | Edition: 1

In ^ILife in the Balance^N, Niles Eldredge argues that the Earth is confronting a disaster in the making--an ecological crisis that, if left unresolved, could ultimately lead to mass extinction on the scale of that which killed the dinosaurs sixty-five million years ago. Writing for general readers, he reviews compelling evidence for this "biodiversity crisis," showing that species are dying out at an unnaturally rapid rate. He demonstrates the importance of maintaining biodiversity, taking the reader on a journey that reveals the twin faces of biodiversity--over thirty million living species ^Iand^N the ecosystems through which these species transform the sun's energy into life- sustaining matter. Throughout, Eldredge shows how our own fate is intricately linked with that of other species. Eldredge, one of the world's foremost paleontologists, begins by taking us to the heart of Botswana's Okavango Delta, considered by many to be among the last "Edens" left on Earth--a place where a rich assortment of organisms exist in natural equilibrium. However, it is also a place where the results of human activity--pollution, clear- cutting, water-diversion, encroaching agriculture, disease--now pose the same ecological threats that, on a worldwide scale, put the entire planet at risk. Eldredge then leads us on a fascinating exploration of the Earth's organisms--animals, plants, fungi, the microbes that underpin all life--and of the diverse ecosystems from the tundra to the tropics in which these organisms live. It is a journey that demonstrates the inherent value of the millions of species and ecosystems on Earth, and the importance of biodiversity to the entire biosphere and to humans' continued existence. Eldredge concludes that humans not only are responsible for the biodiversity crisis but also hold the key to preventing an impending Sixth Extinction. He argues that we must, among other strategies, pledge ourselves to sustainable development and the conservation of wild places. An eloquent and passionate account by one of today's leading scientists, ^ILife in the Balance^N will draw new attention to one of the most pressing problems now facing the world. In this book, Eldredge explores the same themes that illuminate The American Museum of Natural History's new Hall of Biodiversity, for which he is Scientific Curator. The Hall is scheduled to open in spring 1998.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Niles Eldredge lays it on the line in this book, which will probably not be read by those who most need to heed its message. Eldredge maintains that the human conquest of nature is resulting in the sixth mass extinction of life on earth. If we were coal miners, we'd be ignoring our dead canaries right now--witness the increasing rarity of amphibians, the mounting evidence of anthropogenic climate change, the wholesale destruction of the most fragile, biologically rich places on Earth, all for the sake of human desires. In textbook cases of the tragedy of the commons, he shows just how difficult it is to make holistic judgments in the face of individual need. Who would begrudge a starving child a meal of an undescribed and disappearing fish species? Eldredge doesn't spare greedy politicians and thoughtless industry chiefs, who apparently plan to continue selling us the products of environmental destruction until there's nothing left to destroy. The book's message is not without optimism, though, and Eldredge gives examples of how quickly some biomes can heal themselves given a little breathing room. The hope lies in control and moderation of our appetites, and in the celebration of biodiversity, the appreciation of underappreciated species. --Therese Littleton

From Library Journal

Eldredge begins in Botswana's Okavango Delta, which, in his opinion, is the closest remaining place on Earth to a true Eden. But even there he finds evidence of impending ecological catastropheAthe loss of biodiversity. Just scanning the pages listing known species extinctions since 1600 is sobering.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 232 pages
• Publisher: Princeton Univ Pr; 1 edition (April 20, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0691001251
• ISBN-13: 978-0691001258
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,816,027 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Okavango Delta & Dangers of the "6th Extinction" of Life, August 4, 1998

By 

Dr. Frank M. Sturtevant - See all my reviews

This review is from: Life in the Balance (Hardcover)

Dr. Eldridge, a curator at the American Museum of Natural History, recently directed a huge display on the biodiversity of life. His book reflects the science behind this exposition. It begins with a description of the Okavango Delta in Africa, as a model of our own "Eden." Subsequent chapters reveal the wide variety of life in a text understandable to the layman, proceeding then to the dangers life on earth faces in the destruction of biodiversity, leading to the "Sixth Extinction." (Readers will already be familiar with the rain forest threats in the Amazon basin.) Five prior mass extinctions of life on earth have been experienced, the last being 65 million years ago, resulting in the extinction of the dinosaurs (save the surviving birds). The Sixth we face with the destruction of earth's biodiversity as Eldridge points out.

1 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Man is not Supernatural, May 31, 2004

By 

Robert Carlberg (Seattle) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Life in the Balance (Hardcover)

Ozone. Spotted owls. Coral reefs. Frogs. Rainforest. Passenger pigeons. The bulk of this book hits the standard guideposts in the "save the Earth" argument, and as such it's well-written and compelling (with nice illustrations) but hardly original.

More interesting are the places where the author strays off the standard screed to discuss why the tropics contain more diversity, but fewer individuals, than arctic regions. How the Panama Canal is absolutely dependent on rainfall. Why a vacant lot outside Chicago gives hope for environmental recovery. How global warming may simply be part of a normal 12,000 year ice age cycle.

In all this was an attractive, well-written book with a lot of important information -- but somehow I expected more from the co-author of the Punctuated Equilibrium theory. Maybe that's not fair -- authors cannot be revolutionary every time out.

11 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing, August 27, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Life in the Balance (Hardcover)

I was disappointed both by the inaccuracies (for example, the population of Botswana at Independence in 1966 was slightly more than half a million, not 330,000 (it is now about 1.2 million); the people who live in Botswana are Batswana, not Botswanans; and Nelson Mandela is a Xhosa, not a Xhosan) and by the superficiality of the section on the Okavango. For example, Ian Scoone's work in neighboring Zimbabwe shows that, although overgrazing certainly can reduce biodiversity, semi-arid regions are more resilient than was previously thought. With adequate rainfall, the previous vegetation reappears in many cases. No mention was made of any of the positive steps taken by the Botswana government to protect the Okavango. I expected more from this book given the importance of the topic and the author's background.