Customer Reviews

Throwim' Way Leg: Tree-Kangaroos, Possums, and Penis Gourds

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If Tim Flannery isn't the luckiest biologist in the world, then perhaps he's the hardest working. He possesses a spirit of adventure that may exceed both. His twenty years of exploring the mysteries of New Guinea are superbly outlined and related in this engaging account. Although a mammalogist by profession, his interests range far beyond any academic discipline. We follow his efforts to meet and gain acceptance by the remote peoples of the New Guinea highlands. They are a diverse lot, and every new contact is fraught with uncertainty. He introduces us to the teasing pleasures of New Guinea pidgin, a language adopted by indigineous peoples to cross the nearly 1 000 languages that exist on the island.

Throwim' Away Leg, New Guinean pidgin for a journey, is an appropriate title for this book. Flannery's 15 long-term expeditions took him over most of the island, meeting the people, tracking animals and assessing the changes in the ecology. It is difficult, in this jet travel age to comprehend the impact of "remote people," but Flannery has done it. He's adept at sharing the wonder he felt in his travels. We feel his fears, his joys of discovery, his sadness at the incursion of industrial civilization in an unprepared land. Flannery's account is given with an astonishing detachment. He recognizes the needs of both the indigenous people and the invaders. Cannibalism, so abhorrent to "civilized" readers, is placed in its true framework as viewed by the New Guinean mountain peoples. He's aware of the population pressures on local resources among the tribes, not excusing, but imparting rare understanding of the reality of life in wilderness.

The author's love of wildlife is made clear throughout the book. An encounter with three-metre-long python that tried desperately to throttle him is related with incredible compassion. One can only sympathize with the pilot and passengers who shared the cockpit of a small aircraft with it on its journey to Port Moresby. Flannery's real feelings, however, are for the varieties of tree kangaroos living on the island. He asserts the high point of his travels was the classification of a rare black and white species of this creature. High point, indeed! Three
thousand metres up in the New Guinean highlands, local hunters brought him the chewed remains of two "Dingisios" - enough to identify and describe this rare animal.

Flannery's enthusiasms and vivid desriptive powers make this book an unforgettable read. His descriptions of the impact of outsiders, from both East and West, portray a land under immense stress. Not only Western mining and lumber companies, who have seared the landscape with roads, mines and felling, but Indonesia's settlement programmes come under his penetrating gaze. He recognizes their needs, but urges better forms of accomodation are required. The biological story is conveyed well integrated with social, political and environmental issues. An all-encompassing study, this book will give the reader many fresh insights and topics for further reflection.

I thoroughly enjoyed this wonderful book! In it, mammalogist Tim Flannery regales us with tales from his many years in New Guinea, searching for new species of mammals on the island, the second largest in the world. A difficult island to work in - highly mountainous; extremely few roads, most villages so isolated that they can only be reached by small planes flying to landing strips hacked out of the jungle; parts of it some of the rainiest spots on earth, some areas receiving 11 meters or more of rain a year; possessing many dangerous animals ranging from crocodiles to snakes to huge spiders; tropical diseases and parasites a real problem in many areas (including malaria and scrub typhus, from which Flannery almost died from when bit by an infected tick)  Flannery had his work cut out for them as he spent over two decades on the island, both in the eastern half, the independent nation of Papua New Guinea, and the western section, Irian Jaya, part of Indonesia.

Flannery is a highly accomplished scientist, having discovered 16 new species of mammals in Melanesia, many of them in New Guinea. Many of these and others are described in the book, and make for fascinating reading. We meet the Black-tailed Giant-rat, the bite from its two centimeter long razor sharp incisors much feared by the inhabitants of the island. The Three-striped Dasyure, a vividly marked rat-sized marsupial predator, one of New Guinea's few mammals active during daylight hours. The Snow Mountains Robin, one of the rarest birds in the world, found in the high alpine regions of the Meren Glacier in Irian Jaya, one of the very few equatorial glaciers in the world. _Antechinus, a small carnivorous marsupial notable in that the male only lives for 11 months, existing only to breed. The diminutive, dingo-like New Guinea singing dog, which arrived in the islands some 2,000 years ago. The six o'clock cicada, a tremendously loud insect that received its name from its trill it emits roughly 6am and 6pm daily. The famous Birds of Paradise, breathtaking in their beauty, several species of which are extremely rare. He also describes the Long-fingered Triok, a black and white skunk smelling possum with the fourth finger of each hand a great elongated probe for finding insect larvae; you never know what he is going to find next lurking in the barely explored misty peaks and dripping jungles of the island.

Three of the most remarkable animals are ones that Flannery discovered or in one case rediscovered. One is _Maokopia ronaldi_, an extinct marsupial herbivore that once dwelt in the high mountain forests. Panda-like in appearance, size, and probably habits, Flannery named this new genus and species from fossils he found in Irian Jaya. Bulmer's Fruit-bat, a bat though extinct for 12,000 years, the largest cave dwelling bat in the world, Flannery was elated to have found them alive in extremely rugged western Papua New Guinea. The one though that Flannery is the most proud of discovering was the Dingiso, a new species of tree-kangaroo he found in the alpine areas of Irian Jaya, a beautiful black and white animal, surprising tame, threatened but fortunately partially protected by native taboos against harming them.

However, as remarkable as all of that is, one could argue that the real stars of this book are the people of New Guinea, particularly the indigenous Melanesian peoples that Flannery spends a great deal of time with and clearly loves. Much of his time researching in the field he was based out of the villages of such people as the Wopkaimin, the Telefol, and the Goilala where he became fast friends with many throughout the island, in both countries, viewing them not as savage barbarians, but as noble, often quite kind people, their older generation vast repositories of cultural and natural history lore. One of the most enjoyable aspects of the books were the many stories about life in those villages, some of the tales tragic, others heartwarming, and many hilarious.

Particularly fascinating was what he wrote about the history of cannibalism on the island. Apparently it did exist in the not too distant past, actually in the living memory of some of the villagers he encountered. Though not an every day occurrence by any means, cannibalism was an important part of New Guinea life; indeed, one group Flannery spent some time with, the Miyanmin, were once avid raiders, and actually referred to the neighboring Atbalmin people as bokis es bilong miplea, which more or less translates into something like our refrigerator. Though cannibalism is now a thing of the past, its effects are still felt he writes, as villages once got some of their population from raids of other villages, the adults of that village were consumed and the children raised as their own; now, that is no longer a source of new people for villages and some are facing some depopulation as a result.

Flannery sounds several cautionary notes in his book. Several species of New Guinea mammals and birds are in serious danger of extinction from over hunting. Though New Guinea is still a land largely without roads, more and more appear all the time, opening up virgin lands for hunters, loggers, and miners. Indeed in Irian Jaya the latter two are devastating ever larger sections of the island; the massive Freeport mine, which exports over ten million dollars worth of minerals daily, has destroyed large sections of forest with waste mine tailings.

He also worries about the future of the people, particularly in Irian Jaya. He believes that in an attempt to make that land more like the rest of Indonesia it is causing not only environmental damage but also cultural damage. Indeed there are concerns over human rights abuses in Irian Jaya, of dissidents disappearing, of remote villagers forced to wear modern clothing and abandon their pig eating culture by distant Muslim politicians, who often find native culture abhorrent.

Recommended.

This is a fascinating look at the mammals (most poignantly,humans) in the forests and caves of New Guinea. Flannery takes usalong on 15 years of searching for both living and fossil traces of everything from tree kangaroos to bats. But the compelling feature of the book is his contact with the isolated villagers, whose ways are as interesting--and imperilled--as the rarer wildlife that Flannery seeks. New Guinea is near the equator, but its highest peaks are in the 14,000 to 16,000 foot range. It is rugged. The island is filled with caves, dense life-filled forests, swamps, and a daunting array of diseases and pests. Peter Matthiessen took us there years ago in his Under the Mountain Wall. Some old ways prevail, but the gun, roads, mines, politics, and exposure to western ways are taking their toll on both man and wildlife. Flannery has a self-depricating manner that reminds of the Canadian naturalist-author Farley Mowat. What next? you think as you read from low-key adventure to low-key adventure. Along the way he teaches you too about those tree kangaroos, rats, bats, bandicoots, wallabies, etc.

As one who has traveled in New Guinea 8 times, I found this book suspenseful and fascinating. Flannery vividly portrays the magnificent landscapes he explored, and introduces us to wild creatures that are disappearing from the earth. And he captures well the tragic impact of an outside world greedy for the island's natural resources, especially in Irian Jaya.

I have only two reservations. First, even recognizing that Flannery's mission was to collect rare mammals, I thought he conveyed too little of the richness and complexity of tribal life. The savage nature of the people was stressed, rather than their loyalties and kindnesses. Second, women were virtually invisible in the narrative.

Flannery is one of a kind. He is to New Guinea what Perry and Amundson are to the poles, a first-comer .... one of the first to explore and document the stone age peoples of the mysterious island wilderness in the last days of its age of innocence.

Yes, there are cannibals, with bones in their noses and gourds worn on their penis, yet Flannery somehow manages to get the reader to empathize with these people, to understand their foibles and traditions, and to feel regret that their ancient ways are going, going, gone ... forever. Take the chapter where he goes in pursuit of the Bulmer's Fruit Fly Bat -- you suffer with him the agonies of failure and the desperations of the search, and the exhilaration of success. Or follow along with his learning experiences among the native tribes and come to actually understand the hows and whys of the way the led their lives, even to discovering there were (to the natives) valid reasons for their rare acts of cannibalism.

Although he describes some of the most spectacular natural wonders of the world, the reader comes to know that Papua New Guinea will never rate very highly as a tourist destination, but you'll have to read this book to appreciate the reasons why.

Think you couldn't possibly be interested in such things? Try twenty pages of this charming book; the images will lived in your memory forever.

Hooroo, Tim! Bonzer yarn, mate!

One of my friends gave me this book and KNEW that I was going to love it. Well, he was right on target. This book is an anthropological delight! I prided myself in my knowledge of the animal kingdom...till I read this book.

Tim Flannery has a humble way about him and it reflects in this book for sure. The journeys and adventures that he undertook are not for the faint of heart. He is a true scientist that earns my kudos!

Anyone interested in broadening their horizons and is open to concepts that would shake your core beliefs (unless you have already read Dr. Flannery's books) should read it.

I thought this was a great book. I am on airplanes all the time and could not put it down even for dinner. I really did not have any particular interest in tree kangaroos or bats or penis gourds but thought this book was well written and presented a variety of information very well. I particulary enjoyed the last part of the book with the very explicit commentary on Indonesia. The information shed brighter light on why the US is so "gentle" to quote Clinton with the oppressive Indonesian military. No more items made in Indonesia for me.

It«s well written, and describes less visited areas of Papua (Irian Jaya) and P.N.G.. Specially the area around Tembagapura, Bewani and Torricelli Mountain Range. It«s a fascinating account of newly discovered tree-kangaroos and other mammals. I would prefer a more detailed look at the tribal life, but the mission of the author was to collect animals. It«s also a good description of the difference between the two New Guinea countrys.

This is really good. Papua New Guinea is such an amazing place, culturally, biologically, and geographically, and Flannery tells us about his experiences there in a straightforward manner that really gives you a feeling for it. My advice is to read it right away.

Tim Flannery, whose been called the Australian Stephen Jay Gould, is a terrific writer. In this book he describes his trips to Irian Jaya and Papua New Guinea to collect biological specimens. However, this book is so much more -- he tells all about the people he encounters, his life, his work. This reads like an adventure story told by a sophisticated, interesting man. I really loved this book -- if you're interested in Natural History, the South Pacific or man's study of his surroundings than you'll have a great time reading Flannery's book!!