Nature’s Ghosts
Confronting Extinction from the Age of Jefferson to the Age of Ecology
Publication supported by the Susan Elizabeth Abrams Fund in History of Science
- Contents
- Review Quotes
- Awards

Introduction
1. Bones of Contention: The American Incognitum and the Discovery of Extinction
2. Paradise Lost: Unraveling the Mysteries of Insular Species
3. Sounding the Alarm about Continent-Wide Wildlife Extinction
4. Nationalism, Nostalgia, and the Campaign to Save the Bison
5. Going Global: The American Committee and the First Inventory of Extinction
6. The Latin American Turn: Nature Protection in the Western Hemisphere
7. Enter Ecology: Preserving Nature’s Living Laboratory
8. Reconsidering Raptors During the Interwar Years
9. Salvation through Science?: The First Life-History Studies of Endangered Species
10. "The Nation’s First Responsibility": Saving Endangered Species in the Age of Ecology
Conclusion
“Mark Barrow knows more about the history of wildlife biology and conservation in the United States than anyone else. In these pages he gives us the most comprehensive picture we have of how naturalists discovered species extinction and humanity’s role in it, then set about to take responsibility for the destruction of the bison, the bald eagle, the spotted owl, and so many other creatures, even in far off Latin America and Africa. Well researched and clearly told.”
"To the naturalist, who exults in the magnificent diversity of life, nothing is more devastating than the current mass extinction event, caused entirely by humans. In this intriguing book, Mark Barrow confronts the paradox of naturalists collecting specimens of imperiled species and striving to be value-free, while becoming intensely concerned about extinction. Barrow shows through a fascinating series of case studies that, despite some contradictions and ironies, the traditions of natural history, ecology, and field biology have been essential to the conservation movement from the late eighteenth century until today. We should be worried, as is Barrow, that the naturalist tradition is fading from our universities, museums, and indeed our entire culture."
“I fear we’ll have good reason to think more and more about extinction as this century progresses, and this fascinating (and rueful) history provides a good base for that reflection.”
“At a time when the specter of extinction hangs over much of the natural world, it’s remarkable to think that the very concept of a species disappearing was once incomprehensible, even to educated scientists. In Nature’s Ghosts, Mark Barrow brings his customary insight to the fascinating story of how humanity slowly recognized its impact on biodiversity, and the largely forgotten conservation heroes who battled steep odds to preserve what remains of the wild world.”--Scott Weidensaul, author of Of a Feather and Living on the Wind
“Barrow has produced something noteworthy--the definitive prehistory of conservation biology in America. The book is especially strong in its treatment of the underappreciated cohort of field biologists between William T. Hornaday and Aldo Leopold. “--Science
"Barrow retraces the history of the earliest European and North American naturalists, from those who refused to believe that species comprising a perfect, stable world could go extinct, to the acceptance of extinction at the hands of humans and the legal mechanisms created to halt it. Although this may be familiar to some, Barrow’s focus on the central role of amateur/professional naturalists sheds much new light on how conservation ideas germinated and flowered in the US. The book focuses largely on animals, with numerous engaging stories, e.g., Thomas Jefferson’s obsession with finding live mammoths in the West and a 1935 Cornell University trip that located some of the last ivory-billed woodpeckers in Louisiana. Nature’s Ghosts is thoroughly researched with hundreds of helpful references, but remains very accessible and engaging to both casual and professional readers. Numerous black-and-white photos of extinct/endangered species along with famous and lesser-known naturalists enrich the text. Professionals in ecology, conservation biology, and wildlife management and readers interested in natural history will find this book hard to put down. Highly recommended. Academic, general, and professional readers, all levels."
Choice Magazine: CHOICE Outstanding Academic Title Awards
Won
University of Chicago Press: Susan E. Abrams Prize in History of Science
Won
History of Science Society: Watson Davis and Helen Miles Davis Prize
Won
Biological Sciences: Conservation | Natural History
Earth Sciences: Environment
History: American History
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