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A review by felinity
Golden Bats and Pink Pigeons by Gerald Durrell
5.0
As this is one of Durrell's later books, written after his Jersey conservation zoo was established, you can see the difference in tone. The earliest books tend to be light-hearted, descriptively humorous and (one suspects) slightly exaggerated for comedic effect, while the later books still maintain the wonderful descriptions of people and animals but with much more serious undertones and the emphasis on educating - rather than entertaining - the reader, as evidenced by the subtitle: A Journey to the Flora and Fauna of a Unique Island. You're still presented with poetic descriptions that capture all your senses, strange characters of all nationalities acting as local guides, and that dry wit, but it also includes some historic narrative from previous explorers and some warnings about animal endangerment and the importance of maintaining their environments.
In the 1970s, Durrell travelled to Mauritius (multiple times) with his assistant and secretary to collect sufficient individuals from colonies of several endangered species unique to the islands, to start (or maintain) captive breeding programs. Some of them were down to just a handful of individuals, and amongst them were golden fruit bats, pink pigeons, boas, several types of skink, and guntheri geckos. I've never had such a desire to go snorkelling as after reading his chapter on the various reefs in the area... I wonder if those magnificent and so varied places are still there.
Naturally there were some problems with the landscape (the Olympic slide), capturing/feeding the animals (the local equivalent of durian), the local climate and even transportation (how do you prioritize essential clothing, fruit and boxes when the plane can't carry everything?) but somehow creative solutions were discovered.
Spoiler: There's a postscript with good news about the Pink Pigeon breeding program.
I should also note that the family photographs, while wonderful, are the same ones as in the new edition of [book:Three Singles to Adventure], so if you're reading both, don't get your hopes up!
Disclaimer: I received a free copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
In the 1970s, Durrell travelled to Mauritius (multiple times) with his assistant and secretary to collect sufficient individuals from colonies of several endangered species unique to the islands, to start (or maintain) captive breeding programs. Some of them were down to just a handful of individuals, and amongst them were golden fruit bats, pink pigeons, boas, several types of skink, and guntheri geckos. I've never had such a desire to go snorkelling as after reading his chapter on the various reefs in the area... I wonder if those magnificent and so varied places are still there.
Naturally there were some problems with the landscape (the Olympic slide), capturing/feeding the animals (the local equivalent of durian), the local climate and even transportation (how do you prioritize essential clothing, fruit and boxes when the plane can't carry everything?) but somehow creative solutions were discovered.
Spoiler: There's a postscript with good news about the Pink Pigeon breeding program.
I should also note that the family photographs, while wonderful, are the same ones as in the new edition of [book:Three Singles to Adventure], so if you're reading both, don't get your hopes up!
Disclaimer: I received a free copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.