Wildlife, land, and people : a century of change in Prairie Canada / Donald G. Wetherell.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Wetherell, Donald Grant, 1949- author.

Series:

Carleton library series ; 238.

Carleton library series

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Human-animal relationships--Prairie Provinces--History.

Human-animal relationships.

Nature--Effect of human beings on--Prairie Provinces--History.

Nature.

Animal ecology--Prairie Provinces--History.

Animal ecology.

Human ecology--Prairie Provinces--History.

Human ecology.

History.

Nature--Effect of human beings on.

Prairie Provinces--History.

Prairie Provinces.

Genre:

History.

Physical Description:

xxx, 607 pages : illustrations, map ; 25 cm.

Place of Publication:

Montreal & Kingston : McGill-Queen's University Press, [2016]

Summary:

Encounters with wild animals are among the most significant relationships between humans and the natural world. Presenting a history of human interactions with wildlife in Alberta, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan between 1870 and 1960, Wildlife, Land, and People examines the confrontations that led to diverse consequences - from the near annihilation of some species to the extraordinary preservation of others - and skilfully finds the roots of these relationships in people's needs for food, sport, security, economic development, personal fulfillment, and identity. Donald Wetherell shows how utilitarian practices, in which humans viewed animals either as friendly sources of profit or as threats to their economic and personal security, dominated until the 1960s. Alongside these views, however, other attitudes asserted that wild animals were part of the beauty, mystery, and order of the natural world. Wetherell outlines the ways in which this attitude gained strength after World War II, distinguished by a growing conviction that every species has ecological value. Through a century in which the natural landscape of the prairie region was radically transformed by human activity, conflicts developed over fur and game management, over Aboriginal use of the land, and over the preservation of endangered species like bison and elk. Yet the period also saw the creation of national parks, zoos, and natural history societies. Drawing on a wide array of historical sources and photographs as well as current approaches to environmental history, Wildlife, Land, and People enriches our understanding of the many-layered relationships between humans and nature. Book jacket.

Contents:

Part 1 The Animals and the Place

1 The State of Things: Wildlife, Land, and People after 1870 3

Part 2 Thinking About Animals

2 Some Perspectives on Animal Behaviour 35

3 Friends and Foes 75

Part 3 Connections

4 A Pursuit of Utility: The State and Wildlife 117

5 Eating Wild Animals 158

6 Hunting as Sport: Ideals and Practice 183

7 Reconstructing Nature: Acclimatizing Animals for the Wild 227

8 It's a War: Farming and Wildlife 252

9 First Nations, the State, and the Economy of Wildlife 290

10 Economics and Nostalgia: Encounters with Fur-Bearers 321

11 The Spectacle of Nature: Wildlife and the National Parks 356

12 Rounding Out a Full Life: Traditions of Natural History 404

13 Displaying Wild Animals 434.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Other Format:

Wetherell, Donald G. (Donald Grant), 1949-, author. Wildlife, land, and people.

ISBN:

9780773547919

0773547916

OCLC:

945029824