On the Backs of Tortoises: Darwin, the Galapagos, and the Fate of an Evolutionary Eden

An insightful exploration of the iconic Galápagos tortoises, and how their fate is inextricably linked to our own in a rapidly changing world.

Finalist for the 2020 E.O. Wilson Literary Science Writing Award, sponsored by PEN America Literary Awards

The Galápagos archipelago is often viewed as a last foothold of pristine nature. For sixty years, conservationists have worked to restore this evolutionary Eden after centuries of exploitation at the hands of pirates, whalers, and island settlers. This book tells the story of the islands' namesakes—the giant tortoises—as coveted food sources, objects of natural history, and famous icons of conservation and tourism. By doing so, it brings into stark relief the paradoxical, and impossible, goal of conserving species by trying to restore a past state of prehistoric evolution. The tortoises, Elizabeth Hennessy demonstrates, are not prehistoric, but rather microcosms whose stories show how deeply human and nonhuman life are entangled. In a world where evolution is thoroughly shaped by global history, Hennessy puts forward a vision for conservation based on reckoning with the past, rather than trying to erase it.

"Fresh, insightful . . . Hennessy's melding of human and natural history makes for thought-provoking reading." —Booklist (starred review)

"Gripping . . . well-researched and thought-provoking . . . whether you're well-versed in the intricacies of conservation or have only just begun to long for a look at the tortoises yourself. On the Backs of Tortoises is a natural history that asks important questions, and challenges us to think about how best to answer them." —Genevieve Valentine, NPR

"Wonderfully interesting, informative, and engaging, as well as scholarly." —Janet Browne, author of Charles Darwin: Voyaging and Charles Darwin: The Power of Place

© 2019 Yale University Press (Ebook): 9780300249156

Release date

Ebook: October 29, 2019