In this vein I recall that a former sister-in-law of mine used to take inner city (NYC) kids for strolls in the Appalachians and was constantly amazed to see how these really tough kids crumbled when they heard the sounds of wildlife. Much as I dislike wildlife shows, they play a vital educational role.
Granted the educational part may be misleading. Everyone seems to love orcas, despite the fact that they are vicious killers (of which there are many in nature - no judgement intended). Several years ago when a tank of orcas drowned one of their trainers it was treated as an unfortunate accident, even though this is the same technique that they use to drown other marine mammals, and it is pretty gruesome (some of you may have seen a remarkable and upsetting video of how orcas kill a baby grey whale). Although everyone loves cute baby seals and fuzzy pandas, it has been a harder sell getting the public to appreciate the value of less cuddly animals like crocs and snakes and sharks. Irwin was one of those who worked successfully on doing this, and was successful in his objective, which was promoting conservation. Now the next step will be to make the public aware of the value of really ugly slimy creatures like bioturbating worms and those disgusting but essential detritivores Bill Silvert ----- Original Message ----- From: "Geoffrey Patton" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Wednesday, September 27, 2006 4:49 AM Subject: Irwin Approach > provides safe, secure, moderate hikes for women (and others) who may be > fearful of venturing out-of-doors into our parks and preserves. It was > eye-opening for me to realize that many people fear nature so much as to > never get out of their car in a state forest or nature preserve.
