> Dear Clare,
>
> I apologise if i am repeating others' sentiments, but It seems quite sad to
> me that while previous emails regarding bushmeat in ecolog refer to the
> alarming and rapid decline of populations and state that even the hunters and
> traders are concerned with species disappearing, yet your 'fun' science
> experiment is based on collecting these ever rarer specimens without any
> valid scientific hypothesis other than your own enjoyment. Are you aware of
> the other literature and posts about bushmeat research? It is one of the
> biggest issues for wildlife conservation.
>
> Please consider the larger implications of your 'research'. There are plenty
> or other 'tasty' experiments you can create that won't undermine conservation
> efforts or endanger populations and will likely be considerably more ethical.
> Or perhaps there is some way you can answer your questions about these
> species without consuming them?
>
> Regards,
>
> Tania
>
>
> Tania Bird MSc
>
> There is sufficiency in this world for man's need but not for his greed-
> Gandhi
> Sent from my iPhone
>
> On 4 Dec 2012, at 19:50, "Clara B. Jones" <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>> Ecolog-l-ers:
>> 1. ...several individuals have posted me asking to share more about why i
>> want to sample "bushmeat"...
>> 2. ...there's really no reason not to be open w this project [intended to
>> be fun, anecdotal, and a type of "sciency" play for me]...
>> 3. ...the primary thing i'd like to get some sense of is whether qualities
>> of the aftertastes [and associated physical after-effects] of terrestrial
>> folivores and/or primarily folivorous animals correlate in any manner with
>> preferences of the animals as prey...
>> 4. ...however i go about this, there will be many problems related to
>> reliability & validity that i will not be in a position to [nor,
>> particularly, interested in] control [variation of all sorts, e.g.,
>> gustatory variations, chemical defense, and, sebaceous gland, variations, &
>> in humans, cooking & other culinary treatments, etc, etc]...
>> 5. ...nonetheless, though this project is"fishing", it's something i've
>> wanted to do for a long time...
>> 6. ...obviously, i can begin with folivorous taxa i've already tasted [a
>> few in No Am*, a few in Central America*]...
>> 7. ...based upon 1 of my studies + interviews + observation, etc, in the
>> tropics over some period of *T*, frugivores &/or non-folivorous herbivores
>> are preferred tissue [as one would expect, i suppose]...[e.g., frugivorous
>> spider monkeys preferred to folivorous howler monkeys; many animal tissues
>> preferred to opossums]
>> 8. ...the literature i've perused so far [v interesting stuff by Tom Kunz]
>> basically rules out volant taxa [birds, bats]...in the US...
>> 9. ...among terrestrial taxa in the US, i would guess that some spp of rats
>> & snakes [& numerous insects] are folivores or, predominantly, folivorous...
>> 10. ...however, on balance, i do not know what they might be nor would i
>> know whether they are common or, whether the snakes might be poisonous but
>> edible...
>> 11. ...directly related to the above, for quite some time, i've been
>> interested in what, if any, adaptive significance [rather than simply
>> byproduct effects] "gaminess" may be all about; though, i haven't looked at
>> the literature to see what is already stated on this topic...
>> 12. ...because, for me, at present, this exercise is equivalent to "play"
>> [an aside to other things], i am only hoping to generate some ideas, maybe
>> a few serious questions, maybe thoughts about rigorous research designs...
>> 13. ...i am aware that there are many scientific and commercial studies
>> related to my exercise...both in the field [e.g., Paul Garber's work w
>> monkeys], in the lab [e.g., John Garcia's work w rats], and in industry
>> [e.g., "taste tests"]...
>> 12. ...if any of this interests any of you, please do not hesitate to
>> contact me...best, clara
>>
>> *...as a granddaughter and daughter of 3 gourmands, as a field worker, as a
>> traveler, as a relative & friend of many serious hunters & fishermen, as
>> well as, as a serious home cook, i have more experience than average with a
>> relatively wide range of capture [e.g., some trapping], preparations, and
>> foods, themselves [e.g., exotic produce & meat, eggs, entrails, wild
>> foraging, etc]...i severely qualify these statements knowing, and,
>> acknowledging, that many of you have, not only, more, and a wider range of,
>> examples & experiences than i, but that, many of you have, no doubt,
>> sampled a much wider range of exotic organisms than have i and on many more
>> continents...i understand that, in the domain of "wild" foods, there are
>> "lifers" as well as in birding...
>>
>> --
>> Clara B. Jones
>> Director
>> Mammals and Phenogroups (MaPs)
>> Blog: http://vertebratesocialbehavior.blogspot.com
>> Twitter: http://twitter.com/cbjones1943
>> Cell: -828-279-4429
>> Brief CV:
>> http://vertebratesocialbehavior.blogspot.com/2012/10/clara-b-jones-brief-cv.html
>>
>>
>> "Where no estimate of error of any kind can be made, generalizations about
>> populations from sample data are worthless." Ferguson, 1959
