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| Author: Hemanta Mishra |
In early 2006, National Public Radio reported that “A
promising conservation effort to save one of Nepal’s
signature endangered species is now in serious trouble,
due primarily to poachers taking advantage of fighting
between government forces and Maoist insurgents.” This
was devastating news indeed to author and scientist
Mishra, who has spent the better part of
his adult life struggling to save the Indian Rhino
from
extinction in his native Nepal.
The Soul of
the Rhino is the spirited yet humble account of Mishra’s
unique personal journey. Fresh out of university in
the 1970s, Mishra embarks
on
his conservation work with the help of an ornery
but steadfast elephant driver, the Nepalese
royal family, and handfuls of like-minded scientists
whose
aim is to protect the animal in the foothills
of the Himalayas. Yet, in spite of decades spent
creating
nature reserves and moving rhinos to protected
areas, arm-wrestling politicians, and raising
awareness
for the cause, Mishra is still fearful about
the future of the Indian Rhino. To this day, Nepal
is
overrun by armed insurgents, political violence,
and poachers who could kill off this magnificent
creature for good.
Filled with candor and bittersweet humor, Mishra
re-creates his journey on behalf of the rhino,
an ugly yet enchanting,
terrifying yet delicate creature. The first
book of its kind to delve into the multi-layered
political
labyrinths of South Asian wildlife conservation,
and one man’s endurance in the face of
it all, The Soul of the Rhino is sure to win
over your heart and
soul.
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From Publishers Weekly
Mishra, formerly director of the King Mahendra Trust
for Nature Conservation in Nepal, began his career
as a wildlife officer for Nepal's Ministry of
Forests in 1967, tracking rhinos through the forest
of Chitwan and helping complete the ministry's
first rhino census. Determined to find ways to
minimize the conflicts between humans and wildlife,
particularly rhinos, Mishra studied at the University
of Edinburgh and at America's Yellowstone National
Park before working with representatives of King
Mahendra to establish Nepal's national park system
and implement programs that would help eliminate
poaching and increase the rhino population; "wildlife
tourism," for instance, not only increased
awareness of animals, but helped relieve local
poverty, a leading motivation behind poaching.
Mishra's account of his 30-year campaign to save
the rhino in Nepal include stories of exotic Hindu-Buddhist
rituals, royal hunts in the jungle and his relationship
with the amazingly charismatic perissodactyls,
which all contrast well with detailed accounts
of political and diplomatic maneuvering. Mishra's
tone is unavoidably melancholy describing the
rhino's uncertain fate—especially the re-emergence
of poaching—but the account of his worthy
struggle is enchanting, even mesmerizing, throughout. |
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$24.95 (hardcover)
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