Biological Exploration of the Amazon

Instructor:  Tim Caro, Department of Wildlife, Fish & Conservation Biology, College of Agricultural & Environmental Sciences and Center for Population Biology

Description: In 1842 Henry Walter Bates and Alfred Russel Wallace left England to explore and collect insects in the Amazon Basin. Eleven years later, Bates returned with a collection of 14,712 species, eight thousand of which were new to science. Wallace returned earlier but his ship capsized and he lost his collection. Along with Charles Darwin and Richard Spruce, these were the four great British pioneers of biology in the nineteenth century. Bates was a true adventurer and an extraordinary naturalist. He had great determination, sadly lacking in most of us today. “I was worst off in the first year, 1850, when 12 months elapsed without letters or remittances. Towards the end of this time my clothes were worn to rags; I was barefoot, a great inconvenience in tropical forests…” Aside from discovering so many new species, Bates described mimicry, the phenomenon where edible species resemble distasteful species and so fool the predator into leaving them alone. This idea about deception in the natural world has remained unchallenged for 150 years.

Format: We will read The Naturalist on the River Amazonas by Henry Walter Bates, an easy read of 420 pages in which he described his biological exploration of the Amazon and its tributaries. Our discussions each week will focus on a different topic including (i) the excitement of discovering new species unknown to science, (ii) the way in which biologists at the time were starting to question religious dogma and develop evolutionary theory, (iii) the tension between Victorian values and liberal intellectuals in the mid 1800s, (iv) the environmental impact of colonialists and indigenous groups in the Amazon at that time, and (v) the massive changes that have altered the Amazon Basin in the last 40 years. Students will be asked to read 40 pages each week and a very short additional scientific or popular paper that brings the subject matter up to date. One or two students will lead the discussion each week with the instructor’s help. Students will write a one-page review of the book at the end of the course.  Grading: Students will be required to lead the discussion one discussion and write the review. Grading Pass/No pass based on contribution in class, regular attendance and handing in review.

About the Instructor: Professor Tim Caro (Faculty, Wildlife, Fish and Conservation Biology) has traveled widely in the tropics, has just returned from the Guianas, and has written a book on antipredator defenses in animals. He is particularly interested in animal coloration and advertisement, as well as conservation biology.