GEORGE SCHALLER INTERVIEW IN THE HINDU

[Guest guest]

http://www.hindu.com/mag/2006/10/01/stories/2006100100120500.htm

PERSONALITY

 

*Man of Nature *

 

K. PRADEEP

 

A freewheeling chat with environmentalist George Schaller.

 

PHOTO: MAHESH HARILAL

 

*Demanding: G.B. Schaller. *

 

DR. GEORGE B. SCHALLER, the renowned naturalist, was part of the first

expedition to the Arctic in 1956. The mission was to make an inventory of

the wonders of a practically untouched wilderness. Their survey set in

motion the efforts to protect what is now known as the Arctic National

Wildlife Refuge (ANWR), the nursing ground for wildlife like the caribou,

polar bears and white wolves.

 

Dr. Schaller returned to the same area to celebrate the golden jubilee of

that voyage. What worries Dr. Schaller is that this protection may not last

long unless immediate steps are taken to counter development and oil

exploration in this region.

 

Greed and politics

 

Probe further and the polite, thoughtful, friendly, Dr. Schaller becomes

quite disturbed: " It is so disgusting. You would think something is safe in

the United States once it's established legally. But there is too much greed

and politics. The Arctic Refuge was set up only in 1960. It was known that

there was oil nearby. Since then they have been trying to get into the

Refuge. They already have 96 per cent of land for oil drilling. We are just

trying to save a tiny, little bit, " he said on the eve of the 4th World

Congress on Mountain Ungulates at Munnar.

 

" You have a rich country with a lot of educated people, supposedly, and you

can't keep a preserve safe. What kind of message does that send to countries

fighting to protect the environment and the wildlife? I studied mountain

gorillas in Rwanda (Congo). It is one of the poorest countries in the world,

heavily populated. Yet they are proud of their gorillas. In spite of years

of civil war and genocide, they saved their gorillas, " he continued.

 

The need, Dr. Schaller says, is to treasure something. " Whether India

treasures the tigers, or America treasures the Alaska, you can never turn

your back. You have to obviously be alert and fight for it. So, if you die

of old age, the new generation has to take over or it'll get lost. You can

see how quickly things turn around with leopards and tigers in India. There

was one shipment that China confiscated from India in 2003. It had 33 tiger,

581 leopard skins and some 800 other skins. Tiger trade is still on here.

The Indian elephants are lucky that most of the males don't have tusks. "

 

Significant projects

 

Recognised by many as the world's pre-eminent field biologist, Dr. Schaller

considers his research on the gorillas as one of his significant projects.

Little was known of the life of these animals in the wild until he published

his findings in the landmark books *Year of the Gorilla* and *The Mountain

Gorilla: Ecology and Behaviour*.

 

" I was fortunate. I started on this kind of work when it was just beginning.

There were so many wonderful animals often easy to see but had never been

studied. I began at a time when any animal I spotted was relatively unknown.

So any bits of information you got was actually listed as providing insights

on their lives. The gorilla was my first overseas project. I was asked if I

wanted to go and study the animals. That was far easier than what people had

anticipated because these animals are cautious, gentle and friendly.

Animals, I knew, always tried to stay out of your way. If you go quietly

near them they slowly come to accept your presence. I did the same with the

gorillas. I went near them day after day, which was fairly easy because they

form cohesive social groups. Soon, I knew them as individuals, both their

faces and behaviour. If you look at it scientifically, my study of lions in

Serengeti was most comprehensive, while the most difficult one was the one

on the Giant Panda. I was in the forest for two months before I saw one. "

 

The success of a project, according to Dr. Schaller, is not just coming out

with new observations. If, at the end of a project, one does not have more

questions than what they started out with, the job cannot be said to be

fruitful. " You are never finished with a project. See, I studied lions in

Serengeti for four years. People continue to study the same lions. Not the

same, the next generation. And they are coming up with new, interesting

information because they have new questions to ask. "

 

Dr. Schaller is one of the few prominent scientists who strongly believe

that reports of the sightings of the Bigfoot or the Yeti are worthy of

further study. " There are so many human-like creatures in different places.

But after all these years there is not a single bone, a single hair. There

is no physical evidence other than tracks. There is one film, taken in 1960,

and it has been played endlessly for years analysed, but they can't say it

is fake. A hard-eyed look is absolutely essential. The best thing to do

would be to set up camera traps that automatically take pictures of the

animals. If this is monitored for a year you may get nothing, but may end up

with some interesting wildlife pictures, " he says with a hearty laugh.

 

Tremendous track record

 

The tough, unyielding scientist has a tremendous track record of

rediscovering some rare species of animals that were thought to have been

extinct. He was responsible for uncovering the Saola, one of the world's

rare mammals, in Laos; the Vietnamese Warty Pig; the Tibetan Red Deer and is

one among the few who have seen the Snow Leopard in the wild.

 

" I'm not one to say that something does not exist. Look at the Himalayan

area. Even today not much is looked at for wildlife. People will have to

look, keep their eyes open. In Indo-China and Vietnam, the best way to find

animals is to go to the villages. The villagers eat everything. They keep

the horns and antlers in their huts. Or go to the market, visit every stall,

see what's for sale. You will then find all sorts of new things. People said

that the Javan Rhino was extinct. We started talking to local people and one

of them said that a rhino was killed recently. He brought out a horn that

was selling for a very high price. Local people know a lot, you have to ask

the right questions. "

 

Dr. Schaller has often been said to be tough and demanding on the field.

Peter Matthiessen, who accompanied the scientist on a quest of the elusive

snow leopard, has in his book *The Snow Leopard* recounted how he used to

march his hiking companions until their boots were " full of blood " . " You

know you have a job to do. And you are using somebody's money. So you want

to come back with good results. You want to do a job that's different from

any previous jobs. When you are out there in the mountains all these months,

you need to be demanding to keep the porters going. And then Peter is a

Buddhist, a different person. "

 

Dr. Schaller undertakes projects on his own or is often commissioned to do

some. One of his projects is watching the animals of the Himalayas and in

Tibet. " Everything begins with the enjoyment you get by simple being

outdoors, in the wild, in the mountains. Working for the WCS has been

wonderful. You know that you have an organisation to back you, one that

really cares. I have been with it since 1956. We work on several projects in

numerous countries. At this stage of my life I would like to turn back to

areas to keep things going. If I find a country that has nobody, like Iran,

which has been ignored for several years, I want to see if I can be of some

help. Perhaps work for the protection of the cheetahs here that are on a

decline. "

 

And for conservationists Dr. Schaller has this advice: " Any conservation

project becomes a social, economic and cultural issue and so forth.

Everybody has a social responsibility. One way to show this is be concerned

about the future of the environment. Remember, if the environment is poor

you automatically have poverty for most people. "