Prairie Wisdom
Aldo Leopold - Pioneer of Modern Conservation
"What a thousand acres of Silphiums looked like when they tickled the bellies of the buffalo is a question never again to be answered, and perhaps not even asked." -- Aldo Leopold
We planted a quarter acre of prairie last fall after collecting the seeds ourselves from prairie remnants around the area. It is too soon to tell if anything will germinate. Most prairie plants are well adapted to this climate and grow most profusely when the weather turns hot and miserable later in the summer.
We planted prairie because we enjoy it. We planted prairie because it is native to the area and tickled the bellies of bison and elk before our ancestors moved into the area. Most importantly, we planted prairie because we are inherently lazy where yard work is concerned. Once established, it will require minimal maintenance,
no water, no work, no fertilizer, and no mowing.
I did my Master's thesis on the family of Aldo Leopold. I wanted to find all I could about why he became such an important spokesperson for the natural world. I found many reasons. He was a gifted teacher and writer. And he was extraordinarily intelligent. I honestly believe that the reason his words touch us so deeply was the fact that he was occasionally wrong.
The one aspect of Leopold's life and career that most significantly contributed to his status as a pioneer of modern conservation was the fact that Leopold was a writer. The literary classic, A Sand County Almanac, explains his view of the natural world as a complex, beautiful living community. We also have a view of the stages through which Leopold traveled on his journey to those visionary conclusions. In these writings can be found lessons from which we can learn.
Through his letters, journal entries, and early essays, Aldo Leopold can be seen as an intelligent scientist and keen observer. He enjoyed and wrote about the out of doors, Mississippi River backwaters, and hunting game with his father.
Leopold's early essays also espounsed views that, in retrospect, are mistaken. For example, in his early years, Leopold did not fully appreciate the role of predators in a natural community. In his own words, "I thought that because fewer wolves meant more deer, that no wolves would mean hunters' paradise." By reading this essay, "Thinking Like A Mountain," we not only have an opportunity to learn shy predators are important in the natural world but also how Leopold arrived at that conclusion. We can see Leopold as an ordinary person who valued life long learning and who continually reevaluated his beliefs in light of what he learned.
Leopold's new appreciation of predators led him to see a biological community as a living system of interrelated and interdependent parts. According to Leopold, studying those parts--the soils, waters, plants, and animals--was important but not enough. Also important was the study of the interrelationships among those parts. Therefore, Leopold is given credit for pioneering the study of ecology. Prior to this time, the profession of conservation focused on managing the populations of individual species of wildlife, particularly game species. Modern conservationists work to study and strengthen whole ecosystems.
Leopold's most important contribution to modern conservation was the incorporation of this new understanding into his personal values and beliefs. In his essay, "The Land Ethic," Leopold suggested that our sense of right and wrong should be extended beyond the human community to include the entire natural community of which we are a part. With his words, Leopold gave us a foundation upon which ecologically sound decisions can be made.
Leopold originally was wrong about predators. His journals and articles show us the turnaround in his point of view. Leopold died in 1948 . He could not witness or write about the return of Silphium. We'll just have to reestablish the prairies, plant the Silphium, and ask the questions ourselves. That fact that we can do that may be Leopold's greatest legacy.