"Among whales" by Roger Payne is a wonderful and insightful book about the life of whales. How is a whale researcher working? Which whale species do sing? And why? Or what are the threats whales are exposed to? Although the book was written in the 90s, the author provides a detailed insight into the world of cetaceans - especially about humpback whales and right whales. Roger Payne is a storyteller who knows how to incorporate scientific knowledge into a smart and fascinating way. It is an enchanting book and very worth a read!
Title: Among whales
Author: Roger Payne
Imprint: Charles Scribner's Sons
Length: 431 pages
Published: 1995
Language: English
Blurb
Natural History's long literary tradition records thousands of attempts to define an entire subject... to shine a clear and beautiful light on some previously dark corner of life on earth. Most such attempts fall far short of their ambition; but rarely, they succeed at bridging the chasm separating C.P. Snow's famous two cultures. Now, to the honor roll that includes Lewis Thomas's Lives of a Cell, E. O. Wilson's The Ants, and Stephen Jay Gould's Wonderful Life, must be added Roger Payne's Among Whales.
Like these authors, Roger Payne is a scientist first, last, and always - the world's leading cetacean biologist. But he is more. He is an activist and a romantic, an explorer, and a musician. And just as Barry Lopez's classic Of Wolves and Men was more than a simple treatise on wolves, so is this work much more than a book about whales. Also destined to be a classic, Among Whales presents the state of our most advanced knowledge about whales, but in doing so also embraces a rich variety of subjects and disciplines. It is a work of biology - cetacean, marine, and human; of exploration, of sociology, of cultural mythology, of philosophy, and most certainly, of literature. As Payne takes us on a journey from the home territory we thought we knew and across the spectrum of life forms, we realize we are also on a journey of the heart, of discovery about the larger questions of life on earth.
Among Whales addresses a broad scope of important and penetrating questions: How will the evolving composition of seawater affect life on earth? What is the device by which whales sing, and why do they do it? How can we know that whales use rhyme if we don't understand their language? For what purposes do dolphins use their unparalleled large and complex brains? What is the purpose of the human brain? What is the nature of wildness? How and why do creatures come together in peace? Among Whales is unique in its scholarly integrity and breadth of vision, biologically absorbing and humanly rich. Reflecting Roger Payne's lifetime of devotion to asking both the smallest questions and the largest, this is "a book of great beauty, integrity, and understanding, pure pleasure even if you can't tell a sperm from a killer".
Thoughts about the book
What is killing whales now is the destruction of the seas. The only way we can stop this is to change the basis of our ways, to change utterly the value we accord nature. This seems to many a daunting task, since the only way we can change ourselves enough is to develop a universal respect and love for nature.
Although the book "Among whales" by Roger Payne is full of scientifically insightful information, I wouldn't classify the book as exclusively scientific literature. The author shares new scientific information, but he also incorporates thoughtful and wise words. He writes exceptionally detailed and precisely. Thus, for me a unique book. A book written with passion and fascination for whales. A great book for curious readers passionate about whales!
Why do humpback whales sing?
Where do they sing?
Or how do the songs change over time?
The book is full of questions like these. Questions researchers like Roger Payne followed during his career as whale researchers
Although the book was written in the 90s, it is still a very informative and great read, because Roger Payne gives a detailed insight into the life of a whale researcher and the knowledge available to that time.
But facts and wise words change in the book.
Roger Payne compares some of the great whale species and their behavior. Like the behavior of humpback and fin whales. Fin whales apparently do not form larger groups. Or maybe they do? Just in another way?
I very like his way of telling stories. Interesting and fascinating. But he also has some serious words to share with his readers. In that respect he refers to us and how we treat whales and nature in general.
Whaling.
Fishing.
Or the pollution of the ocean.
I found it especially interesting to read his view about cetaceans in captivity. It is cruel and sad. And it is hard to believe that so many people marvel at cetaceans like orcas or bottlenose dolphins in an unnatural habitat like a concrete tank in captivity.
I don't go into that difficult topic here. However, I found it quite interesting to read his view about this sensitive and so important topic. And as hard it is to accept the dolphinariums nowadays (I'm against it!), I find it still good to read his view and the possible advantages which cetaceans in captivity might have on people. I think his thoughts are important to consider.
City dwellers are not automatically opposed to nature, they are simply uneducated about it. For the first eighteen years of my life I was raised in the heart of New York City and therefore know what it's like to have that start and nevertheless end up falling in love with the natural world.
Roger Payne worked as an expert at the IWC (International Whaling Commission). He lets his readers look behind the scenes and about his - sometimes frustrating - work. He acknowledged the slow progresses of the IWC, but at the same times emphasized the importance of the work which the commission had already achieved. Maybe there would have been some cetacean species already gone extinct without the IWC?
I believe that as surely as it is destroying biological diversity by bringing species to extinction, our destruction of the wild world is affecting our sanity - we need whales not only for possibly valuable pharmaceuticals, but for songs, for inspiration, adventure, wonder and excitement - in other words, to help make life worth living. If we are only comfortable thinking of whales as a resource, let us think of them as a resource for sanity.
There is so much more in the book. About the biology of the whales, but also the environmental problems we have to face. Climate change. Fishing. Or the pollution of the oceans.
All this explained in a thought-provoking, caring and sensitive way.
It was a great pleasure for me to read this very detailed and beautifully written book. Therefore, I can more than recommend "Among whales"!
Conclusion
A unique book for readers interested in whales. Thought-provoking and sensitive. Very detailed and insightful. Filled with fascinating information, but also wonderful stories and interesting thoughts. Thus, "Among whales" by Roger Payne is very worth a read!
Do you know the book "Among whales" by Roger Payne? Or do you know another book about whales and dolphins? Please let me know in the comments!
Blog articles:
Whale Watching close to Plettenberg Bay, South Africa
Bottlenose dolphins and other dolphins in Plettenberg Bay, South Africa
Humpback whales around Byron Bay, Queensland, Australia
Guiana dolphins in the Sepetiba Bay in Itacuruçá, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Harbor porpoises in the Flensburg Fjord
