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Lost Animals: Extinction and the Photographic Record
A haunting photographic record of extinction
A photograph of an extinct animal evokes a greater feeling of loss than any painting ever could. Often black and white or tinted sepia, these remarkable images have been taken mainly in zoos or wildlife parks, and in some cases depict the last known individual of the species. Lost Animals is a unique photographic record of extinction, presented by a world authority on vanished animals. Richly illustrated throughout, this handsome book features photographs dating from around 1870 to as recently as 2004, the year that witnessed the demise of the Hawaiian Po'ouli. From a mother Thylacine and her pups to birds such as the Heath Hen and the Carolina Parakeet, Errol Fuller tells the story of each animal, explains why it became extinct, and discusses the circumstances surrounding the photography.
Covering 28 extinct species, Lost Animals includes familiar examples like the last Passenger Pigeon, Martha, and one of the last Ivory-billed Woodpeckers, photographed as it peers quizzically at the hat of one of the biologists who has just ringed it. But the book includes rare images as well, many never before published. Collected together here for the first time, these photographs provide a tangible link to animals that have now vanished forever, in a book that brings the past to life while delivering a warning for the future.
Poignant and compelling, Lost Animals also includes a concise introduction that looks at the earliest days of animal photography, and an appendix of drawings and paintings of the species covered.
A photograph of an extinct animal evokes a greater feeling of loss than any painting ever could. Often black and white or tinted sepia, these remarkable images have been taken mainly in zoos or wildlife parks, and in some cases depict the last known individual of the species. Lost Animals is a unique photographic record of extinction, presented by a world authority on vanished animals. Richly illustrated throughout, this handsome book features photographs dating from around 1870 to as recently as 2004, the year that witnessed the demise of the Hawaiian Po'ouli. From a mother Thylacine and her pups to birds such as the Heath Hen and the Carolina Parakeet, Errol Fuller tells the story of each animal, explains why it became extinct, and discusses the circumstances surrounding the photography.
Covering 28 extinct species, Lost Animals includes familiar examples like the last Passenger Pigeon, Martha, and one of the last Ivory-billed Woodpeckers, photographed as it peers quizzically at the hat of one of the biologists who has just ringed it. But the book includes rare images as well, many never before published. Collected together here for the first time, these photographs provide a tangible link to animals that have now vanished forever, in a book that brings the past to life while delivering a warning for the future.
Poignant and compelling, Lost Animals also includes a concise introduction that looks at the earliest days of animal photography, and an appendix of drawings and paintings of the species covered.
240 pages, Paperback
First published November 21, 2013
About the author
Errol Fuller
19 books12 followersErrol Fuller is an English writer and artist who lives in Tunbridge Wells, Kent. He was born in Blackpool, Lancashire, grew up in South London, and was educated at Addey and Stanhope School. He is the author of a series of books on extinction and extinct creatures.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 43 reviews
September 30, 2021
As we stumble into the Anthropocene, we humans are in the process of making numerous plants and animals extinct. Some of these we know are happening, the western black rhino is now gone forever and the northern white rhino has only got two females left; the last male dies in 2018. Just in the UK alone, there are 67 birds on the red list.
Knowing that these are threatened is bad enough, but it is more poignant when you can see photos of the animals that have vanished in the past century or so. In this book, Fuller has found photographs of 28 different species that we will never see again in the wild. Of the 28 there are a lot of birds that we have photos of including the Laughing Owl, the pink-headed duck, the Imperial Woodpecker and what was once the most numerous bird on the planet, the passenger pigeon. There are a few mammals included too, the greater short-tailed bat is quite a beauty and there are lots of pictures of the Thylacine, the carnivorous marsupial from Tasmania. While this is thought to be extinct, there have been recent reports of sightings again.
I can’t really say that I liked this book, as the subject matter is too tragic. However, it is well written and researched and I thought that Fuller has put together a book that is worth reading for its historical context. It should also be read as a warning for humanity about just how easy it is to lose some of the unique and wonderful creatures that we have on this planet.
Knowing that these are threatened is bad enough, but it is more poignant when you can see photos of the animals that have vanished in the past century or so. In this book, Fuller has found photographs of 28 different species that we will never see again in the wild. Of the 28 there are a lot of birds that we have photos of including the Laughing Owl, the pink-headed duck, the Imperial Woodpecker and what was once the most numerous bird on the planet, the passenger pigeon. There are a few mammals included too, the greater short-tailed bat is quite a beauty and there are lots of pictures of the Thylacine, the carnivorous marsupial from Tasmania. While this is thought to be extinct, there have been recent reports of sightings again.
I can’t really say that I liked this book, as the subject matter is too tragic. However, it is well written and researched and I thought that Fuller has put together a book that is worth reading for its historical context. It should also be read as a warning for humanity about just how easy it is to lose some of the unique and wonderful creatures that we have on this planet.
December 11, 2016
I did not expect to be so moved and entranced by Lost Animals. Despite generally loving animals, I don't get into an environmental state of mind often.
But the stories of the animals in this book affected me. You know they're all doomed. There are people fighting so hard to keep the animals alive, only to have their efforts fail. You're forced to think of lonely animals dying all alone, taking with them their entire species. You think about the forces that killed these animals, so often our fault; again and again, we've killed entire species.
I've never been an environmentalist. I've always had a bizarre confidence in it-is-what-it-is and a lack of sentimentality, but that has changed because of this book. I am sad for these animals and for their habitats. I am sad that we're the ones that did this and that we're still doing it.
This book is really, really lovely; it broke my heart, but I couldn't stop reading once I started.
But the stories of the animals in this book affected me. You know they're all doomed. There are people fighting so hard to keep the animals alive, only to have their efforts fail. You're forced to think of lonely animals dying all alone, taking with them their entire species. You think about the forces that killed these animals, so often our fault; again and again, we've killed entire species.
I've never been an environmentalist. I've always had a bizarre confidence in it-is-what-it-is and a lack of sentimentality, but that has changed because of this book. I am sad for these animals and for their habitats. I am sad that we're the ones that did this and that we're still doing it.
This book is really, really lovely; it broke my heart, but I couldn't stop reading once I started.
January 19, 2015
The Thylacine cover is a bit misleading, about 70% of the book is dedicated to extinct species of birds. Nothing bad about that, and they were presented nicely and in detail. I was just expecting for it to be more equally divided between birds and mammals.
March 20, 2015
This book was hard to read. As you pass from one tragedy to the next, you gather sadness like a rolling ball gathers snow. More than a simple chronicle, there is deep concern here. I recommend it.
November 7, 2015
A fascinating but also profoundly sad visual elegy for once thriving species that ceased to exist mostly due to human exploitation or deliberate extermination.
April 18, 2019
Lost Animals: Extinction and the Photographic Record is exactly what the name implies it to be. Within its pages are the only known photos of an amazing array of now extinct creatures. Some of the photos are poor quality, understandable when one considers how far back these photos span (many to the 1800s). Rather than poor images detracting from the experience of seeing these creatures it adds to it. Here are the blurry, enigmatic remains, the only reminder of so many species. This is what we have left, like so much smoke on the wind.
There were a number of animals I had never seen before, never even heard of. There were images of the Heath Hen, pictures of the thylacine that I had never before seen. There was the pink headed duck, the quagga, and birds so numerous that you can't help but imagine how many there were that we never even got to put a name to before they disappeared. Of great note is the fact that this book contains previously unseen photos of Sonny Boy the Ivory-Billed Woodpecker. Though in black in white, these photos are truly astonishing.
This book is a record of loss. It is a record of biodiversity now gone, and a call to try our best to do better in the future. The book does give a few nods to the potential of certain creatures still remaining, although it also acknowledges how unlikely the case may be. There are only a few that may remain, hidden, unknown. Very few. Yet nonetheless... one hopes.
I can't emphasize enough how much this book moved me. Its invaluable to be able to look through the past, to give life to what is gone and realize how it was there previously. How we were responsible for some of this loss, if not all of it. How, perhaps, we could be responsible for restoring it once more.
There were a number of animals I had never seen before, never even heard of. There were images of the Heath Hen, pictures of the thylacine that I had never before seen. There was the pink headed duck, the quagga, and birds so numerous that you can't help but imagine how many there were that we never even got to put a name to before they disappeared. Of great note is the fact that this book contains previously unseen photos of Sonny Boy the Ivory-Billed Woodpecker. Though in black in white, these photos are truly astonishing.
This book is a record of loss. It is a record of biodiversity now gone, and a call to try our best to do better in the future. The book does give a few nods to the potential of certain creatures still remaining, although it also acknowledges how unlikely the case may be. There are only a few that may remain, hidden, unknown. Very few. Yet nonetheless... one hopes.
I can't emphasize enough how much this book moved me. Its invaluable to be able to look through the past, to give life to what is gone and realize how it was there previously. How we were responsible for some of this loss, if not all of it. How, perhaps, we could be responsible for restoring it once more.
September 12, 2014
Despite having a picture of a thylacine (a mammal) on the cover and end papers, only 7 of the 28 animals in this book are not birds. The stories and pictures become somewhat repetitious as do multiple apologies for the poor quality of some of the photographs. The large font, wide spacing of text, pages with nothing except a caption for a previous illustration, make this, in terms of information given, a slim volume padded to full book size. Sadness at the loss of these creatures is everywhere mentioned.
April 19, 2015
Sad. This is a lovely coffee table book, big pictures and not much text. But too depressing to have on My coffee table. All of these animals have been "lost" because of human ignorance and stupidity. And we haven't learned... this book could have been a lot bigger, for all the species we are losing every day. And yes, I feel responsible because I am a human, even tho I'm vegan and I support many environmental causes. I wish we could do more to save ecosystems and habitat.
April 24, 2014
Amazing to behold but left me with a feeling of sorrow; sorrow for all these beautiful creatures that no longer grace the earth. I worry that someday, the way things are going, there will be pictures of tigers, elephants, rhinos, leopards, pandas, etc. in a book about extinction...and I will try my hardest to make sure that does not happen.
March 5, 2018
Fascinating to look through, with enough context to make these photos meaningful.
May 7, 2018
SIX WORD REVIEW: Spoiler alert-we the reasons extunk.
April 12, 2023
A really nice overview of species lost in the last couple of centuries, and the author has gone through considerable effort to retrieve information about each one. The only thing I would say is that it seems to lack the personality that other books on the subject have - but still a great read.
November 16, 2017
Errol Fuller's LOST ANIMALS: EXTINCTION AND THE PHOTOGRAPHIC RECORD is a sobering testament to animal species that have been lost in recent modern times. Fuller has written about human caused extinction previously. This includes species human exterminated centuries ago and whose images are portrayed in drawings and paintings. The book LOST ANIMALS is unique as it uses photographs of these mammals and birds while they were still living. Also, since photography is used; this means the creatures portrayed have been gone from the very earliest only since the 1800s.
This book also chronicles the efforts of scientists, conservationists and wildlife advocates in trying to protect groups of animals that were sadly doomed. The men and women mentioned as having attempted to save these animals are true heroes and heroines. Each chapter is devoted to a species now gone; and the story of how they dwindled down to zero. Photographs of these animals illustrates each species last survivors. The Carolina Parakeet, New Zealand Bush Wren, Caribbean Monk Seal, Quagga, Yangtze River Dolphin and other species have their stories told in these chapters. Errol Fuller's research and details brings forth a true tragedy with each species that went into oblivion.
If your interests deal with natural history, conservation, wildlife, science... then this book is for you. I highly recommend LOST ANIMALS by Errol Fuller.
This book also chronicles the efforts of scientists, conservationists and wildlife advocates in trying to protect groups of animals that were sadly doomed. The men and women mentioned as having attempted to save these animals are true heroes and heroines. Each chapter is devoted to a species now gone; and the story of how they dwindled down to zero. Photographs of these animals illustrates each species last survivors. The Carolina Parakeet, New Zealand Bush Wren, Caribbean Monk Seal, Quagga, Yangtze River Dolphin and other species have their stories told in these chapters. Errol Fuller's research and details brings forth a true tragedy with each species that went into oblivion.
If your interests deal with natural history, conservation, wildlife, science... then this book is for you. I highly recommend LOST ANIMALS by Errol Fuller.
May 22, 2016
A haunting, saddening, beautiful book.
June 15, 2021
Fascinating but tragic, this book invites readers to take a peak at recently extinct animals and the people who fought fruitlessly to save them.
What I liked
The photographs are haunting. Many of these animals went extinct at the dawn of the photographic era, so the images are grainy and blurred. But such flaws only serve to make the photos more intriguing. Gazing across the gap of time and into the black-and-white images, I couldn't help but ask myself: What were the animals really like? What sounds did they make? How did they raise their young?
The stories of the people who loved these animals are heartbreaking. So many scientists, conservationists, advocates, and regular people loved the animals and struggled to help them survive disease, habitat destruction, even war. In many of the pictures, I could feel the love the humans had. For example, one endearing set of images shows an Ivory-Billed Woodpecker named Sonny Boy perching contentedly on a man's hat. Another shows a beloved Carolina Parakeet sitting on its keeper's chest.
Other stories are infuriating. In particular, the tale of the Bubal Hartebeest ends with a man shooting and killing 12 of a herd of 15, some of the last Bubal Hartebeests on Earth. Many of the animals profiled in this book are dead at least in part thanks to people, and learning of human hubris, greed, cruelty, and shortsightedness was at times simply too much for me; I had to take a break from reading a few times. Some animals, however, went extinct for reasons completely unknown.
In many cases there is not much documented or known about the animals. Some disappeared just a few years after being discovered.
What I was ambivalent about
This book is primarily about extinct birds. I would have loved if there were amphibians too, as well as more mammals.
Conclusion
This book filled me with sadness and wonder. I was left asking myself: What role do humans have in the natural world at large? What is our moral responsibility to the animals we drove to extinction? At the very least we can learn about them, understand why they were valuable, and think on what is lost now that they are gone.
What I liked
The photographs are haunting. Many of these animals went extinct at the dawn of the photographic era, so the images are grainy and blurred. But such flaws only serve to make the photos more intriguing. Gazing across the gap of time and into the black-and-white images, I couldn't help but ask myself: What were the animals really like? What sounds did they make? How did they raise their young?
The stories of the people who loved these animals are heartbreaking. So many scientists, conservationists, advocates, and regular people loved the animals and struggled to help them survive disease, habitat destruction, even war. In many of the pictures, I could feel the love the humans had. For example, one endearing set of images shows an Ivory-Billed Woodpecker named Sonny Boy perching contentedly on a man's hat. Another shows a beloved Carolina Parakeet sitting on its keeper's chest.
Other stories are infuriating. In particular, the tale of the Bubal Hartebeest ends with a man shooting and killing 12 of a herd of 15, some of the last Bubal Hartebeests on Earth. Many of the animals profiled in this book are dead at least in part thanks to people, and learning of human hubris, greed, cruelty, and shortsightedness was at times simply too much for me; I had to take a break from reading a few times. Some animals, however, went extinct for reasons completely unknown.
In many cases there is not much documented or known about the animals. Some disappeared just a few years after being discovered.
What I was ambivalent about
This book is primarily about extinct birds. I would have loved if there were amphibians too, as well as more mammals.
Conclusion
This book filled me with sadness and wonder. I was left asking myself: What role do humans have in the natural world at large? What is our moral responsibility to the animals we drove to extinction? At the very least we can learn about them, understand why they were valuable, and think on what is lost now that they are gone.
August 1, 2019
Very interesting book. I found it both fascinating and disturbing to look at old photographs of animals that have gone extinct ... some of them just within the past two decades. However, many of the animals featured here were extinct in the previous century or even late in the (19th) century before that. Obviously, the nature of this book means the animals featured in it are limited to those that have gone extinct only since we have actually had the ability to take photographs. That’s why the great auk and the dodo are not featured in here – they became extinct before photography had been invented.
There is quite a bit of background on each of the animals featured here, most of which are birds; mammals featured include the thylacine or Tasmanian Tiger and the Yangtze River dolphin.
A couple of themes seem to come out quite a bit: first, mass extinctions are rarely, if ever, caused by one particular factor – they are often the result of combining factors such as overhunting combined with habitat destruction; or, avian disease combined with environmental factors like hurricanes.
The second theme that seems to seep out from the pages is that determining what is a species, what is a sub species, and whether or not extinction of a race constitutes extinction of a species can be a tricky task.
Very interesting book which is essentially a photographic history of natural history, I would give it 3.5 stars if I could, as it’s actually better than three but not quite four.
There is quite a bit of background on each of the animals featured here, most of which are birds; mammals featured include the thylacine or Tasmanian Tiger and the Yangtze River dolphin.
A couple of themes seem to come out quite a bit: first, mass extinctions are rarely, if ever, caused by one particular factor – they are often the result of combining factors such as overhunting combined with habitat destruction; or, avian disease combined with environmental factors like hurricanes.
The second theme that seems to seep out from the pages is that determining what is a species, what is a sub species, and whether or not extinction of a race constitutes extinction of a species can be a tricky task.
Very interesting book which is essentially a photographic history of natural history, I would give it 3.5 stars if I could, as it’s actually better than three but not quite four.
September 8, 2017
It was wonderful and heartbreaking to see the animals we've lost. It's unfortunate we know so little about most of them. The content itself is excellent, but I have a few gripes with the overall package. First, it's almost entirely devoted to birds with less than a handful of mammals tucked in at the end. I'm sure it was a marketing strategy. Second, the formatting of the book leaves a few pages entirely blank except for image descriptions. Still, I greatly enjoyed my time with this book.
August 8, 2019
Really interesting, but depressing. Includes several species I've never heard of. Loved the inclusion of the circumstances of the photos and the difficulties of the early methods of photography. My favorite part was the great series of photos of Sonny Boy the young Ivory-billed Woodpecker. The book only includes birds and mammals. I hope the author makes a sequel covering herps, fishes, and maybe inverts too.
August 21, 2017
Beautiful photographs coupled with insightful information, Fuller explains how these seemingly imaginative animals met their demise. This book is not only informative, but also disheartening, considering the role humans had in some of these extinctions. I recommend this book to children and adults alike, to anyone who has a fascination with incredible animals!
October 17, 2022
What a strange niche. Ultimately a heartbreaking book but intriguing and inspiring to promote change. It has me curious if the camera has helped humans to fall in love with nature enough to save it. We shall see.
July 24, 2024
This was a wonderful book, it was full of heartbreaking moments but also had times of hopefulness. I loved the photographs and paintings throughout. The detailed descriptions made these lost creatures come to life.
October 23, 2019
3.75/5
September 4, 2021
Extinct animals! Classic photography! Rats mosquitos and humankind!
December 2, 2021
Just sad.
April 3, 2022
The photographs are mesmerising, the stories of loss of species devastating, so many in my lifetime. Are lessons being taken from these losses?
September 18, 2016
Mr Fuller explains at the beginning of the book that there are limitations to what is covered. The species that he describes are only those that have photographic history. Unfortunately, a few of the animals only have one or two pictures and some are not very clear images. He also explains that there are no reptiles or insects listed. He expresses hope that someone will compile a book for those species. That being said, this compilation is absolutely fascinating. He does detail the negative effects humans have had on many species, but he also explains how sometimes evolution can be an animal's own worst enemy. In the case of the tiny rail species covered, he tells that because they became so habituated to island living and lost their ability to fly, when that habitat changed to the point that they couldn't survive, whether by human or natural means, they succumbed to their flightless fate.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and hope that he will write another entry that will cover other species.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and hope that he will write another entry that will cover other species.
June 21, 2024
This book has beautiful black and white photos of animals that are sadly no longer with us and information about why that is the case. The photos sometimes are not the best quality but they are often the only ones we have of that species. It is an amazing collection that I recommend for animal lovers.
June 27, 2014
Lost Animals is such a gem of a book! In it, the author introduces us to 28 distinct species that have gone extinct, and shows us photos of the animals. I know we've all seen illustrations of extinct animals; the dodo is a good example; but there's something extra special, extra touching about seeing photographs of extinct animals.
Personally, I can't think of a better way to present this book. The author did a near-perfect job with it. Each animal is given nearly equal consideration. The author showed as many photographs as possible, and of the highest quality possible. Then, at the end, the author presents an appendix containing illustrations of many of the animals, so that the reader can get an idea of the coloration of or a clearer picture of the animals. (Many of these photos were taken 100+ years ago and are not of the quality we have come to expect today.)
I thoroughly enjoyed reading about the animals also. The author presents us with a brief overview of each animal; where it lived and what it ate and proposed reasons for it's extinction. All of this is presented very scientifically; you can tell that the author really did his homework researching these fascinating creatures.
I highly recommend this book.
Personally, I can't think of a better way to present this book. The author did a near-perfect job with it. Each animal is given nearly equal consideration. The author showed as many photographs as possible, and of the highest quality possible. Then, at the end, the author presents an appendix containing illustrations of many of the animals, so that the reader can get an idea of the coloration of or a clearer picture of the animals. (Many of these photos were taken 100+ years ago and are not of the quality we have come to expect today.)
I thoroughly enjoyed reading about the animals also. The author presents us with a brief overview of each animal; where it lived and what it ate and proposed reasons for it's extinction. All of this is presented very scientifically; you can tell that the author really did his homework researching these fascinating creatures.
I highly recommend this book.
July 16, 2015
"It seems a photograph of something lost or gone has a power all of its own, even though it may be tantalisingly inadequate." so says the author in his introduction. How true - and the poignant stories about each animal add to the impact of this book. The existence of photographs mean that these animals are all recently extinct, it is sad to think that there are many species on the brink of making it into the next edition of this book. New Zealand species included are laughing owl, bush wren and greater short-tailed bat.
August 3, 2014
I could only read this in short bursts as it is an incredibly depressing record of loss and extinction. Fuller has tracked down the last (in some cases the only) photograph of extinct species. Includes well-known species like the passenger pigeon and thylacine, but also many lesser-known bird species (Wake Island Rail, Bachman’s Warbler) that were barely photographed before they disappeared forever. (Despite the title, most of the photos are of extinct birds.)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 43 reviews