Last night, while reading a Wired article about "rewilding" areas that have been depleted of megafauna, I realized that "megafauna" is one of my favorite words. Generally, it refers to animals that weigh more than 100 pounds, but it's most commonly used to describe extinct massive mammals, like mastodons and the like.
Today, I came across the phrase "charismatic megafauna," which, contrary to how it may sound, doesn't refer to smilodons who speak in tongues. The term is applied to giant pandas and other fuzzy beasts that give a cuddly face to environmental movements. For instance, polar bears have become the poster creatures for global warming issues.
And since I'm on the subject of charismatic megafauna, please take a moment to check out this book. It's on my Amazon wish list.
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4 comments:
You can check Us Weekly for me, but I'm pretty sure Ashlee Simpson just named her daughter Charismatic Megafauna.
I really like the word "fishmonger"
Hi Ryan!
I'm glad you found our blog :)
Although, blogger was being mean to me so we switched to a new service:
www.davisfamily.onsugar.com
Check it out - we've added a few more posts.
Congratulations on your little one on the way too! Yippee for #2!
Leah
The thing is, with you and that book, I never know if you're kidding or not. I mean the book is pretty rad either way I guess, but I'm just saying.
I spotted the "charismatic megafauna" line today. Thanks for the tip.
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