Seventy million years ago in what would become North America, a
monstrous thirty-five-foot-long Cretaceous crocodile lurked on a marshy
riverbank. Springing suddenly, its huge jaws trapped and crushed a
juvenile hadrosaur. Today, the remains of that ancient crocodile are
being painstakingly reconstructed in Colorado, where naturalist Zach
Fitzner continues his life-long fascination with this amazing animal
family.
In Tears for Crocodilia: Evolution, Ecology, and the Disappearance of
One of the World's Most Ancient Animals, Fitzner tracks the evolution
of crocodilians from prehistoric predators to modern endangered
wildlife, using his own experiences with these reptiles as a lens to
understanding wildlife conservation and our relationship with the
natural world. Traveling the world to interact with crocodiles, from
observing alligators in a wildlife refuge in Texas and paddling a canoe
in the Everglades searching for crocodiles to trekking the jungles in
Nepal to find endangered gharials, the author expresses a wonder in
exploring these diverse ecosystems, making a connection between
crocodilians and the lands they live in. As the story follows
crocodilians, it also illuminates their often complicated relationship
with humans, from crocodile cults in ancient Egypt to American
alligators living on golf courses. Fitzner also closely examines the
dark side of this relationship, including habitat destruction and
poaching as well as the mechanistic view of traditional conservation
that turns these magnificent animals into agricultural products. Tears
for Crocodilia delves deeply into issues of wildlife conservation,
ethics, and how we can coexist with other creatures. It is also a
tribute to a magnificent group of animals, survivors from the age of
dinosaurs.
