ASI Diary

Lifespans

I've been thinking lately about animals who are long-lived. This may have been prompted by the 100th birthday celebration of a friend several weeks ago. That same weekend, the radio show "Living on Earth" had a segment on geoduck (pronounced "gooey-duck") clams, who can live to 150 years. We know that some species of fish, turtles and whales are long-lived. Birds, especially those kept in captivity, have long lives which can approximate the span of the humans whose homes they share.

Consider:
Harriet, a giant Galapagos tortoise who died in 2006 at the age of 175, reputedly was studied by Darwin himself in the 1830s. While the direct connection to Darwin may be apocryphal, it's still an awe-inspiring story, which you can read about here and here. (Picture of Steve and Terry Irwin, owner of the zoo where Harriet lived).

Birds in captivity: Many of these magnificent birds can live 60 years or more.  Think about this in relation to a human lifespan--and that of the average dog or cat.

Bowhead whales: these majestic animals are second in size only to the blue whale. Once thought to live a respectable 60-70 years, recent studies point to a lifespan of 150-200 years. Bowheads live in arctic waters. They have immense heads which can make up one-third of the body size. Statistics abound and are remarkable: a bowhead's tongue can weigh up to 1 ton. An elderly bowhead can have an all white tail. 

Rockfish: More than 70 species of rockfish live off the U.S. West Coast. Most rockfish are extremely long lived, deep-water fish. Scientists estimate a lifespan of 100 - 200 years for some species.

What do we owe those creatures who can live so long? Perhaps the following anecdotes will help us focus on our relationships with them:

At the time of her death, Harriet was the "star attraction" at an Australian zoo. She had originally been taken to Britain before being moved to Australia in the mid-1800s. She was mistaken for a male and nicknamed Harry, according to the Australian zoo which bought her in 1987.

Speaking of tortoises, consider Lucy, an African tortoise who was living in a garden center in New Hampshire. Her story ended up on NPR's Morning Edition earlier this month in the "Strange News," segment, a rather cheeky, flip feature, when a neighbor of the garden center spotted her, 4 years after she had escaped. She is native to the heat and drought of the Sahara Desert. Her "owner" speculates that she burrowed under the frost line to survive harsh New England winters. 

Birds:  my friend Denise Kelly of the Avian Welfare Coalition speaks eloquently about the "epidemic of overpopulation and homelessness" facing birds kept as pets:

Many of the larger species can live 40-80 years and often outlive their caretakers. [E]xotic birds are not domesticated animals...[and] display natural instincts, needs, and behaviors- crucial for survival in their native habitats-that are not considered desirable ‘pet' qualities. Often, the realities and difficulties of living with a parrot cause many unprepared caretakers to become disenchanted and seek to rid themselves of the responsibility of providing lifetime care. The least fortunate unwanted birds are passed from home to home before dying from neglect or abuse, or they are euthanized.

Bowhead whales were hunted nearly to extinction and as a result have been protected since 1946. The population of the bowhead whales in the western Arctic is currently estimated to exceed 7,500, while the population living in the eastern Arctic numbers only a few hundred. Just last month, the IWC renewed a 5 year extension of indigenous hunting rights, including bowheads. A northern Alaska mayor said: "We the Inuit are the original conservationists and have sustainably hunted the bowhead whale for over 2,000 years. Our relationship to the bowhead whale is at the very core of our culture. It is who we are, physically, spiritually and as a community. We Eskimos are like the bowhead. We are a part of the Arctic ecosystem."

Rockfish: try googling this term. What I found were restaurants using the name (and presumably serving the fish) as well as sites showing how to hunt them.

Back to the geoducks, who live up to 150 years. They live in the muck at the bottom of the water, at least until they are taken by wildlife smugglers who sell them to China, Hong Kong and Japan, where they are considered a delicacy. Read the details from the LOE transcript here, which I use with permission of Living on Earth and World Media Foundation, www.loe.org, the weekly envirobnmental news and information program distributed by Public Radio Internatikonal.  A picture being worth a thousand words, the image at right shows the fate of these animals.

Thinking about animals' lifespans reminded me of a story that has haunted me for over 25 years. Gar fish live more than 20 years in the wild. In the summer of 1982, vandals broke into Detroit's Belle Isle aquarium and poured 5 gallons of chlorine into a 2,700 gallon fish tank. Among the nine creatures killed were two gar fish, described by aquarium officials as "priceless." They had lived in the aquarium since 1955. "We're pretty broken up about this," said the head zookeeper. "You sort of grow attached to these fish after awhile."

Is it a greater indignity for these venerable animals to be treated with disrespect, as was Lucy, the New Hampshire tortoise? Is it a greater tragedy when they are abused or killed, as the Detroit aquarium garfish? I don't have the answers but it's worth pondering.

Posted on July 19, 2010 at 10:25 am -- Author's Site

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