Thinking Like a Geographer - Geography - page 21

plain the wholesale disappearance of grasslands over the wide area indicated on the map. So climate
is not the culprit. Instead, the fault lies elsewhere and mainly takes the form of human beings.
Animal geography, Hollywood style
Movies may be responsible for more environmental mis information than any other
source. Thus, in the world according to Hollywood, animals have a maddening tendency
to show up in locations where they have no business being. Sometimes the errors are
rather obscure. For example, in the nativity scene at the start of Ben-Hur, a Holstein
calf prances by the manger. Holsteins are those dairy cattle with the black and white
splotches. The problem is the Holsteins come from Schleswig-Holstein, the part of Ger-
many that borders Denmark. Two thousand years ago, there would not have been a Hol-
stein anywhere near Bethlehem. Like I said, sometimes the errors are rather obscure.
Then again, sometimes the errors are downright outrageous, and, in that regard, noth-
ing beats Hollywood's treatment of the African lion. Check out just about any of the old
Tarzan movies, George of the Jungle, or a host of other flicks set in a rainforest. Almost
inevitably, one or more lions show up. The problem, of course, is that a lion has a whole
lot less business being in a rainforest than does a Holstein in Bethlehem. Lions do not
live in rainforests. Period. They never did, don't now, and never will. And the reason is
simple. A lion has virtually nothing to eat in a rainforest — except maybe Tarzan.
Fewer lions? So what?
What, if anything, is the significance of the map and the story behind it? Is there any relevance? I
believe so.
The pressure on natural habitats continues (and not only in Africa). Unless something is done to halt
the tide, the great grasslands will continue to diminish and so, too, will the lions. Governments in af-
fected areas are increasingly committed to heritage conservation and view protection of natural habit-
ats and wildlife as part of that process. Thus, the average lion in the wild today lives in a national park
or national game preserve. But pressure is being put on governments to open the parks to grazing and
other activities that constitute “multiple use.” Local officials must make choices that concern balan-
cing the desire for conservation with the needs of citizens.
The situation is relevant to other lands, including the United States. Lions don't live in the wild in the
U.S., but other animals do. And in many cases, their stories mimic the lion's. That is, they are much
less widespread than they used to be. National parks and preserves have helped stem their decline
and some species have been successfully re-introduced to some areas. But human population growth,
coupled with pressure for land development and multiple uses, make the future uncertain. In the U.S.,