Red Data Book Vol. 1 Mammalia

Description:

Noel Murray Simon (1921-2008) was a British conservationist and author of central importance to the emergence of modern species conservation. He worked extensively in East Africa, particularly Kenya, before joining the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) in Switzerland, where he served from 1962 to 1969.

During his tenure at the IUCN, he compiled Volume I: Mammalia of the Red Data Books, the first official international handbook devoted to documenting the world’s rare and endangered species. While the concept of the Red Data Books was initiated by Sir Peter Scott, Simon was given free rein in developing inaugural volume. Mammalia established the model for a seminal series subsequently extended to animals and plants worldwide. Every six months subscribers received additional and updated information sheets.

The publication represents a watershed in conservation history, marking the transition from localised concern to a systematic, international, and evidence-based approach to extinction risk. Of particular interest are the original punched data sheets housed in the publisher’s ring binder. These reflect early computer-era data management practices, predating digital databases, and offer rare insight into how large-scale conservation data were organised and analysed in the 1960s and early 1970s.

This volume stands as a tangible record of the moment when global biodiversity loss was first approached as a crisis that could be measured, compared, and addressed through coordinated international action.

Condition

Punched data sheets in orig. publishers ring binder. Vg.