The Market in Birds: Commercial Hunting, Conservation, and the Origins of Wildlife Consumerism, 1850-1920

The Market in Birds explores how a commercial market for birds in the late 19th century influenced conservation and legislation. It highlights how market hunters, game dealers, consumers, sportsmen, conservationists, and wild birds interacted, leading to a revolutionary shift in wildlife use and the 1918 Migratory Bird Treaty Act.

Format: Hardback
Length: 320 pages
Publication date: 31 May 2022
Publisher: Johns Hopkins University Press

Between the end of the Civil War and the 1920s, the United States witnessed the creation, rapid expansion, and then disappearance of a commercial market for hunted wild animals. The bulk of commercial wildlife sales in the last part of the nineteenth century were of wildfowl, who were prized not only for their eggs and meat but also for their beautiful feathers. Wild birds were brought to cities in those years to be sold as food for customers' tables, decorations for ladies' hats, treasured pets, and specimens for collectors' cabinets. Though relatively short-lived, this market in birds was broadly influential, its rise and fall coinciding with the birth of the Progressive Era conservation movement.

In The Market in Birds, historian Andrea L. Smalley and wildlife biologist Henry M. Reeves illuminate this crucial chapter in American environmental history. Touching on ecology, economics, law, and culture, the authors reveal how commercial hunting set the terms for wildlife conservation and the first federal wildlife legislation at the turn of the twentieth century. Smalley and Reeves delve into the ground-level interactions among market hunters, game dealers, consumers, sportsmen, conservationists, and the wild birds they all wanted. Ultimately, they argue, wildfowl commercialization represented a revolutionary shift in wildlife use, turning what had been a mostly limited, local, and seasonal trade into an interstate industrial-capitalist enterprise. In the process, it provoked a critical public debate over the value of wildlife in a modern consumer culture.

By the turn of the twentieth century, the authors reveal, it was clear that wild birds were not just a source of food and feathers but also a valuable commodity in their own right. This led to the development of new markets for bird products, such as birdseed and bird toys. It also led to the establishment of conservation organizations, such as the National Audubon Society, which aimed to protect and preserve wild birds and their habitats.

The Market in Birds is a fascinating and important book that sheds light on the complex and multifaceted relationship between humans and wildlife. It provides a valuable historical perspective on the development of wildlife conservation and the first federal wildlife legislation. It also offers a critical analysis of the economic, ecological, and cultural factors that shaped the commercial market for wild birds. By exploring the ground-level interactions among market hunters, game dealers, consumers, sportsmen, conservationists, and the wild birds they all wanted, Smalley and Reeves offer a nuanced and empathetic understanding of the complex and often conflicting perspectives on wildlife use and conservation.

In conclusion, The Market in Birds is a must-read for anyone interested in wildlife conservation, history, and the complex relationship between humans and nature. It provides a valuable insight into the development of wildlife conservation and the first federal wildlife legislation and offers a critical analysis of the economic, ecological, and cultural factors that shaped the commercial market for wild birds. By exploring the ground-level interactions among market hunters, game dealers, consumers, sportsmen, conservationists, and the wild birds they all wanted, Smalley and Reeves offer a nuanced and empathetic understanding of the complex and often conflicting perspectives on wildlife use and conservation.

Weight: 596g
Dimension: 162 x 235 x 33 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781421443409