Once species are extinct, they are gone forever. The negative consequences of their extinction on their habitat and on other species whose survival is linked with them is everlasting. Often times, we passively say a species has gone extinct, but we do not consider the future implications of an event such as extinction. In the book The Condor’s Shadow: The Loss and Recovery of Wildlife in America, David Wilcove, who has served as a Senior Ecologist at Environmental Defense in Washington, DC, delves into species survival and extinction. He is the author of scientific publications and articles on conservation biology and endangered species. In this book, Wilcove describes how species survival is dependent on other species, and he also provides readers with examples of how habitat destruction leads to species extinction and precious land loss. Lastly, throughout his book he incorporates examples of how technological advancements, non-native species introduction, overexploitation such as in the fisheries, and oblivious laws have led to the demise of various species of North America. This book seems to be directed at an ecologically literate audience – there are explanations of major key terms such as keystone species and succession, which if the audience already possesses knowledge of, will allow for the devastating effects explained in the book to truly be understood and Wilcove’s work can be given justice. since he has previously focused on developing economic policies to protect endangered species. While insects are diverse and abundant in almost every environment, Wilcove acknowledges that the focus of this book is on bigger mammals, birds, and amphibians which are better studied and known. Along with depicting all these examples, Wilcove gives examples of how humans have attempted to fix problems, which often times they themselves have caused, with solutions that turned out to be even more detrimental. Wilcove implicitly suggests through the examples he has incorporated that humans should be more aware and educated about their environment to prevent further species extinction and environmental degradation.

The text reflects how habitat destruction caused by deforestation and forest fragmentation leads to the alteration of habitats, the loss of species, and ultimately to an overall reduction of biodiversity. When eastern forests were cut down over a span of two centuries, the ivory woodpecker went extinct because this species required old-growth forests to survive. Similarly, the Bachman’s Warbler also went extinct as a direct result of the eastern forest deforestation. Furthermore, forest fragmentation harmed songbirds by reducing their ability to produce offspring and also by exposing them to higher rates of predation since the woodlots were smaller. In addition, there was a higher proportion of edge in the forests, which resulted in higher densities of predators that primarily resided in the edges. All these extinct species had one thing in common, their habitat was destructed through either deforestation or forest fragmentation caused by humans.

Another element of habitat destruction the book delves into is agriculture, which started as early as the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. While agriculture allowed for human settlement, due to habitat alteration it often led to the demise of many species. The conversion of forests to farmlands proved to be disastrous for species such as the grasshopper pileated woodpecker, broad winged hawk, and worm-eating warbler. Agricultural revolutions not only destroyed North America’s grassland fauna, but they also greatly reduced the populations of songbirds by a fraction compared to the previous decade. Wilcove delves into deforestation, forest fragmentation, and agricultural revolutions and focuses on how many of these habitat destruction pathways are managed by humans. These examples depict how humans have been the ecosystem engineers, and they have not used their power for the better in many cases.