Mo’ monkey, mo’ problems

The lesula, discovered recently in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, is the first species of monkey found in 28 years.

Although this discovery brings hope to the Western science front that there are still lost species to discover, nooks and valleys to explore and unknown fauna and flora to categorize, the discovery also marks a disturbing turn in the natural history of the lesula itself.

Whether it likes it or not, this new monkey is now considered a new species and has formed a relationship with humanity, the abusive stepfather of the animal kingdom.
Throughout time, man has broken in the backs of horses, branded cattle and murdered competing predators to the point of extinction.

After we nearly destroyed the wolf population in North America, the deer population rose, but is it really doing better? 

Now, deer are hunted by station wagons and minivans, or worse, beer-drinking men who insist on a post-murder petting and photo shoot.

And what does it say about humanity, observing the types of species that have benefited from our existence?

Cockroaches, rats, mice and other vermin.

The vultures, coyotes and parasites. All scavengers and freeloaders. 

We’re surprised when the media warns us of swine flu, avian flu or the newest deadly strain of pathogen, yet we helped cultivate the distinct environment that evolved these viruses and bacteria into super diseases.

Make no mistake.

We’ve created this imbalance, and now a new species has to suffer with us.

So welcome, lesula! Welcome to ecological Hell.

This will be your new home, and we are the masters.

We are the ones who shifted the balance in the global environment so bad that not even our atmosphere is holding up, and we’re also the ones who either hunted all of your relatives, experimented on them or made them wear funny hats for tourists’
money.

In all seriousness, I wish the lesula the best of luck, and I hope Western science will use this opportunity to shift the balance back a little, despite the fact it will be truly shocking if this actually happens.

I hope this species receives the protection it’s been promised.

Maybe its discovery will refuel a desire to conserve the rest of our planet before the damage becomes irreversible.

We need to swallow our pride as masters of the animal kingdom and change our ways.

But don’t take my word on it. Take the word of a massively influential Japanese philosopher, Yoshida Kenko.

“You should never put the new antlers of a deer to your nose and smell them. They have little insects that crawl into the nose and devour the brain.”

­— ktgragg@indiana.edu