Signs of Life by Sarah Cox Spirits Us to Extinction's Front Lines

In Signs of Life: Field Notes From the Frontlines of Extinction, investigative journalist Sarah Cox provides an unswerving look at issues related to biodiversity in Canada. Signs of Life lives up to the promise of the subtitle, giving us a front-line look at important places and events. Thanks to Cox’s willingness to see things first-hand for herself, the reader gets to vicariously observe the double-crested cormorant cull on Middle Island, look over the shoulders of biologists at the world’s only spotted owl hatchery, and walk through the Wolastoq/Saint John River watershed witnessing restoration efforts.

Cox exposes us to some of deeper questions related to biodiversity efforts. For example, should we consider cost and likelihood of success when prioritizing where to spend dollars devoted to extinction prevention? Supporters of cost-benefit analysis say we can save more species by being honest about the prospects for recovery. Others fear that cost-benefit analysis will give governments and industry an easy way out. In other words: if you drive a species to the brink and make it highly difficult and expensive to save them, the “problem” they represent will go away. Cox also discusses the merits of considering “ecosystems, not just individual species,” and highlights the importance of habitat preservation.

Signs of Life lives up to the promise of the subtitle, giving us a front-line look at important places and events. Thanks to Cox’s willingness to see things first-hand for herself, the reader gets to vicariously observe the double-crested cormorant cull on Middle Island, look over the shoulders of biologists at the world’s only spotted owl hatchery, and walk through the Wolastoq/Saint John River watershed witnessing restoration efforts.

Cox looks unflinchingly at provincial and federal government failures to protect species in Canada. Some provinces and territories lack legislation altogether, while others offer weak or inadequate protection. The federal government, which has the power to step in when provinces fail their responsibilities to wildlife, has often abdicated that responsibility because they don’t want to make political waves. Meanwhile, some provinces have shown, time after time, a prioritization of resource extraction industries over biodiversity protection. As University of Toronto’s Andrea Olive is quoted as saying, “we continue to prioritize the tar sands instead of caribou and shipping instead of the whales.”

Signs of Life discusses attempts at cloning as a way of bringing back extinct or near-extinct species. Cox notes that while the technical capability exists, cloning is not a silver bullet. She states, “saving a small number of individuals, or preserving DNA, will only be of limited assistance as long as … habitat continues to be eroded, fragmented, and destroyed.”

Partway through reading Signs of Life, I was feeling defeated and somewhat resigned. But Cox saves the best for last. Some efforts to maintain biodiversity have yielded fruit. Cox cites the examples of farmers in Saskatchewan involved in an effort to preserve grasslands, Indigenous-led activities that have had some success, and movements such as Nature Needs Half.

Cox lays out the facts as she sees them, the events as she has witnessed them, and the conversations as she has heard them. I’d rate Signs of Life as one of the most important and relevant books I’ve read in the past year. Cox’s writing has made me re-think my naïve assumption that we can rely on governments to take appropriate action when it comes to endangered species. While the book made me feel disillusioned at times, it also left me with hope. Signs of Life gave me a deeper appreciation of the importance of habitat and ecosystem preservation.

I’d rate Signs of Life as one of the most important and relevant books I’ve read in the past year. Cox’s writing has made me re-think my naïve assumption that we can rely on governments to take appropriate action when it comes to endangered species.

I, for one, hope my grandchildren, and their grandchildren, will still be able to enjoy a biologically diverse world — ideally, one in which we humans show by actions as well as words a reverence for the planet on which we reside. Readers who value the environment and who believe we have an obligation to maintain the Earth in fit state not just for ourselves, but for other living entities as well, should find Signs of Life well worth a read.

Sarah Cox is an award-winning author and journalist based in Victoria, B.C. In May 2002, Cox won the Canadian Association of Journalists’ Award for Environmental & Climate Change Reporting and her investigative reporting for the Narwhal has also been awarded the World Press Freedom Award and the Canadian Journalism Foundation’s Jackman Award for Excellence in Journalism. She has also won a Gold Digital Publishing Award with her colleagues at The Narwhal and previously won two Western Magazine Awards.

Cox’s 2018 book Breaching the Peace: The Site C Dam and a Valley’s Stand Against Big Hydro won a B.C. Book Prize and was a finalist for the Shaughnessy Cohen Prize for Political Writing (Writers’ Trust of Canada) and the George Ryga Award for Social Awareness in Literature.

Publisher: Goose Lane Editions (April 16, 2024)
Paperback 6″ x 9″ | 240 pages
ISBN: 9781773102887

Lisa Timpf

Website

Lisa Timpf is a retired HR and communications professional who lives in Simcoe, Ontario. Her writing has appeared in New Myths, Star*Line, The Future Fire, Triangulation: Habitats, and other venues. Lisa’s speculative haibun collection, In Days to Come, is available from Hiraeth Publishing. You can find out more about Lisa’s writing at http://lisatimpf.blogspot.com/.