My Backyard Jungle: The Adventures of an Urban Wildlife Lover Who Turned His Yard into Habitat and Learned to Live with It

376 Pages·2013·1.51 MB·English

by  James Barilla

My Backyard Jungle
My
Backyard
James Barilla
Jungle
The Adventures of an
Urban Wildlife Lover
Who Turned His Yard into
Habitat and Learned to
Live with It
New Haven & London
Published with assistance from the foundation established in memory of
Philip Hamilton McMillan of the Class of 1894, Yale College.
Copyright © 2013 by James Barilla.
All rights reserved.
This book may not be reproduced, in whole or in part, including illustrations,
in any form (beyond that copying permitted by Sections 107 and 108 of the
US Copyright Law and except by reviewers for the public press),
without written permission from the publishers.
Yale University Press books may be purchased in quantity for
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[email protected] (US office) or [email protected] (UK office).
Designed by James J. Johnson.
Set in type by Integrated Publishing Solutions.
Line woodcut art courtesy of The Florida Center for
Instructional Technology; http://etc.usf.edu/clipart.
Printed in the United States of America.
ISBN 978-0-300-18401-3
Catalogue records for this book are available from the Library of Congress
and the British Library.
This paper meets the requirements of ANSI/NISO Z39.48–1992
(Permanence of Paper).
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
To Nicola, Brook, and Beatrice,
my fellow backyard enthusiasts
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Contents
Acknowledgments ix
1. Certified 1
2. Zoos Without Bars 18
3. Little Eden 52
4. The “Monkey Menace” 74
5. The Night Visitor 144
6. Backyard Bruins 161
7. Notes from a Twenty-First-Century Rat Catcher 200
8. The Bees of Brooklyn 239
9. Zoopolis 273
Epilogue 326
Notes 331
Select Bibliography 349
Index 355
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Acknowledgments
This book could not have been written without the
generosity, indulgence, knowledge, and inspira-
tion of many people, only some of whom appear
in the book. I am deeply grateful to all who
shared their time and stories with me. In a select instance or
two, the exact circumstances and identity of some sources
have been altered to preserve anonymity. The Provost’s Office
at the University of South Carolina provided essential support
for completing much of the requisite travel. I am also grateful
for the support of my colleagues at the University of South
Carolina, who listened patiently to my incessant chattering
about squirrels and monkeys and contributed many stories of
their own. In Delhi, Ashwani Bazaz provided a welcome sanc-
tuary from the urban bustle at the aptly named Tree of Life
and helped immensely with the logistics of my explorations.
J. P. Sharma at Wild Frontiers was also instrumental in helping
me find my way through the city. In Brazil, Jeri Pollack, Yara
ix