I bring you one of my pet peeves: Survival of the fittest. Every time I hear it or read it I cringe. It is a misleading idea. Fittest compared to what? Everybody can't be the fittest. It should be survival of the fit. Period. A living thing does not have to be the fittest to survive. Not supreme, just good enough. Is a grizzly more fit to survive than a panda? Probably, knowing the panda's limited diet. Is the fittest grizzly the only one to survive? No, there are lot's of grizzlies less fit surviving just fine.
An interesting observation: When the big guys are out there banging heads and antlers to win the females, a younger or less fit male sometimes sneaks in and gets it on with the harem while the fight is distracting the "fittest." So who gets to survive?
Superlatives are human inventions. We love them. The best, the fastest, the strongest, even sometimes the smartest. Reality shows, winners and losers. If you're not a winner you're a loser. Not so in the broader world of real reality. So I plead for a change. Survival of the fit. If you're fit you have a chance out in the wilderness.
I grew up knowing this. My father was a world-renowned biologist, pioneering ecologist, wilderness advocate. Peterson Field guide to Animal Tracks. A lot about animal behavior as well as how to discover who has been doing what where. Buy it. I get royalties.
An interesting observation: When the big guys are out there banging heads and antlers to win the females, a younger or less fit male sometimes sneaks in and gets it on with the harem while the fight is distracting the "fittest." So who gets to survive?
Superlatives are human inventions. We love them. The best, the fastest, the strongest, even sometimes the smartest. Reality shows, winners and losers. If you're not a winner you're a loser. Not so in the broader world of real reality. So I plead for a change. Survival of the fit. If you're fit you have a chance out in the wilderness.
I grew up knowing this. My father was a world-renowned biologist, pioneering ecologist, wilderness advocate. Peterson Field guide to Animal Tracks. A lot about animal behavior as well as how to discover who has been doing what where. Buy it. I get royalties.
