“To Take Wildness Into Hand” By Michelle Nijhuis (Abstract)

This article discusses the proposal of assisted migration. This is the notion that in order to mitigate climate change, plants and animals should just be carried to a better habitat (p.183). This idea stems from a writer and naturalist, Connie Barlow, in response to the extremely endangered tree, Torreya Taxifolia presently located in Torreya State Park right outside the banks of the Apalachicola (p.181). While some ecologists admire this suggestion others, mainly conservationists, are against such a proposal. The reason being that the unknowns of such a task are far too many and that the possibility of failure is too great (p.187).

Assisted migration is compared to re-designing. This is the biggest fear to anti-assisted migration advocates because it is man tampering with nature. This creates a mixture for more than just failure (p.185). Even more so, the reason for the progressing extinction of the Torreya Taxifolia tree is unknown (p.184)! So to use this tree as a “guinea pig” for assisted migration is not such a good idea. The slimming existence of the Torreya Taxifolia tree may very well be nature‘s doing but I guess people rather gamble against nature. Assisted migration and all of its unknowns and possible failure is not merely a risky task, but not a match for the central problem that is climate change.