The Last of Its Kind

In The Last of Its Kind, Gisli Pálsson explores the tragic extinction of the great auk, a flightless bird that vanished in the 19th century, primarily focusing on the last known examples hunted in Iceland. Drawing from firsthand accounts of the Icelandic hunters and the observations of British ornithologists John Wolley and Alfred Newton, Pálsson sheds light on a Victorian era that underestimated the implications of extinction. The narrative intertwines historical context with insights from various disciplines, offering a poignant examination of the human impact on biodiversity and the lessons learned from this lost species.