2022 read #25: Beasts Before Us by Elsa Panciroli.

Beasts Before Us: The Untold Story of Mammal Origins and Evolution by Elsa Panciroli

300 pages

Published 2021

Read from June 2 to June 5

Rating: 4 out of 5

Continuing my informal read-through of the current boom in pop paleontology books with a fun entry chronicling the evolution of synapsids. From their Carboniferous origins to the Anthropocene extinction crisis instigated by one synapsid species in particular (ourselves), Beasts delivers a light and readable rundown of major milestones and interesting details. It marks the first time I've seen the term "chonky boi" utilized in a scientific context. It also delineated the definition of our ancestral synapsid group (and demonstrated why the term "mammal-like reptile" is a misnomer) better than any material had ever done for me before. (In short, mammals didn't evolve from reptiles; synapsids and diapsids both diverged from a shared amniote ancestor, so calling synapsids "mammal-like reptiles" is inaccurate in several ways.)

At times Panciroli treads closer than I'd like to scientific biography, but even this is important because it led to the spectacle of multiple negative Amazon reviews from fragile white men crying about how "political" Panciroli is. Panciroli dares to acknowledge how Western science arose from the exploitation of colonialism, and further dares to be honest about how vile certain prominent white male scientists were. To the delicate sensibilities of these white male reviewers, being honest and truthful about history is unwarranted and (horrors!) political, with the implication that quietly burying and ignoring the continuing realities of colonialism (to the benefit of no one but themselves) is merely proper and objective writing. These Amazon reviews encapsulate a microcosm of fascist brain-rot, and for that I'm happy Panciroli took the time to explore the lives of past scientists.

Overall, I'd say Beasts Before Us tantalized me about mammal origins more than it taught me, but that's to be expected -- it's a pop science book, after all. I'm jonesing for a fuller (and more lavishly illustrated) tome. Alas, this is one of vanishingly few books I've ever seen devoted to synapsid evolution. I'm not sure where to get my fix from here.