Smitten by Giraffe

August 22, 2016
In this plainspoken memoir, Canadian zoologist Dagg (Giraffe: Biology, Behavior and Conservation) chronicles her unusual life as a “citizen scientist” and the deeply ingrained sexism she experienced in academia. A serendipitous sighting of a giraffe at a zoo when Dagg was three years old in 1936 sparked her desire to learn about these creatures. When Dagg grew older, she decided to become a zoologist, teaching and conducting research at a university. It seemed like an achievable goal, especially when Dagg, as a newly minted University of Toronto graduate, went to Africa in 1956 to study wild giraffes, a first in the scientific world. As she added to her academic credentials—earning her Ph.D., lecturing, and writing about wildlife—while marrying and raising a family, Dagg encountered a major setback: she was told she would never receive a permanent position at one university “because she had a man to support her.” Rather than quietly giving up, Dagg chose to advocate for other women in academia and continue her own work as an independent scientist, doing research without academic affiliation or support. Dagg’s accounts of her research may be too detailed for some readers, but her passionate engagement with the world shines through in all the experiences she recounts.

November 1, 2016

Zoologist Dagg (Pursuing Giraffe: A 1950s Adventure; The Social Behavior of Older Animals) fell in love with giraffes at a young age and traveled to Africa in the 1950s to study them, on her own dime, implying that she was a man in order to secure lodging there. In her new memoir, the author shares this story and other escapades: analyzing the gaits of kangaroos in Australia, studying camels in Mauritania, and creating Otter Press in order to publish several of her works. She passionately recounts a lifetime of zoology field research and contributions to a lengthy list of publications, including numerous refereed journal articles. Despite her successful track record and professorship at several universities, Dagg was passed over for tenured positions in academia. She was never given serious consideration, because, she was told, a woman's place is in the family. As a result, she worked tirelessly as an advocate for women's and animal rights, even refusing to do research on animals if it might cause them harm. Readers will be moved by Dagg's prodigious scholarship, as she remained undeterred even after experiencing stinging discrimination. VERDICT A strong addition that will appeal to science readers or those seeking accounts of female professionals in the field.--Laurie Neuerburg, Victoria Coll.-Univ. of Houston Lib.

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