Reading this work reminded me of the famous double-slit experiment, where light behaves as both a wave and a particle. However, under the act of observation, it will always appear to be a particle. This is called the observer effect, where “the act of observation alters the behavior of the particles being observed” (Vaidyanathan). This parallels our observation of non-human nature, where nature can occupy numerous states, but will behave differently if observed.

This is most noticeable with urban wildlife, where pigeons, seagulls, racoons, etc., have identified humans as a source of food. These animals have learnt to override their natural instincts and venture towards a predatory threat for the sake of food. On the other hand, it is also true that wildlife may be observed with their awareness. We possess powerful cameras with over 100x magnification, hidden cameras that can record at night, helicopters that can scope the landscape from above, and tracking devices that monitor a creature’s every move once implanted. However, it is unsure whether we are still observing these non-human entities in their most ‘natural’ state.

Rodrigues writes how before technology, it was unclear whether observation and habituation (where the humans follow their animal subjects until they got used to them). Although we can now observe these animals at a distance, we still have the capacity to indirectly influence non-human nature. Rodrigues describes how the vervet monkeys she studied realised that they could feel safe around their human researchers as they warded off their leopard predators. “The data indicated that the monkeys’ disappearance rate was 3.6 times higher during periods when observers were away”, revealing the likely correlation between the human and leopard presence.  As such, maybe everytime we try to observe something in its natural habitat, the act of doing so makes the habitat unnatural, even in some miniscule way. Our human influence acts upon non-human in often subtle ways, which questions whether these animals are truly animal or partly something of human sculpted through human observation. The immense network of interactions of nature is so entangled, that perhaps the act of reading this passage on your computer is affecting the behaviour of some creature all the way on the other side of the world. 

Works cited:

Vaidyanathan, Venkatesh. “ What Is The Observer Effect In Quantum Mechanics?” ScienceABC, 8 Jul 2022, https://www.scienceabc.com/pure-sciences/observer-effect-quantum-mechanics.html 

Rodrigues, Michelle. “Quantum Chimpanzees: Do Watched Primates Change Their Behavior?” This View of Life, 17 May 2018, https://thisviewoflife.com/quantum-chimpanzees-do-watched-primates-change-their-behavior/