--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think when you work on fossils, and you…" description: "\"I think when you work on fossils, and you realize that a species is there, and it's abundant for quite a long period of time, and then at some point it..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ff/louise-leakey-36237_abundant_i-think-when-you-work-on-fossils-and-you_965377.jpg" --- # I think when you work on fossils, and you realize that a… ![“I think when you work on fossils, and you realize that a species is there, and it's abundant for quite a long period of time, and then at some point it's no longer there - and so, when you look at that bigger picture, yes, you realize that either you change and adapt, or, as a species, you go…” quote by Louise Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ff/louise-leakey-36237_abundant_i-think-when-you-work-on-fossils-and-you_965377.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ff/louise-leakey-36237_abundant_i-think-when-you-work-on-fossils-and-you_965377.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ff/louise-leakey-36237_abundant_i-think-when-you-work-on-fossils-and-you_965377.jpg) > “I think when you work on fossils, and you realize that a species is there, and it's abundant for quite a long period of time, and then at some point it's no longer there - and so, when you look at that bigger picture, yes, you realize that either you change and adapt, or, as a species, you go extinct.” [Louise Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-leakey/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Species that fail to adapt to changing environments become extinct, highlighting the necessity of evolution for survival. **In simple terms:** Adapt or die. Key Takeaway Embrace change to survive. Themes evolution survival adaptation Mood reflective serious Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - conservation planning - climate change response - business innovation - personal growth Key Concepts Natural selection extinction risk Questions to Reflect On - What changes are you resisting? - How can you foster adaptability in your field? A Different Perspective Adaptation may be limited by genetic or systemic constraints. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bigger picture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bigger-picture/) [Change](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/change/) [Evolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evolution/) [Picture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/picture/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work/) ## Related quotes > [All living things contain a measure of madness that moves them in strange, sometimes inexplicable ways. This madness can be saving; it is part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yann-martel/all-living-things-contain-a-measure-of-madness-that-moves-them-in-2/) [Yann Martel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yann-martel/) > [Every species becomes extinct; at some point, we will go extinct. The question is, as Homo sapiens, are we going to be able to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-leakey/every-species-becomes-extinct-at-some-point-we-will-go-extinct-the/) [Louise Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-leakey/) > [People forget the good that zoos do. If it weren't for zoos, we would have so many species that would be extinct today.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-white/people-forget-the-good-that-zoos-do-if-it-weren-t-for-zoos-we-would/) [Betty White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-white/) > [“Wildlife conservation is always a race against time. As zoologists and botanists explore new areas, scrabbling to record the mere existence of species before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-carwardine/wildlife-conservation-is-always-a-race-against-time-as-zoologists-and/) [Mark Carwardine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-carwardine/) > [“An average of seventy-four species become extinct every day, which was one good reason but not the only one to hold someone’s hand, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-krauss/an-average-of-seventy-four-species-become-extinct-every-day-which-was/) [Nicole Krauss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-krauss/) > [“It is possibly true that intelligent life with a sophisticated technology is needed for the eventual survival of life. Dinosaurs and many other species…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamal-nazrul-islam/it-is-possibly-true-that-intelligent-life-with-a-sophisticated/) [Jamal Nazrul Islam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamal-nazrul-islam/) > [Later, I learned that our forgetting of the parakeet had begun even before the species was extinct.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-cokinos/later-i-learned-that-our-forgetting-of-the-parakeet-had-begun-even/) [Christopher Cokinos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-cokinos/) > ['Extinction' issue. Save the species for whom??? Humans' convenience, of course! Individuals of the species are snatched from their homes/family/habitat/held in captivity/forced to mate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adela-popescu/extinction-issue-save-the-species-for-whom-humans-convenience-of/) [Adela Popescu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adela-popescu/) > [Maybe you are a poet and a dreamer, but don't you realize that those two species are extinct now?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/maybe-you-are-a-poet-and-a-dreamer-but-don-t-you-realize-that-those/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“By the time Lyall set foot on the shores of Stephens Island, almost a third of New Zealand’s unique species were already extinct due…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-p-marra/by-the-time-lyall-set-foot-on-the-shores-of-stephens-island-almost-a/) [Peter P. Marra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-p-marra/) > [Herman slipped his hand into mine, and I thought, An average of seventy-four species become extinct every day, which was one good reason but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-krauss/herman-slipped-his-hand-into-mine-and-i-thought-an-average-of-seventy/) [Nicole Krauss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-krauss/) > [Species go extinct because there are historical contraints built into a given body or a given design.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-kelly/species-go-extinct-because-there-are-historical-contraints-built-into/) [Kevin Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-kelly/) > [I think we must ask ourselves if this is really what we want to do to God's creation, to drive it to extinction? Because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stuart-l-pimm/i-think-we-must-ask-ourselves-if-this-is-really-what-we-want-to-do-to/) Stuart L. Pimm > [“A species that becomes extinct because of ethics, disappears. A species that survives because of function can rediscover ethics.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanya-m-g/a-species-that-becomes-extinct-because-of-ethics-disappears-a-species/) Vanya M.G > [In our lifetime, we're going to see fifty percent of the world's species go extinct. We're already seeing this radical rise in the world's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anohni/in-our-lifetime-we-re-going-to-see-fifty-percent-of-the-world-s/) [Anohni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anohni/) ## More by Louise Leakey > [My father so appropriately put it that we are certainly the only animal that makes conscious choices that are bad for our survival as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-leakey/my-father-so-appropriately-put-it-that-we-are-certainly-the-only/) [Louise Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-leakey/) > [Who are we? That is the big question. And essentially we are just an upright, walking, big brained, super intelligent ape.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-leakey/who-are-we-that-is-the-big-question-and-essentially-we-are-just-an/) [Louise Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-leakey/) > [It's important to remember that we evolved. Now, I know that's a dirty word for some people, but we evolved from common ancestors with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-leakey/it-s-important-to-remember-that-we-evolved-now-i-know-that-s-a-dirty/) [Louise Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-leakey/) > [If you want to become a fossil, you need to die somewhere where your bones will be rapidly buried. You then hope that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-leakey/if-you-want-to-become-a-fossil-you-need-to-die-somewhere-where-your/) [Louise Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-leakey/) > [When we find a fossil, we mark it. Today, we've got great technology: we have GPS. We mark it with a GPS fix, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-leakey/when-we-find-a-fossil-we-mark-it-today-we-ve-got-great-technology-we/) [Louise Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-leakey/) > [Its important to remember that we evolved. Now, I know thats a dirty word for some people, but we evolved from common ancestors with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-leakey/its-important-to-remember-that-we-evolved-now-i-know-thats-a-dirty/) [Louise Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-leakey/) > [If you want to become a fossil, you actually need to die somewhere where your bones will be rapidly buried. You then hope that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-leakey/if-you-want-to-become-a-fossil-you-actually-need-to-die-somewhere/) [Louise Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-leakey/) > [In the rush of today's world, and with more than half of us now living in cities, the majority of people are less and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-leakey/in-the-rush-of-today-s-world-and-with-more-than-half-of-us-now-living/) [Louise Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-leakey/) > [What the fossil record does do is to force us to contemplate our place on the planet. We are but one species of several…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-leakey/what-the-fossil-record-does-do-is-to-force-us-to-contemplate-our/) [Louise Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-leakey/) > [What is it that really makes us, us? It's our collective intelligence. It's our ability to write things down, our language and our consciousness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-leakey/what-is-it-that-really-makes-us-us-it-s-our-collective-intelligence/) [Louise Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-leakey/) > [With the discovery of Zinjanthropus at Olduvai Gorge in 1959, my grandmother Mary Leakey pioneered the research in East Africa with my grandfather Louis.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-leakey/with-the-discovery-of-zinjanthropus-at-olduvai-gorge-in-1959-my/) [Louise Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-leakey/) > [Every species becomes extinct; at some point, we will go extinct. The question is, as Homo sapiens, are we going to be able to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-leakey/every-species-becomes-extinct-at-some-point-we-will-go-extinct-the/) [Louise Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-leakey/) [Explore all 13 Louise Leakey quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-leakey/) ## More Abundant quotes > [The actions of the University in my case make it abundantly clear that the Administration's rhetoric about Harvard's desire to attract and retain the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-geller/the-actions-of-the-university-in-my-case-make-it-abundantly-clear/) [Margaret Geller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-geller/) > [Affluence = abundant flow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-butterworth/affluence-abundant-flow/) [Eric Butterworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-butterworth/) > [Possibilities are not limitless, but if you allow for it possibilities can be abundant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-jay-taylor/possibilities-are-not-limitless-but-if-you-allow-for-it-possibilities/) [T Jay Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-jay-taylor/) > [Never, since the fall of communism, has it been so abundantly clear that an ethos exists, which is loath to accept the freedoms and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-walsh/never-since-the-fall-of-communism-has-it-been-so-abundantly-clear/) [Jim Walsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-walsh/) > [That good diffused may more abundant grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/that-good-diffused-may-more-abundant-grow/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [“Some might say that abundance is not what you hold in your hand, but what you have in your heart. And I would say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/some-might-say-that-abundance-is-not-what-you-hold-in-your-hand-but/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [“Not the shoes on her feet, or the clothes that she wears, but the abundant joy she shares everywhere.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-brough/not-the-shoes-on-her-feet-or-the-clothes-that-she-wears-but-the/) [Karen Brough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-brough/) > [Is Abundant Success in all his honest undertakings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-morgan/is-abundant-success-in-all-his-honest-undertakings/) George Morgan > [Every great teacher who has ever walked the planet has told you that life was meant to be abundant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-arthur-ray/every-great-teacher-who-has-ever-walked-the-planet-has-told-you-that/) [James Arthur Ray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-arthur-ray/) > [“used today are wreaking havoc on all of us, particularly on young children whose brains, immune systems, reproductive systems, and lungs are growing rapidly.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-bell/used-today-are-wreaking-havoc-on-all-of-us-particularly-on-young/) Alan Bell > [We're shaking loose viruses and dislodging them from their natural ecological limitations, places where they aren't very abundant and have competition, even within a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-quammen/we-re-shaking-loose-viruses-and-dislodging-them-from-their-natural/) [David Quammen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-quammen/) > [Three keys to more abundant living: caring about others, daring for others, sharing with others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/three-keys-to-more-abundant-living-caring-about-others-daring-for/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I am grateful for a joyful, glorious and abundant life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/i-am-grateful-for-a-joyful-glorious-and-abundant-life/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [“Joy is an abundant currency in God's Kingdom”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pastor-rod-w-larkins/joy-is-an-abundant-currency-in-god-s-kingdom/) [Pastor Rod W. Larkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pastor-rod-w-larkins/) > [I want to be free and free indeed and live and live abundant!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathie-lee-gifford/i-want-to-be-free-and-free-indeed-and-live-and-live-abundant/) [Kathie Lee Gifford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathie-lee-gifford/) Browse all 80 Abundant quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I think when you work on fossils, and you realize that a species is there, and it's abundant for quite a long period of time, and then at some point it's no longer there - and so, when you look at that bigger picture, yes, you realize that either you change and adapt, or, as a species, you go extinct.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Louise Leakey" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-leakey/i-think-when-you-work-on-fossils-and-you-realize-that-a-species-is/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Abundant" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-leakey/i-think-when-you-work-on-fossils-and-you-realize-that-a-species-is/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ff/louise-leakey-36237_abundant_i-think-when-you-work-on-fossils-and-you_965377.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ff/louise-leakey-36237_abundant_i-think-when-you-work-on-fossils-and-you_965377.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ff/louise-leakey-36237_abundant_i-think-when-you-work-on-fossils-and-you_965377.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I think when you work on fossils, and you realize that a species is there, and it's abundant for quite a…” — Louise Leakey", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Louise Leakey", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-leakey/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I think when you work on...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-leakey/i-think-when-you-work-on-fossils-and-you-realize-that-a-species-is/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-leakey/i-think-when-you-work-on-fossils-and-you-realize-that-a-species-is/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```