I watched those hawk chicks
Fed by their parents
Growing fast
But not fast enough
To beat the desert temperatures
Coming early in June
They succumbed to the heat
If only they'd had another week
Another casualty
The great species collapse is here
Taking lives
Of every species
And I
A scientist, an ecologist
Doing my best
Can only sit back
Watch the world burn
And grieve
The short term changes
With lasting impacts
Of the industrial revolution