Wildlife Totemization is defined as having a system of beliefs in which humans have mystical, emotional, reverential, or genealogical relationships with a totem

Totem

A totem is a stipulated ancestor of a group of people, such as a family, clan, group, lineage, or tribe.Totems support larger groups than the individual person. In kinship and descent, if the apical ancestor of a clan is nonhuman, it is called a totem...

, that being a natural object such as a plant or animal.

Purpose

Wildlife totemization goes some way towards explaining why some wildlife

Wildlife

Wildlife includes all non-domesticated plants, animals and other organisms. Domesticating wild plant and animal species for human benefit has occurred many times all over the planet, and has a major impact on the environment, both positive and negative....

management programs are particularly controversial. The general hypothesis is similar to wildlife symbolism, in that both theories state that in certain circumstances, humans will imbue species of wildlife with characteristics that are not necessarily inherent in those species themselves.

Characteristics

Characteristics of totemization include:

• Viewing the totem as a companion, a protector, or a progenitor
• Assimilating oneself to the totem
• Prohibiting the killing or eating of the totem
• A high degree of antipathy towards those who destroy the totem

Sources

• Kalland, A. (1993). Management by totemization: Whale symbolism and the anti-whaling campaign. Arctic 46(2), 124-133.
• Nimmo, D. G., Miller, K., & Adams, R. (2007). Managing feral horses in Victoria: A study of community attitudes and perceptions. Ecological Management & Restoration 8 (3) , 237–243