For most of us, the only thing we know about flies is that they're annoying, and our usual reaction is to try to kill them. In Super Fly, the myth-busting biologist Jonathan Balcombe shows the order Diptera in all of its diversity, illustrating the essential role that flies play in every ecosystem in the world as pollinators, waste-disposers, predators, and food source; and how flies continue to reshape our understanding of evolution. No matter your outlook on our tiny buzzing neighbours, Super Fly will change the way you look at flies forever.

Super Fly: The Unexpected Lives of the World's Most Successful Insects

Science & Math

Balcombe, Jonathan

Biological Sciences

Penguin??Books

Do baboons have a sense of right and wrong? Do cats and dogs have their feelings hurt? Animal behavior expert Jonathan Balcombe makes the case that animals, once viewed only as mindless automatons, actually have rich sensory experiences and emotional complexity. Drawing on new research, observational studies, and personal anecdotes to reveal the full spectrum of animal experience, Balcombe paints a new picture of the inner lives of animals that diverges from the "fight or die" image often presented in the popular media. He challenges traditional views of animals and makes the case for why the human-animal relationship needs a complete overhaul.
Did you know that dogs recognize unfairness and that rats practice random acts of kindness? Did you know that chimpanzees can trounce humans in short-term memory games? Or that fishes distinguish good guys from cheaters, and that birds are susceptible to mood swings such as depression and optimism? With vivid stories and entertaining anecdotes, Balcombe gives the human pedestal a strong shake while opening the door into the inner lives of the animals themselves.

Second Nature: The Inner Lives of Animals (MacSci)

St. Martin's: Griffin

For centuries we believed that humans were the only ones that mattered. The idea that animals had feelings was either dismissed or considered heresy. Today, that's all changing. New scientific studies of animal behavior reveal perceptions, intelligences, awareness and social skills that would have been deemed fantasy a generation ago. The implications make our troubled relationship to animals one of the most pressing moral issues of our time.
 Jonathan Balcombe, animal behaviorist and author of the critically acclaimed Pleasurable Kingdom, draws on the latest research, observational studies and personal anecdotes to reveal the full gamut of animal experience―from emotions, to problem solving, to moral judgment. Balcombe challenges the widely held idea that nature is red in tooth and claw, highlighting animal traits we have disregarded until now: their nuanced understanding of social dynamics, their consideration for others, and their strong tendency to avoid violent conflict. Did you know that dogs recognize unfairness and that rats practice random acts of kindness? Did you know that chimpanzees can trounce humans in short-term memory games? Or that fishes distinguish good guys from cheaters, and that birds are susceptible to mood swings such as depression and optimism?
 With vivid stories and entertaining anecdotes, Balcombe gives the human pedestal a strong shake while opening the door into the inner lives of the animals themselves.

St.Martin's Press

A New York Times Bestseller 
Do fishes think? Do they really have three-second memories? And can they recognize the humans who peer back at them from above the surface of the water? In What a Fish Knows, the myth-busting ethologist Jonathan Balcombe addresses these questions and more, taking us under the sea, through streams and estuaries, and to the other side of the aquarium glass to reveal the surprising capabilities of fishes. Although there are more than thirty thousand species of fish―more than all mammals, birds, reptiles, and amphibians combined―we rarely consider how individual fishes think, feel, and behave. Balcombe upends our assumptions about fishes, portraying them not as unfeeling, dead-eyed feeding machines but as sentient, aware, social, and even Machiavellian―in other words, much like us. What a Fish Knows draws on the latest science to present a fresh look at these remarkable creatures in all their breathtaking diversity and beauty. Fishes conduct elaborate courtship rituals and develop lifelong bonds with shoalmates. They also plan, hunt cooperatively, use tools, curry favor, deceive one another, and punish wrongdoers. We may imagine that fishes lead simple, fleeting lives―a mode of existence that boils down to a place on the food chain, rote spawning, and lots of aimless swimming. But, as Balcombe demonstrates, the truth is far richer and more complex, worthy of the grandest social novel. Highlighting breakthrough discoveries from fish enthusiasts and scientists around the world and pondering his own encounters with fishes, Balcombe examines the fascinating means by which fishes gain knowledge of the places they inhabit, from shallow tide pools to the deepest reaches of the ocean. Teeming with insights and exciting discoveries, What a Fish Knows offers a thoughtful appraisal of our relationships with fishes and inspires us to take a more enlightened view of the planet’s increasingly imperiled marine life. What a Fish Knows will forever change how we see our aquatic cousins―the pet goldfish included.

What a Fish Knows: The Inner Lives of Our Underwater Cousins

Scientific American / Farrar, Straus and Giroux

Review\n“A sensitive topic swum with mindful strokes. Balcombe’s insightful juxtaposition of two youthful experiences wades through an emotional journey of learning and compassion. Evans’ richly hued watercolors evoke fluid movement and a vibrant natural landscape filled with wildlife. Illustrations and story harmonize well, highlighting vulnerability and the importance of compassion. . .” ―Kirkus Reviews\n"Jake and Ava: A Boy and a Fish is a gorgeous book with a beautiful message: that all creatures love their lives just like we love ours. “ 
—Sy Montgomery, author of Becoming a Good Creature.\n"Jonathan Balcombe’s book will help children see fishes in the way they should be seen—as animals who deserve to be treated with kindness and respect. Jake and Ava is a meaningful and enjoyable story experience.”\n—Dr. Aysha Akhtar, MD, MPH, author of Our Symphony With Animals:On Health, Empathy and Our Shared Destinies.\n"Archerfishes like Ava are amazing beings. They are not only very bright but also have rich and deep emotional lives like the companion animals with whom we’re more familiar. In Jake and Ava, author Jonathan Balcombe tells a story of much needed empathy and kindness from a boy to a fish that deserves a broad global audience.” —Marc Bekoff, Ph.D., author of Animals at Play and Jasper's story: Saving Moon Bears\nFrom New York Times best-selling author Jonathan Balcombe comes this charming and affecting tale of young Jake, who on his first fishing trip with his grandfather, makes a crucial discovery when he meets Ava, an archerfish, caught on his line.\n"This tender tale will evoke empathy in young readers. And, the art is exquisite.”\n—Joyce Sidman, winner of the NCTE Award for excellence in Poetry for Children, Winner of the Sibert Medal, author of The Girl who Drew Butterflies and many other titles.

Jake and Ava: A Boy and a Fish

Children's Books

Animals

The Gryphon Press

The recognition of animal pain and stress, once controversial, is now acknowledged by legislation in many countries, but there is no formal recognition of animals' ability to feel pleasure. Pleasurable Kingdom is the first book for lay-readers to present new evidence that animals--like humans--enjoy themselves. It debunks the popular perception that life for most is a continuous, grim struggle for survival and the avoidance of pain. Instead it suggests that creatures from birds to baboons feel good thanks to play, sex, touch, food, anticipation, comfort, aesthetics, and more. Combining rigorous evidence, elegant argument and amusing anecdotes, leading animal behavior researcher Jonathan Balcombe proposes that the possibility of positive feelings in creatures other than humans has important ethical ramifications for both science and society.

Pleasurable Kingdom: Animals and the Nature of Feeling Good (MacSci)

Pleasurable Kingdom presents new evidence that animals--like humans--enjoy themselves. From birds to baboons, insects to iguanas, animals feel good thanks to play, sex, touch, food, anticipation, comfort, aesthetics, and more. Combining rigorous evidence, elegant argument and amusing anecdotes, leading animal behavior researcher Jonathan Balcombe shows that the possibility of positive feelings in creatures other than humans has important ethical ramifications for both science and society.

Do goldfish really have a three-second memory? How does an archerfish hone its hunting skills? Can fish recognize human faces, appreciate music or feel pain? By presenting the fascinating findings of scientific research into their cognitive and sensory worlds, their sex lives and social structures, Balcombe prompts us to reconsider the intellectual abilities of our aquatic cousins so that we can more easily feel compassion towards them.

GARDNERS VI BOOKS AMS006

Was Fische wissen: Wie sie lieben, spielen, planen: unsere Verwandten unter Wasser

mareverlag GmbH

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Balcombe, Jonathan. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Balcombe, Jonathan

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Balcombe, Jonathan. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Super Fly: The Unexpected Lives of the World's Most Successful Insects

Second Nature: The Inner Lives of Animals (MacSci)

Second Nature: The Inner Lives of Animals (MacSci)

What a Fish Knows: The Inner Lives of Our Underwater Cousins

What a Fish Knows: The Inner Lives of Our Underwater Cousins

Jake and Ava: A Boy and a Fish

Pleasurable Kingdom: Animals and the Nature of Feeling Good (MacSci)

Pleasurable Kingdom: Animals and the Nature of Feeling Good (MacSci)

What a Fish Knows: The Inner Lives of Our Underwater Cousins

Was Fische wissen: Wie sie lieben, spielen, planen: unsere Verwandten unter Wasser