📖 Overview
Jonathan Balcombe is an ethologist and author known for his scientific research and writings about animal behavior, cognition, and emotional lives. His work focuses on animal sentience and making the case that animals are conscious, feeling beings rather than purely instinctual creatures.
Balcombe served as Department Chair for Animal Studies with the Humane Society University and has been Director of Animal Sentience with the Humane Society Institute for Science and Policy. He has authored several influential books including "Pleasurable Kingdom," "Second Nature," and "What a Fish Knows," with the latter becoming a New York Times bestseller.
His research and writing have contributed significantly to the scientific understanding of animal emotions and experiences, particularly in previously understudied species like fish. Balcombe holds a PhD in ethology from the University of Tennessee and has published over 60 scientific papers, book chapters, and popular articles.
Through his work as a speaker and scientist, Balcombe has helped bridge the gap between academic research on animal consciousness and public understanding of animal cognition. His findings and perspectives have been featured in major media outlets and scientific publications worldwide.
👀 Reviews
Readers consistently praise Balcombe's ability to present scientific concepts about animal consciousness in an accessible way. Reviews highlight his use of research examples and studies to support his arguments about animal sentience.
What readers liked:
- Clear writing style that makes complex topics understandable
- Extensive research citations and evidence
- Personal anecdotes mixed with scientific data
- Changed their perspective on animal intelligence
What readers disliked:
- Some sections can be repetitive
- Occasional anthropomorphizing of animal behavior
- Limited coverage of certain species/topics readers wanted more detail on
Ratings across platforms:
Goodreads: Average 4.1/5 from 3,800+ ratings
- "What a Fish Knows" - 4.3/5 (2,100+ ratings)
- "Pleasurable Kingdom" - 4.0/5 (900+ ratings)
Amazon: Average 4.5/5 across all books
- "The fish book opened my eyes completely" - common review sentiment
- "Made me rethink everything I assumed about animals" - frequent comment
📚 Books by Jonathan Balcombe
Pleasurable Kingdom: Animals and the Nature of Feeling Good (2006)
Examines evidence for animal pleasure across different species and how it influences their behavior.
Second Nature: The Inner Lives of Animals (2010) Explores animal cognition, emotions, and social relationships through scientific research and case studies.
What a Fish Knows: The Inner Lives of Our Underwater Cousins (2016) Presents scientific findings about fish intelligence, perception, and social behavior.
Super Fly: The Unexpected Lives of the World's Most Successful Insects (2021) Details the biology, behavior, and ecological importance of flies through scientific research.
The Exultant Ark: A Pictorial Tour of Animal Pleasure (2011) Combines photography with scientific commentary to document various forms of animal pleasure.
Animals at Play: Rules of the Game (2010) Describes play behavior across different animal species and its significance in their development.
Beastly Bliss: Empowering Our Children to Save the Animals (1997) Addresses ways to teach children about animal welfare and environmental conservation.
Second Nature: The Inner Lives of Animals (2010) Explores animal cognition, emotions, and social relationships through scientific research and case studies.
What a Fish Knows: The Inner Lives of Our Underwater Cousins (2016) Presents scientific findings about fish intelligence, perception, and social behavior.
Super Fly: The Unexpected Lives of the World's Most Successful Insects (2021) Details the biology, behavior, and ecological importance of flies through scientific research.
The Exultant Ark: A Pictorial Tour of Animal Pleasure (2011) Combines photography with scientific commentary to document various forms of animal pleasure.
Animals at Play: Rules of the Game (2010) Describes play behavior across different animal species and its significance in their development.
Beastly Bliss: Empowering Our Children to Save the Animals (1997) Addresses ways to teach children about animal welfare and environmental conservation.
👥 Similar authors
Marc Bekoff writes about animal emotions, intelligence and ethics from a scientific perspective. His work combines behavioral research with philosophical arguments about animal consciousness and welfare.
Carl Safina explores animal cognition and behavior through field research and personal observations. His books examine the inner lives of wild animals and their social relationships through a naturalist lens.
Frans de Waal studies primate behavior and documents evidence of empathy, cooperation, and moral behavior in animals. His research focuses on the evolutionary roots of human social behavior through observation of great apes.
Virginia Morell investigates animal intelligence through interviews with scientists and firsthand accounts of research. Her work covers studies of cognition across species from ants to elephants.
Barbara King examines grief, love, and emotion in animals through scientific case studies and field observations. She writes about animal consciousness while maintaining scientific rigor in her analysis.
Carl Safina explores animal cognition and behavior through field research and personal observations. His books examine the inner lives of wild animals and their social relationships through a naturalist lens.
Frans de Waal studies primate behavior and documents evidence of empathy, cooperation, and moral behavior in animals. His research focuses on the evolutionary roots of human social behavior through observation of great apes.
Virginia Morell investigates animal intelligence through interviews with scientists and firsthand accounts of research. Her work covers studies of cognition across species from ants to elephants.
Barbara King examines grief, love, and emotion in animals through scientific case studies and field observations. She writes about animal consciousness while maintaining scientific rigor in her analysis.