The Social Lives of Animals
- Downloads：5239
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2022-03-13 03:19:36
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Ashley Ward
- ISBN：1541600835
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
- Download
Summary
A rat will go out of its way to help a stranger in need。 Lions have adopted the calves of their prey。 Ants farm fungus in cooperatives。 Why do we continue to believe that life in the animal kingdom is ruled by competition？
In The Social Lives of Animals， biologist Ashley Ward takes us on a wild tour across the globe as he searches for a more accurate picture of how animals build societies。 Ward drops in on a termite mating ritual （while his guides snack on the subjects）， visits freelance baboon goatherds， and swims with a mixed family of whales and dolphins。 Along the way， Ward shows that the social impulses we’ve long thought separated humans from other animals might actually be our strongest connection to them。
Insightful， engaging， and often hilarious， The Social Lives of Animals demonstrates that you can learn more about animals by studying how they work together than by how they compete。
In The Social Lives of Animals， biologist Ashley Ward takes us on a wild tour across the globe as he searches for a more accurate picture of how animals build societies。 Ward drops in on a termite mating ritual （while his guides snack on the subjects）， visits freelance baboon goatherds， and swims with a mixed family of whales and dolphins。 Along the way， Ward shows that the social impulses we’ve long thought separated humans from other animals might actually be our strongest connection to them。
Insightful， engaging， and often hilarious， The Social Lives of Animals demonstrates that you can learn more about animals by studying how they work together than by how they compete。
Reviews
Luann
，
Of all the Goodreads giveaways that I entered， I am thrilled that "The Social Lives of Animals" was the giveaway I won。 I have a BS in Communication Studies and an Associate degree in Animal Health。 This book was practically written for me， as I have always been around animals and always been curious about their lives。It demystifies some animal behaviors。 It discusses the importance of social grouping and communications， with interesting examples。 It defines some social behavior terms， such as s Of all the Goodreads giveaways that I entered， I am thrilled that "The Social Lives of Animals" was the giveaway I won。 I have a BS in Communication Studies and an Associate degree in Animal Health。 This book was practically written for me， as I have always been around animals and always been curious about their lives。It demystifies some animal behaviors。 It discusses the importance of social grouping and communications， with interesting examples。 It defines some social behavior terms， such as swarm intelligence and the many-wrongs principle， that humans are now using to improve the Internet。It points out some behaviors that humans share with other animals （maybe to our dismay）。 It discusses social behaviors and the effects， good and bad， for the species， the environment， and for humans， explaining disasters such as the collapse of the Grand Banks cod fishing。But I didn't just learn from this book。 I was entertained and fascinated。 Ever wonder how birds flock and fish swim in schools and why？ Or how ants find your picnic？ This book will explain it to you clearly and humorously。 It even clears up the myth of the hermaphroditic hyena。 Read the book for this and other great info to stun your friends and family。 。。。more
Hayley
，
Fascinating
Cathy Geha
，
The Social Lives of Animals by Ashley WardInformative， insightful， and delightful ~ What a marvelous way to spend the day！ What I Liked: * All of it…from introduction through to the last page of the epilogue* Learning something new in every chapter of the book* Seeing in how many ways animals are social and how that social aspect overlaps with other animals/species* Being reminded again that we are animals* Wondering if humans will ever understand and be able to truly communicate with animals – The Social Lives of Animals by Ashley WardInformative， insightful， and delightful ~ What a marvelous way to spend the day！ What I Liked: * All of it…from introduction through to the last page of the epilogue* Learning something new in every chapter of the book* Seeing in how many ways animals are social and how that social aspect overlaps with other animals/species* Being reminded again that we are animals* Wondering if humans will ever understand and be able to truly communicate with animals – completely* The wide variety of animals covered: krill， locusts， cockroaches， bees， ants， termites， fish， birds， rats， cows， elephants， lions， hyenas， wolves， whales， dolphins， primates， and more* Being reminded of stories I have heard about local wildlife* Reading of ways animals cooperate to hunt and to ward off predators* How social animals are similar and different from one another* The writing style – more a conversation with tidbits of science， fact， and trivia presented in a captivating easy to understand way* The personal anecdotes of the author* The variety of experiences shared* The way some societal behaviors or the animals overlap with those of humans and inferences that can be made* Contemplating what *I* would have done if I had been in the shoes of the author and seen the dolphin in the whale pod or the eye of the whale open while I was checking on it to make sure it was okay…and so many others* The admiration I felt for the author – his ability to find his true calling， pursue it， enjoy what he does， and share this with us in the book he has writtenWhat I didn’t like: * Not much…mostly the times I thought of man’s ill treatment of so many animals over the span of time， and the extinction and near extinction of so many species， * Knowing that humans think they are superior and have more rights on earth than other animalsDid I enjoy this book？ YesWould I read more by this author？ YesThank you to NetGalley， Hachette Books， and the author for the ARC – This is my honest review。5 Stars 。。。more
Jenny Bell
，
Have you ever wondered what goes on inside an ant colony？ Or whether animals are willing to help others， even at great threat to themselves？ This book explores all the social intricacies from krill up to apes in an engaging way。 I have read a lot of animal-based research and still learned so much， especially about animals that aren't often described in depth。The highlights were stories based on the author's own experiences， such as swimming alongside sperm whales or sitting in a vehicle a troop Have you ever wondered what goes on inside an ant colony？ Or whether animals are willing to help others， even at great threat to themselves？ This book explores all the social intricacies from krill up to apes in an engaging way。 I have read a lot of animal-based research and still learned so much， especially about animals that aren't often described in depth。The highlights were stories based on the author's own experiences， such as swimming alongside sperm whales or sitting in a vehicle a troop of baboons decided to make their own。 I'll admit I was a little more captivated by the chapters on more traditionally popular animals， but it was all interesting。 I appreciated the writing style， and how it didn't go into too many statistics， nor did it dumb things down for the reader。 There are some descriptions of animal violence towards one another， but nothing more than you would expect from watching a nature documentary。 I enjoyed this book and would read more from the author。I received this book as an ARC through NetGalley for my opinion。 。。。more
Jeff
，
Wild Romp。 This is a book that takes us on a wild adventure across the planet as we see the societies various animals have built， from the smallest Antarctic krill to the large Orcas and Humpback whales to the largest land animals out there - the African Elephant。 Fascinating in breadth （though with a dearth of bibliography， as the Advance copy I read only contained about 9% bibliography compared to 3x that amount being more typical， even in early copies） and often hilarious in approach， this is Wild Romp。 This is a book that takes us on a wild adventure across the planet as we see the societies various animals have built， from the smallest Antarctic krill to the large Orcas and Humpback whales to the largest land animals out there - the African Elephant。 Fascinating in breadth （though with a dearth of bibliography， as the Advance copy I read only contained about 9% bibliography compared to 3x that amount being more typical， even in early copies） and often hilarious in approach， this is a book that lovers of any animal great or small are going to want to check out。 Though I *would* be careful with younger readers （and apparently there is a children's edition already being planned）， as the primate chapter in particular gets a bit salacious。 Apparently you can't talk about baboon social life without talking about just how promiscuous - and "pansexual"， to put a human label on it - they are。 Other than that particular section though， most anything here is about the same as anyone will hear on TV / at work / at school as far as "bad" language goes。 Truly a fun tale that never gets too academic and yet manages to present quite a few （presumed， see note about bibliography above） facts that are likely new to most readers。 Very much recommended。 。。。more
Katherine
，
A fascinating read that delves into the lives of creatures big and small。 Learn how connected these animals are with each other and even us in these nine well-organized chapters。 Insects， fishes， birds， mammals are connected back to history， biology， psychology， and sociology in this book that will give you a greater appreciation for the interrelations between all living things on our planet。 Helpful references and further reading list serves as an excellent springboard for those whose curiosity A fascinating read that delves into the lives of creatures big and small。 Learn how connected these animals are with each other and even us in these nine well-organized chapters。 Insects， fishes， birds， mammals are connected back to history， biology， psychology， and sociology in this book that will give you a greater appreciation for the interrelations between all living things on our planet。 Helpful references and further reading list serves as an excellent springboard for those whose curiosity was piqued on a particular topic。 。。。more
Petra X the shoe is on the other foot now！
，
A 10-star book。 Let me tell you how good this book is。 If the whole book had been 1 star （which it wasn't） and only the epilogue was good， it would still have been a 10 star book。 What makes a book 5 star to me is if I really learn something and enjoy the book。 What makes it 10 star is I learn things I hadn't even thought of and ideas to ponder on in areas I have a real interest in such as the intelligence of ants or the hyper-sexuality of the matriarchal bonobos compared to the somewhat aggress A 10-star book。 Let me tell you how good this book is。 If the whole book had been 1 star （which it wasn't） and only the epilogue was good， it would still have been a 10 star book。 What makes a book 5 star to me is if I really learn something and enjoy the book。 What makes it 10 star is I learn things I hadn't even thought of and ideas to ponder on in areas I have a real interest in such as the intelligence of ants or the hyper-sexuality of the matriarchal bonobos compared to the somewhat aggressive lives of the extremely patriarchal chimpanzees。 It isn't very often a science book is unputdownable， that you associate more with a thriller， but every time I put the book down， I wanted to go back to it， sometimes I wanted to know more about that particular animal or sometimes to reread paragraphs because there were many ideas to think about。 I enjoyed the way the book was written， sticking to the science and anecdotes but from a personal and chatty way so you get to know the author。 He has his favourite animals， Orcas and humpback whales for example， and communicates that with his speculation on their feelings and even their thoughts as well as their motivations beyond that of the obvious。 It drew me in， his interest became mine。 Some of the behaviour of animals， like fish shoaling - large numbers swimming together， maintaining a pattern and never touching， or sheep following the leader， are repeatable with people， and quite amusing too。 I didn't agree with everything the author said， I have read other accounts of say， lions - The Tribe of Tiger: Cats and Their Culture by Elizabeth Marshall Thomas for instance， that do not see them in the same way。 But I like reading two different viewpoints， it gives me more to think about。In the epilogue the author is talking about animals belonging to large social groups tending to develop bigger brains and intelligence。 But there are， as always， exceptions。Nutcrackers aren't especially social birds， but they have impressive brains。 For them， it's a matter of remembering where they've hidden seeds to see them through the winter。 They might hide as many as a hundred thousand seeds each autumn and can remember where they've hidden them even months later - bear that in mind next time you lose your keys。 When I read a book this exceptional， it makes me happy and I think life is good。__________Notes on reading， mostly about Krill which are a lot more fascinating that you probably think。 （view spoiler）[ The book has started well with an animal I have never been interested in at all。 Krill。 I know baleen whales eat them， I know they survive in huge numbers in Arctic waters and that's it。 So everything I learned about them is new information and it is pretty amazing。 There are about 85 species and they are a couple of inches long， have reflexes twice as fast as an Olympic sprinter and the crap they produce from eating algae sinks to the bottom of the ocean out of harm's way， in what is known as the "biological pump" which removes massive amounts of carbon from the atmosphere。 They remove， I read， as much carbon as is produced by every household in the UK in a year。 （Shame there isn't some creature that can remove the methane cows produce。 Then we'd have greenhouse gases sorted！） Their favourite human-provided food is brown ale！ I think I like Krill a lot :-） （hide spoiler）] 。。。more
Lesley
，
This book was so entertaining！ My son and I took turns reading it and have very much enjoyed sharing what we found most interesting。 In this book， Ashely Ward shares the importance of the social connections of animals and how they build relationships with one another。 It was interesting to read about how these different species of animals communicate and work together and even show compassion for one another。 I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading about the animal kingdom。。 and This book was so entertaining！ My son and I took turns reading it and have very much enjoyed sharing what we found most interesting。 In this book， Ashely Ward shares the importance of the social connections of animals and how they build relationships with one another。 It was interesting to read about how these different species of animals communicate and work together and even show compassion for one another。 I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading about the animal kingdom。。 and it would definitely make a great gift for animal lovers。 This one will be a read again book for me！I received this book as a part of a Goodreads giveaway！ Thank you， Goodreads， Ashley Ward and Basic Books！ 。。。more
Elisa
，
This is a fascinating look into animals as groups。 From the smallest creatures to our closest cousins and， even， us。 The author is a professor and the director of the Animal Behavior Lab in Sydney， and he is hilarious。 Written in an entertaining and approachable way， he includes tons of science， but explained in a way that even dummies like me will understand completely。 He adds examples of the conducts he describes。 Most are funny， others grisly but necessary。 Since he references the work of et This is a fascinating look into animals as groups。 From the smallest creatures to our closest cousins and， even， us。 The author is a professor and the director of the Animal Behavior Lab in Sydney， and he is hilarious。 Written in an entertaining and approachable way， he includes tons of science， but explained in a way that even dummies like me will understand completely。 He adds examples of the conducts he describes。 Most are funny， others grisly but necessary。 Since he references the work of ethologists I follow， such as Frans De Waal， some of the stories and theories were familiar。 Others I’d never heard of， and surprised me。 As I mentioned earlier， he discusses little guys such as ants and termites， even cockroaches （sorry， profesor， I still don’t like them）， larger mammals such as rats， birds， fish， sea mammals， big cats， monkeys and apes， among many others。 Now I’m just happy that I don’t have any lobsters of my acquaintance since their way to say hello must be very stinky。 This is an excellent volume。 I chose to read this book and all opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased。 Thank you， NetGalley/#Perseus Books， Basic Books！ 。。。more
MookNana
，
I learned something new and had a good time doing it。 What more can one ask， really？ The author is a very gifted storyteller。 He manages to take a very academic subject and make it interesting to a general audience。 This goes down so easy， with lots of humor and clear explanations of somewhat esoteric concepts。 It amazing how much we can learn about the smallest， most obscure animals， and now much of it parallels human behavior。 One needn't have a particular interest in zoology， populations， or I learned something new and had a good time doing it。 What more can one ask， really？ The author is a very gifted storyteller。 He manages to take a very academic subject and make it interesting to a general audience。 This goes down so easy， with lots of humor and clear explanations of somewhat esoteric concepts。 It amazing how much we can learn about the smallest， most obscure animals， and now much of it parallels human behavior。 One needn't have a particular interest in zoology， populations， or animal behavior for this to be a good read。 Anyone curious about the natural world or just looking for something interesting to learn about will be quite satisfied！Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review！ 。。。more
Anthony Watson
，
When I did my zoology degree back in the last millennium， animal behaviour was my favourite subject so this book has brought back fond memories of those times。 Beautifully written， it puts across ideas and theories in a very easy to read way， with plenty of humour as well。Fascinating to read about animal languages - and the possibility that they might even have names for each other - and also how some species can use deception as a means to an end。A great book， loved it and would recommend to an When I did my zoology degree back in the last millennium， animal behaviour was my favourite subject so this book has brought back fond memories of those times。 Beautifully written， it puts across ideas and theories in a very easy to read way， with plenty of humour as well。Fascinating to read about animal languages - and the possibility that they might even have names for each other - and also how some species can use deception as a means to an end。A great book， loved it and would recommend to anyone。 。。。more
Jean
，
Fantastic book！ I love watching and learning about the interaction of animals。 I enjoy documentaries and will watch them first before anything else。 This book is really good！ I truly enjoyed it and learned several things that I didn't know。 If you have any interest in animals you will want to read this one。 Thank you so much， NetGalley， for allowing me to read and review this great book！ Fantastic book！ I love watching and learning about the interaction of animals。 I enjoy documentaries and will watch them first before anything else。 This book is really good！ I truly enjoyed it and learned several things that I didn't know。 If you have any interest in animals you will want to read this one。 Thank you so much， NetGalley， for allowing me to read and review this great book！ 。。。more
Zeljka
，
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher I got the opportunity to read this book in advance。 I feared it might be another book mired with statistics and meaningless （to the un-initiated folk） numbers， but it wasn't。Put simply， the main topic of the book was how various classes of animals form societies and tries to answer the enigma of why in that certain manner and why at all。 The book gives us a delightfully humorous and fascinating insight into the social lives of animals of all strata and space Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher I got the opportunity to read this book in advance。 I feared it might be another book mired with statistics and meaningless （to the un-initiated folk） numbers， but it wasn't。Put simply， the main topic of the book was how various classes of animals form societies and tries to answer the enigma of why in that certain manner and why at all。 The book gives us a delightfully humorous and fascinating insight into the social lives of animals of all strata and spaces， going from tiny creatures such as krill to insects over to fish to birds to mammals。 Some tales were endearing while others quite shocking， meaning， not family-friendly。 That shouldn't surprise us though; it is our own fault that quite often the only way our urban lives get in touch with the nature is through the TV screen， and even then the more gruesome aspects of it are shown in words only or not mentioned altogether。 I've never put much thought into how social characters of some species affect their learning and decision making processes， so much they balance between life and death there。 A simple example from the book gives a lot to think about us too - a mere shoal of fish very often has to make a life-challenging decision: to dare and go at once over there to another coral reef based on a hunch of a single curious fish or to wait for a mutual agreement of the whole shoal。 For more advanced species the level of sociality is more complex， requiring brain cells working in many directions， from communication methods to familiarity and conformity levels， not so far from our own human means of surviving。 Sometimes nice gestures do wonders for their well-beings， and opposite。What exactly governs social lives of animals （us included）， scientists are still doing thorough dissertations about。 With this book we the ordinary readers get the glimpse of what they discovered so far。 If you are fascinated with the nature， I would highly recommend reading this book。 It is a treasure trove of many tales about animals and their lives that TV teams rarely get chance to or simply cannot film。 While carefully citing the scientific sources for each of them， the book does not take a dry and strictly scientific approach to them。 In that sense， the book is worthwhile read even to novices。 。。。more
Lydia
，
A wonderful and vast collection of fresh， strange， eclectic， and diverse tales and facts about the social lives of a wide array of different animals。 This isn’t a quick read。 It’s more the kind of book where keep coming back to read it a bit at a time。 You get your fix of fresh animal facts to keep your mind occupied for awhile。 Then， you go back to read a bit more。 This diverse collection is vast and detailed enough to last you a good long while。 A fitting match for such varied and vast subject A wonderful and vast collection of fresh， strange， eclectic， and diverse tales and facts about the social lives of a wide array of different animals。 This isn’t a quick read。 It’s more the kind of book where keep coming back to read it a bit at a time。 You get your fix of fresh animal facts to keep your mind occupied for awhile。 Then， you go back to read a bit more。 This diverse collection is vast and detailed enough to last you a good long while。 A fitting match for such varied and vast subject matter: social behavior of animals。 You’ll find personal anecdotes， secondhand stories， and wisdom from both researchers and experts。 This has a better variety of animals then I’ve seen in most animal books。 This book covers not only social interactions among animals that are all of the same species， but also interactions between animals that belong to different species。 Ward compiles this impressive collection in the hopes that we humans can better understand and improve our social lives by understanding social lives of the animals we share the earth with。 It’s is informative， comprehensive， entertaining， and full of material that’s brand new to me。 A very enjoyable read。 。。。more
Nenia ✨ I yeet my books back and forth ✨ Campbell
，
OMG THIS SOUNDS SO CUTE
Emma Ann
，
The Social Lives of Animals is about exactly what it says on the tin: the social lives of animals。 The author， Ashley Ward， argues that animals have complex social lives， and that learning about the importance of animals' social lives teaches us about the importance of humans' social lives。 So this book doesn't really have a provocative thesis or groundbreaking argument -- for the most part， it's 380 pages of animal facts。 And I absolutely love it。Why？ First of all， I am always up for animal fac The Social Lives of Animals is about exactly what it says on the tin: the social lives of animals。 The author， Ashley Ward， argues that animals have complex social lives， and that learning about the importance of animals' social lives teaches us about the importance of humans' social lives。 So this book doesn't really have a provocative thesis or groundbreaking argument -- for the most part， it's 380 pages of animal facts。 And I absolutely love it。Why？ First of all， I am always up for animal facts。 Do I want to know about the intricacies of bee dances？ Absolutely。 Whale songs？ One hundred percent。 Elephant mourning？ Sign me up。 When I was little， I was the kid who watched Zoboomafoo religiously and spent hours digging through my children's encyclopedias。 The Social Lives of Animals reminds me of the best parts of that curiosity and wonder。 Another reason I had a blast reading this book was Ashley Ward's voice as a writer。 He intersperses his animal facts with personal stories， told in a voice that reminds me of my scientist grandfather。 Here's a short example， which comes from a section where Ward has been searching for whales:"We racked up hour after hour of zilch， but that's all part and parcel of looking for animals -- if you want guarantees， go to a zoo。"Ward's style is genuine and keeps his subject matter fresh and interesting。 All told， I'd recommend The Social Lives of Animals for readers who are looking for a solid collection of fun animal facts， or who are seeking to reignite their curiosity about the animal world。[Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing an eARC for review。] 。。。more
Sue Fernandez
，
Thank you to NetGalley for an e-ARC of this title， in exchange for my honest review。 I love animals and all the quirks that come with them。 This book was informative， but one that I wanted to continue turning the page。 I learned many new pieces of information， and it gave me a new respect for the social ladder that exists even in the animal kingdom。 This was a very good read， and if you're looking for a bit of non fiction， don't hesitate to pick this one up。 Thank you to NetGalley for an e-ARC of this title， in exchange for my honest review。 I love animals and all the quirks that come with them。 This book was informative， but one that I wanted to continue turning the page。 I learned many new pieces of information， and it gave me a new respect for the social ladder that exists even in the animal kingdom。 This was a very good read， and if you're looking for a bit of non fiction， don't hesitate to pick this one up。 。。。more
Chantal Lyons
，