Carnivore Minds: Who These Fearsome Animals Really Are

by G. A. Bradshaw

Overview

Myth and media typically cast animals we consider predators or carnivores as unthinking killers—dangerous, unpredictable, and devoid of emotion. But is this portrait valid? By exploring their inner lives, this pioneering book refutes the many misperceptions that hide the true nature of these animals. We discover that great white sharks express tender maternal feelings, rattlesnakes make friends, orcas abide by an ancient moral code, and much more.

Using the combined lenses of natural history, neuroscience, and psychology, G. A. Bradshaw describes how predators share the rainbow of emotions that humans experience, including psychological trauma. Renowned for leading research on post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in elephants and other species, Bradshaw decries the irrational thinking behind wildlife policies that equate killing carnivores with “conservation.” In its place, she proposes a new, ethical approach to coexistence with the planet’s fiercest animals.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780300227598
Publisher:	Yale University Press
Publication date:	03/28/2017
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	320
File size:	12 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

G. A. Bradshaw is founder and director of The Kerulos Center and the Tortoise and the Hare Sanctuary. Her groundbreaking discovery of post‑traumatic stress disorder in free‑living elephants launched the field of trans‑species psychology.

Table of Contents

Giving Voice to Animals: A Naturalists Note by Charlie Russell ix

Foreword Allan N. Schore xiii

Preface xxi

Introduction: A Tension of Opposites 1

1 White Sharks: Personalities 19

2 Grizzly Bears: How Brains and Minds Develop 53

3 Orcas: Sense of Self and Moral Evolution 83

4 Crocodiles: Emotional Intelligence 116

5 Rattlesnakes: Sensibilities and Social Life 153

6 Pumas: Psychological Trauma 196

7 Coyotes: The Predator Complex 221

Epilogue: Pax Carnivora 259

Notes 269

Acknowledgments 315

Index 317

Editorial Reviews

In many respects an excellent book. The descriptions of animal behaviour are rich and vibrant. The information it collates from a wide variety of sources. . . is always interesting and enthralling. . . There is much that is important and entertaining in this book.”—Mark Rowlands, Times Literary Supplement

“Carnivore Minds is a pure delight and a magnificent achievement. Think of it as Darwin’s The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals for the twenty-first century. Every page reveals a new idea for looking deeply into animal souls.”—Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson, author of Beasts: What Animals Can Teach Us About the Origins of Good and Evil

“This may be the most exciting, most informative, and most surprising book ever written about animals.  It results from a new approach to animal studies, and the findings are overwhelming.”—Elizabeth Marshall Thomas, author of The Hidden Life of Dogs

“The Western world has long kept non-humans in conceptual boxes, distanced from the rest of the living world. Gay Bradshaw does the opposite. By removing artificial dividers, she shows the overlapping abilities and experiences among species and illuminates new perspectives for us to consider.”—Carl Safina, author of Beyond Words: What Animals Think and Feel

“Bradshaw continues to carve out an immensely important and innovative field that combines animal behavior and psychology, with deep inter-mind—and soul—sensibilities. Beautifully written. This book is a catalyst for societal change."–Peter H. Kahn, Jr., University of Washington

“With panache and care, Gay Bradshaw tackles myths about carnivores. She moves the reader to greater understanding and empathy—critical tasks if we are going to increase humanity’s concern for carnivore thriving.” –Darcia Narvaez, University of Notre Dame

"Gripping...Gay Bradshaw informs, educates, challenges, and exposes biases about carnivores.  We need to stop excluding these animals from the ambit of human ethical concern."—John Gluck, author of Voracious Science and Vulnerable Animals: A Primate Scientist's Ethical Journey

“The book forces us to regard other species—those dangerous, frightening, predatory ones that occasionally kill us—in a new light.” –Luke Hunter, Panthera

“Bradshaw goes beyond current trends, uniting two seemingly unrelated fields of science into one: neuropsychology and carnivore biology. She makes a remarkably original contribution by taking the reader into psychological sessions with an interesting cast of charismatic carnivores.”—William J. Ripple, Oregon State University

“[A] fascinating blend of well-informed anecdote, neuroscience, ecology, and gleanings from the scientific literature.”—Booklist

“The latest and most persuasive in a small croop of 21st-century nature books whose aim is to remove simple villians from the animal kingdom . . . Here’s hoping this and all such books aren’t too late.”—Open Letters Monthly

“A powerful argument.”—Natural History

“Well-researched . . . Readers will find descriptions of coming eye-to-eye with white sharks and up-close-and-personal encounters with grizzly bears and other large carnivores particularly compelling.”—Choice

“Carnivore Minds is full of fascinating, heart-warming stories about individual animals and their families and friends, as well as their natural Histories . . . It shows that animals as ostensibly primitive and 'mindless as sharks' are not only intelligent, but in some cases are social and cooperative, with distinct individual personalities.”—Reed F. Noss, Biological Conservation
 

“Carnivore Minds establishes a sense of urgency to conserve, protect, and respect carnivores by raising important ethical concerns about current wildlife practices . . . a terrific read for anyone curious about understanding or appreciating the mental processes of carnivores specifically and nonhuman animals in general.”—Jennifer E. Smith, Quarterly Review of Biology

"The book is intended for a broad audience of readers of popular science and academics alike, and the wonderful narrative style will appeal to readers of all types . . . [Bradshaw's] storytelling ability and the structure of the book around personal stories, and of course the content itself, make this book a fascinating read."—Michael M. Lacy, Yale Journal of Biology and Medicine


 

“[Calls] for a transformational change in the human-animal relationship. . . well written and thought provoking. Bradshaw’s story telling is worth the price of admission [and] will inspire readers to rethink how we affect other animals and realize that we mostly are blind to how animals are treated today.”—Fred W. Koontz, Biological Conservation

“Bradshaw does an excellent job of encouraging the reader’s sympathies. . . . Her lively prose will engage both the layperson and the academic.”—Elisa Galgut, Journal of Animal Ethics

2018 Oregon Book Awards Finalist

From the Publisher

“[A] fascinating blend of well-informed anecdote, neuroscience, ecology, and gleanings from the scientific literature.”—Booklist

Booklist

“Bradshaw goes beyond current trends, uniting two seemingly unrelated fields of science into one: neuropsychology and carnivore biology. She makes a remarkably original contribution by taking the reader into psychological sessions with an interesting cast of charismatic carnivores.”—William J. Ripple, Oregon State University

William J. Ripple

“The book forces us to regard other species—those dangerous, frightening, predatory ones that occasionally kill us—in a new light.” –Luke Hunter, Panthera

Luke Hunter

"Gripping...Gay Bradshaw informs, educates, challenges, and exposes biases about carnivores.  We need to stop excluding these animals from the ambit of human ethical concern."—John Gluck, author of Voracious Science and Vulnerable Animals: A Primate Scientist's Ethical Journey

John Gluck

“With panache and care, Gay Bradshaw tackles myths about carnivores. She moves the reader to greater understanding and empathy—critical tasks if we are going to increase humanity’s concern for carnivore thriving.” –Darcia Narvaez, University of Notre Dame

Darcia Narvaez

“Bradshaw continues to carve out an immensely important and innovative field that combines animal behavior and psychology, with deep inter-mind—and soul—sensibilities. Beautifully written. This book is a catalyst for societal change."–Peter H. Kahn, Jr., University of Washington

Peter Kahn

“The Western world has long kept non-humans in conceptual boxes, distanced from the rest of the living world. Gay Bradshaw does the opposite. By removing artificial dividers, she shows the overlapping abilities and experiences among species and illuminates new perspectives for us to consider.”—Carl Safina, author of Beyond Words: What Animals Think and Feel

Carl Safina

“This may be the most exciting, most informative, and most surprising book ever written about animals.  It results from a new approach to animal studies, and the findings are overwhelming.”—Elizabeth Marshall Thomas, author of The Hidden Life of Dogs

Elizabeth Marshall Thomas

“Carnivore Minds is a pure delight and a magnificent achievement. Think of it as Darwin’s The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals for the twenty-first century. Every page reveals a new idea for looking deeply into animal souls.”—Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson, author of Beasts: What Animals Can Teach Us About the Origins of Good and Evil

Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson