Quotes from Jonathan Balcombe

The logical conclusion to a compassionate and respectful relationship to sentient animals is that we stop eating them.

The universe is full of magical things, patiently waiting for our wits to grow sharper. —Eden Phillpotts Just

Humbling as it may be, for all our vaunted brain power, humans emerge as nothing special in the sensory sweepstakes. Our senses of vision, hearing, smell, taste, and touch are middling, at best.

What we know about fishes is only a tiny slice of what they know.

They have the options of grating their teeth in their jaws, grinding additional sets of teeth lining their throat, rubbing bones together, stridulating their gill covers, and even—as we'll see—expelling bubbles from their anuses.

The problem in our relationship with animals is that our treatment of them hasn't evolved to keep up with our knowledge.

In exchange for the male being the ultimate couch potato, the female never has to wonder where her mate is on a Saturday evening. It turns out that some males do indeed amount to little more than an appendage.

No wonder American philosopher Jeff Lockwood observes, "If absence makes the heart grow fonder, humans should be head-over-heels in love with nature.