Raised by Animals: How Dolphins Bond, Why Meerkats Babysit, and Other Lessons from Families in the Wild

In Raised by Animals, evolutionary biologist Jennifer Verdolin, PhD, invites parents, animal lovers, and science buffs to explore the wild world of parenting in the animal kingdom - and its implications for human families. Weaving together research on both human and animal behaviour, she draws fascinating parallels in a narrative that's packed with interesting tidbits.

Find out why newly hatched goslings imprint on anything that moves, and how Mexican free-tailed bats can identify their pups among literally millions of others. Plus, gain insight from Mother Nature on the big questions of child-rearing, from birth to 'leaving the nest':

Does attachment parenting have evolutionary roots?

Do more attractive offspring benefit from favouritism?

How can we better understand our own families?

In a sense, we are all raised by animals - and that may not be such a bad thing!

“Praise for Wild Connection "Verdolin takes a lighthearted, pop-science approach toward applying some biologically deterministic lessons to her own romantic life, looking for analogies to mainstream heterosexual dating behavior throughout the animal kingdom."-- Publishers Weekly ”

"Fascinating observations. . . . [Verdolin] compares animal behavior to human behavior and explains how we can use this information to be better parents."--Washington Post

"A stunningly informative guide to child rearing."--HuffPost

"[Verdolin] blends memoir, self-help, and popular science, and readers get a taste of hard science with her extensive references to the research literature. . . . Moms and dads--those open to different perspectives on bringing up baby--will find this an enlightening read, as will those who enjoy popular science."--Library Journal

"A rich source of anecdotes that are scattered over the animal kingdom."--Choice

"I've read A LOT about animals, but rarely have I encountered science presented so invitingly--and so brimming with fresh insight. I learned something new on almost every page. It's an especially perfect book for expecting parents and those of young children."--Jeffrey Masson, New York Times-bestselling author of When Elephants Weep

"In this terrific read, Verdolin beautifully weaves the science and stories of our own family lives with those of animals we once saw as 'other, ' reminding us that we aren't the only species for whom family is everything." --Jennifer S. Holland, New York Times-bestselling author of the Unlikely Friendships series

"Combining a sumptuous array of examples from nature with personal experiences, Jennifer Verdolin delivers a lively tour through the rich landscape of raising young. The take-home lesson for me was clear: human-animal parallels abound in child-rearing styles, and we are by no means the gold standard."--Jonathan Balcombe, author of What a Fish Knows

Jennifer L. Verdolin, PhD, is an animal behavior researcher specializing in social and mating behavior and a scholar in residence at Duke University. Her work has been featured on NPR and in Wired, Scientific American, and many other media outlets. Her weekly radio segment, "Think Like a Human, Act Like an Animal" is a regular feature on the nationally syndicated D.L. Hughley Show (broadcast on 43 stations in 17 states). Dr. Verdolin also writes a Psychology Today blog. Her first book, Wild Connection, explores what animal mating can teach us about human relationships. Marc Bekoff, PhD, is an animal behavior expert specializing in animal minds and compassionate conservation. He has written numerous books including The Emotional Lives of Animals, Why Dogs Hump and Bees Get Depressed, and Rewilding Our Hearts. A professor emeritus of ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of Colorado-Boulder, he writes a Psychology Today blog called Animal Emotions and his work has been featured in The New York Times, Scientific American, and more.

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