Saltwater • Sensational • Social Lives of Animals • Research • Animal Adventures
Ashley Ward
My Work
Academic
I’m Professor of Animal Behaviour at the University of Sydney, where my research focusses on the behaviour of animals including krill, fish, birds and mammals. I’m particularly interested in animal sociality, learning and cognition, communication and decision-making in animals, among other things. See my contact information below and get in touch.
Author
My first popular science book, The Social Lives of Animals (published previously as an audiobook under the title Animal Societies), was published in early 2022. I followed this up with a book about the senses, Sensational, which was released in 2023 and a series of books about animal behaviour for children titled Zany Brainy Animals. I’ve recently finished my third book, Saltwater: A Natural History of the Sea, and, since I hate having spare time, I’m now working on a fourth and a fifth.
News
I’m excited to announce that my latest book, Saltwater: A Natural History of the Sea, will be released on November 12 this year. More details to follow…
My previous book, Sensational, (titled Where We Meet the World in the US) was released in 2023
Meanwhile my previous book, The Social Lives of Animals, was released in 2022…
About Me
I’ve been fascinated with animals and their behaviour since I was a child, fossicking in streams, under logs or peering into rockpools. Eventually, I turned it into a career as a biologist and, most recently, as an author.
Using a scientific framework to answer the questions of how and why animals do what they do excites me as much as ever, even now, twenty five years since starting my PhD (more here)
Address
School of Life and Environmental Science
University of Sydney
Sydney, NSW
Australia
ashleyward.net 