S9E5: Historical Methods with Jennifer Bonnell and Sean Kheraj

In this episode we switch gears toward considering historical methods. Sean Kheraj and Jennifer Bonnell come onto the show to discuss their edited book Traces of The Animal Past and together with Claudia they delve into some of the ways environmental and animal histories differ as well as some of the key methods scholars interested in them can use.   Topics Covered: animal history versus environmental history searching for animals in the archive  borrowing tools from natural and social sciences to widen primary sources writing as a method  domesticated versus wild animal histories Indigenous perspectives that reframe animals as relations and obligations Animal Highlight: Goats in Kingston, Ontario Date Recorded: 20 March 2026 Jennifer Bonnell is the author or co-editor of four books, including Reclaiming the Don: An Environmental History of Toronto’s Don River Valley, released in second edition by the University of Toronto Press in 2024, and Stewards of Splendour: A History of Wildlife and People in British Columbia, published by the Royal BC Museum in 2023. Her current book project explores efforts by nineteenth and early twentieth-century beekeepers to protect pollinator habitats in the Great Lakes Region. Jennifer teaches Canadian and environmental history at York University. Sean Kheraj is a professor of Canadian and environmental history at Toronto Metropolitan University. His research examines a range of topics in environmental history including the role of non-human animals in nineteenth-century urban environments and the development of long distance oil pipelines in twentieth-century Canada. Featured:  Traces of the Animal Past: Methodological Challenges in Animal History edited by Jennifer Bonnell and Sean Kheraj Inventing Stanley Park by Sean Kheraj Reclaiming the Don by Jennifer Bonnell Kicking over the Traces? Freeing the Animal from the Archive by Sandra Swart  Occupational Hazards: Honeybee Labour as an Interpretive Device in Animal History by Jennifer Bonnell Hearing History through Hoofbeats: Exploring Equine Volition and Voice in the Archive by Lindsay Stallones Marshall Who is a Greyhound? Reflections on the Non-Human Digital Archive by Susan Nance   Accessing Animal Health Knowledge: Popular Educators and Veterinary Science in Rural Ontario by Jody Hodigns Tuffy's Cold War: Science, Memory, and the US Nay's Dolphin by Jason Colby The Elephant in the Archive by Nigel Rothfels Making Tracks: A Grizzly and Entangled History by Colleen Campbell by Tina Loo Spatial Analysis and Digital Urban Animal History by Sean Kheraj Epilogue: Combinations and Conjunction by Harriet Ritvo Auroraby Kim Stanley Robinson Germs, Seeds, and Animals by Alfred Crosby Entertaining Elephants by Susan Nance  Animal Biographies by Eric Baratay Cattle's Experiences of Colonialism by Michael Glover A left-handed blow: Writing the History of Animals by Erica Fudge  The History of Animals in the Present Moment by Erica Fudge  Venus in Two Acts by Saidiya Hartman  Baleen whale cortisol levels reveal a physiological response to 20th century whaling by Stephen J. Trumble A Biologist Remembers by Karl von Frisch Insectopedia by Hugh Raffles Signal Group Animal Highlight: Regimental goats   Quotes: “But what can a text like this tell us about this cat? How did it feel about playing such a role in the emergence of the alliance between the French and the Wendat in the early years of the French empire in North America? What was its experience of the environments of New France? How did it adapt to the new setting? Where did it sleep?” – Sean Kheraj and Jennifer Bonnell, Traces of The Animal Past “All honest convictions deserve respect, except the presumptuous assertion that there is nothing higher in the world than the mind of man.” – Karl von Frisch “He knows his bees do not speak as humans. He knows their language is less but also more than his own, and he knows his new discipline allows space only for the less. Where within the rationality of his science can he find a language to communicate a difference for which no words exist? Where can he find a language in which to understand the absence of language as something other than a lack?” – Hugh Raffles Credits: Sponsor: Animals in Philosophy, Politics, Law and Ethics (A.P.P.L.E) Guests: Jennifer Bonnell and Sean Kheraj Host: Claudia Hirtenfelder Editing and Production: Claudia Hirtenfelder Episode Artwork: Rebecca Shen Content Creation and Support: Herre de Bondt and Carlo Salzani Animal Highlight: Stones Walking Tour Sound Effects: Epidemic Sound, You Tube  Bed Music: Gordon Clarke Logo: Jeremy John Save the World Podcast In-depth lectures and interviews on issues affecting the continued survival of human... Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify A.P.P.L.E Animals in Politics, Law, and Ethics researches how we live in interspecies societies and polities. Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you. Support the show The Animal Turn is hosted and produced by Claudia Hirtenfelder and is part of the  iROAR Network. Learn more on our website.