This paper examines the production of meat, including fish, through in vitro techniques, commonly referred to as cultured meat, as a potential solution to reducing animal suffering while addressing the growing global demand for food, including aquatic products. The first poultry products developed using this method have already received regulatory approval in Singapore and the United States. Further expansion of cultured meat production is expected in the coming years, including in the European market, subject to a positive assessment by the European Food Safety Authority. This paper also discusses the potential environmental and public health benefits of cultured meat production, alongside the key challenges and barriers to its commercialization.

I explore the relationship between humans and the freshwater mussel Unio tumidus from both ethnographic and ethical perspectives. These mussels are placed within the technological environment of water infrastructure, where their role is to help control the quality of water intended for human consumption. I investigate whether these interactions can be understood as labor relations, following Donna Haraway’s framework, or as exploitation, as conceptualized by Peter Singer’s utilitarianism. My aim is to contextualize these interspecies relationships within a broader framework that acknowledges each species’ unique knowledge, skills, and needs concerning water. This exploration also extends to the relationships among individuals whose work is intricately connected to water.

This article analyzes a passage from the seven­teenth-century agronomic treatise General Gentry Economy (1675) by Jakub Kazimierz Haur, in which the author offers a brief praise of the beehive as a model of a well-organized estate. Although at first glance the passage may appear to be a conventional reiteration of familiar observations about the cultural significance of the bee in early modern literature and thought, situating it within the broader context of the treatise reveals its function as a conceptual tool for articulating Haur’s views on the role of the steward, the nature of his labor, and the place of animals in political imagination.

The article examines criminal law regulations related to the protection of invertebrate animals. It explores criminal offenses concerning both the humanitarian and species protection of animals. Particular emphasis is placed on the provisions of the Act of January 15, 2015, on the Protection of Animals Used for Scientific or Educational Purposes, which specifically safeguards a distinct category of invertebrates – living cephalopods. The article also identifies legal gaps and inconsistencies within current legislation. Furthermore, it analyzes the nature of crimes and offenses against animal protection, including those involving invertebrates under strict or partial protection, such as unlawful killing, capture, purchase, and smuggling.

The purpose of this article is to analyze two poems by Marianne Moore and Maria Pawlikowska-Jasnorzewska, which textually process the encounters between humans and jellyfish. The author argues that both poets having described a variety of meeting places (water, beach) between human and non-human animals, experiment with a poetics of strangeness that evokes a sense of incompatibility between human and jellyfish. However, both poets propose poetic formulas such as the abandonment of intention and attentiveness that transform the lyrical personae of their poems into gestures of conscious relinquishment of the desire to touch and possess. Although the poems analyzed are anthropocentric, they embody an attitude that challenges the dynamics of human domination, possession and assertion of human position. According to the author, Moore and Pawlikowska-Jasnorzewska realize it by creatively confronting the antithetical materiality of the jellyfish with the unstable and corporeal identity of the lyrical persona.

In Małgorzata Lebda’s works, bees and other insects play a pivotal role as carriers of relational meanings and as a symbolic space where human and animal worlds converge. Drawing on her experiences growing up in a beekeeping family and her close relationship with her father, Lebda constructs a literary vision centered on the interdependence of human and non-human beings. Bees in her poetry and prose serve not only as metaphors for communal life but also embody harmony and collaboration within an ecosystem encompassing all life forms. The interactions between her characters and bees reveal deeper truths about human existence: its fragility, the need for care, and shared responsibility toward the natural world. Thus, insects stand as a testament to the unity of life and emphasize the necessity of recognizing the interconnectedness binding humanity to its environment.

The article explores two distinct traditions of insect depiction in the late 16th century through a case study of nearly 40 entomological illustrations from Anselmus de Boodt’s Albums (housed in the Rijksmuseum). It compares artistic, trompe
l’œil miniatures of small animals – created by Elias Verhulst based on Joris Hoefnagel’s engravings – with the scientific, standardized entomological drawings by de Boodt himself. To illustrate the evolving expectations of natural historians regarding entomological illustrations, the article juxtaposes these works with earlier and contemporary illustrations. It traces a progression from illusionistic Netherlandish borders and German woodcuts depicting insects alongside human figures, through simplified sketches, to detailed representations of species observed through a magnifying glass. De Boodt’s Albums aim to strike a balance between illusionism and the standardization of entomological illustration in the late 16th century.

Fish are unique animals: due to their distinct habitat and modes of communication, our contact with them is very limited. Consequently, they evoke less sympathy from us than mammals or birds. At times, even their capacity to experience pain and suffering is questioned. This issue is crucial because sentience is essentially the sole basis for attributing moral status to fish. As such, they are primarily protected by the principle against cruelty. Fish are neither subjects of life nor non-human persons. They are protected under the principle of equal consideration of interests, yet they are simultaneously regarded as replaceable beings. Legal protections concerning, for example, transport and slaughter conditions are far weaker or altogether absent. Public opinion rarely advocates for fish, largely because few people are aware of fish farming practices and the conditions therein. Therefore, it is important to draw attention to the suffering of these animals and the need to extend protective measures to them as well.

Waka poetry was the most important genre of classical Japanese literature and continues to be composed today, usually in the form known as tanka, or “short song,” from the second half of the 19th century onwards (consisting of 31 morae arranged in a 5-7-5-7-7 pattern). One of its central themes was nature, particularly those elements considered suitable for poetic expression. Among insects, the focus was primarily on those known for producing beautiful sounds, such as various types of crickets, but also on fireflies. In the pre-modern period, waka poetry began to exhibit realistic tendencies, expanding its subject matter and vocabulary – exemplified by the work of Tachibana Akemi (1812–1868).

This article first presents the use of insect motifs in earlier waka poetry as background, then discusses the depiction of insects in Tachibana’s poetry, with a focus on innovative themes (such as lice and ants) and realism.

The study aims to analyze the differences in the commodification of bluefin tuna by examining examples of how it has been valued by people in both ancient and modern times. The first aspect addresses the process of anthropomorphism. In ancient art, the attribution of human characteristics and behaviors to tuna influenced how they were perceived and valued. The second aspect of commodification examined in the article is the modern mass consumption of tuna, which diminishes its worth compared to the appreciation of its culinary qualities in the ancient world.

Dino Buzzati, the best-known representative of twentieth-century surrealism in Italian literature, was fascinated by the world of fauna and flora. In articles published in leading Italian newspapers, he advocated for the rights of animals exploit­ed by humans. Buzzati’s interests also extended to invertebrates, as even the smallest creatures aroused his respect and admiration, becoming the subjects of his stories, novels, reports, and columns.

This article proposes a new criterion for assessing an animal’s capacity for suffering, focusing on psychological criteria, particularly avoidance learning. This criterion may allow for a more comprehensive assessment of suffering in various species and situations. The theory of integrative levels explains the development of avoidance behavior and presents the probable cognitive threshold for animal suffering. Animals capable of avoidance learning are more likely to suffer, as this behavior requires the ability to form associations between stimuli and actions and make predictions about future events, which may lead to aversive emotional states. The proposed criterion offers an objective way to assess suffering without relying on ambiguous terms like “consciousness” or “sentience,” providing a broader, more accurate evaluation method.