MSGID: 1:317/3 6465a9db   
   PID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   TID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
    Assessing emotions in wild animals    
      
     Date:   
         May 17, 2023   
     Source:   
         University of Technology Sydney   
     Summary:   
         A new study examines indicators of mental wellbeing in wild animals   
         to improve conservation efforts.   
      
      
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   A world-first holistic framework for assessing the mental and   
   psychological wellbeing of wild animals has been developed by UTS   
   Chancellor's Postdoctoral Research Fellow Dr Andrea Harvey, a veterinarian   
   and animal welfare scientist in the TD School at the University of   
   Technology Sydney.   
      
   The significance of the study lies in its potential to revolutionise   
   conservation efforts. Instead of focusing solely on population numbers   
   and reproductive success, the research explores the quality of life   
   experienced by wild animals.   
      
   This shift in perspective could provide crucial early warning signals   
   about species challenges and population declines, leading to more   
   effective conservation strategies.   
      
   "While research on the welfare of domestic and farm animals has been   
   considerable, including indicators of emotional states such as stress,   
   pain and fear, my aim is to bridge the gap by examining the individual   
   lives, feelings and mental experiences of wild animals," Dr Harvey said.   
      
   "A deeper understanding of the wellbeing of wild animal populations can   
   not only enhance conservation efforts, but also provide an indication of   
   the state of the natural environment and its recognised links to human   
   health and wellbeing."  The study, which was part of Andrea's PhD research   
   at the UTS Centre for Compassionate Conservation, focuses on brumbies --   
   free-roaming wild horses - - from Australia's alpine regions, however   
   the framework is widely applicable for evaluating many wildlife species.   
      
   Dr Harvey chose brumbies as horse welfare has been studied in domestic   
   environments, providing a bridge to wild animals. The paper, Mental   
   Experiences in Wild Animals: Scientifically Validating Measurable Welfare   
   Indicators in Free-Roaming Horses, was recently published in Animals.   
      
   Her comprehensive conceptual framework, called the '10 Stage Protocol',   
   includes physical and behavioural indicators for both negative and   
   positive mental experiences in wild animals.   
      
   "If you have a dog, you know their usual routine, what they like, and   
   how they behave in certain circumstances. You know if they're happy,   
   sad, or distressed, so this research is shifting that understanding to   
   wild animals.   
      
   "We can never be certain what's going through an animal's mind and   
   exactly what they're feeling. It's also an area that scientists have   
   traditionally shied away from. However, we know mental experiences arise   
   from physical states, and we can directly measure these states.   
      
   "Nutrition, the physical environment, health, and behavioural interactions   
   all provide clues to the mental experience of animals. This includes   
   negative states such as thirst, hunger, heat and cold discomfort,   
   pain, fatigue, anxiety and fear and positive ones such as satiety,   
   exercising agency, physical vitality and positive social interactions."   
   This holistic approach brings together different areas of scientific   
   knowledge, including neuroscience, behaviour, and neuroethology --   
   the study of the neural basis of an animal's natural behaviour -- to   
   interpret the data collected and gain insights into wellbeing.   
      
   Dr Harvey is currently collaborating with researchers studying Australian   
   water birds, such as the straw-necked ibis and pelicans. These birds   
   serve as indicators of water quality and wetland health, which could   
   inform management decisions in the Murray Darling Basin.   
      
   The welfare of koalas, which have been declared endangered in NSW, is also   
   under scrutiny. Previous koala research has focused primarily on survival   
   and disease. Dr Harvey's research aims to evaluate overall koala wellbeing   
   to inform policy decisions around conservation and habitat protection.   
      
   Dr Harvey is also working with other researchers studying the welfare   
   of kangaroos and dingoes at a field station in southern Queensland,   
   focusing on the predator-prey relationship, and the impact of climate   
   change and drought recovery.   
      
   Each species presents unique challenges, such as identifying individuals,   
   evaluating mental experiences in large populations, and considering   
   different environments and habitats.   
      
   Dr Harvey acknowledges the challenges of studying the mental experiences   
   of wild animals compared to domesticated ones. The absence of close human   
   relationships with individual animals and the difficulty in observing   
   them for extended periods pose significant hurdles.   
      
   However, innovative methods like remote camera traps have proven valuable   
   in collecting fine-detail data on wild animal behaviour, including body   
   posture and facial expressions.   
      
   Dr Harvey's ground-breaking research holds immense potential in   
   transforming the field of conservation biology, by shedding light on   
   the mental experiences of wild and endangered animals.   
      
   "Welfare assessments need to be part of all wildlife monitoring, and   
   ultimately all environmental policy decision making, which needs to take   
   into account not just individual species, but also interactions between   
   different species, and their ecosystems."   
       * RELATED_TOPICS   
             o Plants_&_Animals   
                   # Wild_Animals # Nature # Animals # Dogs   
             o Earth_&_Climate   
                   # Rainforests # Ecology # Environmental_Policy #   
                   Environmental_Awareness   
       * RELATED_TERMS   
             o Zoo o Biology o Wild_Horse o Comparative_psychology o Puma   
             o Conservation_biology o Marine_conservation o Dog_training   
      
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   Story Source: Materials provided by University_of_Technology_Sydney. Note:   
   Content may be edited for style and length.   
      
      
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   Journal Reference:   
      1. Andrea M. Harvey, Ngaio J. Beausoleil, Daniel Ramp, David J. Mellor.   
      
         Mental Experiences in Wild Animals: Scientifically Validating   
         Measurable Welfare Indicators in Free-Roaming Horses. Animals,   
         2023; 13 (9): 1507 DOI: 10.3390/ani13091507   
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   Link to news story:   
   https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/05/230517122134.htm   
      
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