Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Inclusive Fitness

Inclusive Fitness

Most altruistic behavior—in which one animal helps another at a cost to themselves—occurs between relatives. Scientists think these altruistic behaviors evolved because they increase the inclusive fitness of the animal providing help.

Conservation of Small Populations

Conservation of Small Populations

Small population sizes put a species at extreme risk of extinction due to a lack of variation, and a consequent decrease in adaptability. This weakens the chances of survival under pressures such as climate change, competition from other species, or new diseases. Large populations are more likely to survive pressures such as these, as such populations are more likely to harbor individuals that have genetic variants that are adaptive under new stresses. Small populations are much less...

Threats to Biodiversity

Threats to Biodiversity

There have been five major extinction events throughout geological history, resulting in the elimination of biodiversity, followed by a rebound of species that adapted to the new conditions. In the current geological epoch, the Holocene, there is a sixth extinction event in progress. This mass extinction has been attributed to human activities and is thus provisionally called the Anthropocene. In 2019 the human population reached 7.7 billion people and is projected to comprise 10 billion by...

Altruism

Altruism

Altruistic behaviors are “unselfish” behaviors—those that help another individual at the expense of the individual carrying out the behavior. Despite the negative consequences for the altruistic animal, these behaviors are thought to have evolved for several reasons.

What is Behavior?

What is Behavior?

Behaviors are actions that an organism engages in—they can be related to finding food, reproducing, defending against threats, and many other possible actions. Behaviors include activities related to the environment around the animal—such as migration—as well as social interactions within a species or population. Many behaviors involve motor output—that is, muscle movements—while others involve less visible actions, such as learning.

Ethics in Research

Ethics in Research

Today, scientists agree that good research is ethical in nature and is guided by a basic respect for human dignity and safety. However, this has not always been the case. Modern researchers must demonstrate that the research they perform is ethically sound.

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

The emerging field of wild animal welfare science.

Trends in ecology & evolution·2026

Same author

Evolution, time, and the observer.

The Behavioral and brain sciences·2026

Same author

Affordances and life history complexity.

The Behavioral and brain sciences·2026

Same author

Resilience Ontologies in Veterinary Science: How They Shape the Way We Address Resilience.

Veterinary sciences·2026

Same author

Sentience in cephalopod molluscs: an updated assessment.

Biological reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society·2026

Same author

Evolution, Complexity, and Life History Theory.

Biological theory·2025

Same journal

Model organism futures in precision toxicology: tracking the emergence of a research repertoire.

Biology & philosophy·2026

Same journal

"Shape is everything: on proteins' functions": Author.

Biology & philosophy·2025

Same journal

A bounded hierarchy framework for the evolution of syntax.

Biology & philosophy·2025

Same journal

What is social constructionism about race? A reply to Hochman.

Biology & philosophy·2025

Same journal

A commitment account of norm externalisation.

Biology & philosophy·2025

Same journal

Evolvability: filling the explanatory gap between adaptedness and the long-term mathematical conception of fitness.

Biology & philosophy·2024

See all related articles

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Aug 6, 2025

Transition of Farm Pigs to Research Pigs using a Designated Checklist followed by Initiation of Clicker Training - a Refinement Initiative

Transition of Farm Pigs to Research Pigs using a Designated Checklist followed by Initiation of Clicker Training - a Refinement Initiative

Published on: August 21, 2021

Positive Wild Animal Welfare.

Heather Browning^1,2, Walter Veit³

¹University of Southampton, Southampton, England.

Biology & Philosophy

|March 17, 2023

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

The common view of constant suffering in wild animals needs critical assessment. This study suggests wild animal lives may be more positive than assumed, highlighting the need for better welfare science methods.

Keywords:

measurement positive welfare sentience wild animal welfare

More Related Videos

A Standardized Protocol for Preference Testing to Assess Fish Welfare

A Standardized Protocol for Preference Testing to Assess Fish Welfare

Published on: February 22, 2020

Methods of Pairing and Pair Maintenance of New Zealand White Rabbits Oryctolagus Cuniculus Via Behavioral Ethogram, Monitoring, and Interventions

Methods of Pairing and Pair Maintenance of New Zealand White Rabbits Oryctolagus Cuniculus Via Behavioral Ethogram, Monitoring, and Interventions

Published on: March 16, 2018

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Aug 6, 2025

Transition of Farm Pigs to Research Pigs using a Designated Checklist followed by Initiation of Clicker Training - a Refinement Initiative

Transition of Farm Pigs to Research Pigs using a Designated Checklist followed by Initiation of Clicker Training - a Refinement Initiative

Published on: August 21, 2021

A Standardized Protocol for Preference Testing to Assess Fish Welfare

A Standardized Protocol for Preference Testing to Assess Fish Welfare

Published on: February 22, 2020

Methods of Pairing and Pair Maintenance of New Zealand White Rabbits Oryctolagus Cuniculus Via Behavioral Ethogram, Monitoring, and Interventions

Methods of Pairing and Pair Maintenance of New Zealand White Rabbits Oryctolagus Cuniculus Via Behavioral Ethogram, Monitoring, and Interventions

Published on: March 16, 2018

Area of Science:

Ethical considerations in zoology
Wild animal welfare science
Animal ethics and philosophy

Background:

Growing focus on wild animal welfare and ethics.
Prevalent assumption of pervasive suffering in wild animals.
Need for critical theoretical and empirical assessment of this assumption.

Purpose of the Study:

Challenge evidence supporting widespread wild animal suffering.
Propose an alternative view of potentially positive wild animal lives.
Emphasize the necessity of developing effective wild animal welfare science methods.

Main Methods:

Theoretical critique of existing evidence on wild animal suffering.
Empirical assessment of assumptions about wild animal welfare.
Identification of needs for advancing welfare science in wild populations.

Main Results:

Primary evidence for wild animal suffering is questioned.
An alternative perspective suggests wild animals may experience more positive lives.
Current discussions on wild animal welfare lack robust scientific methods.

Conclusions:

The assumption of pervasive wild animal suffering requires re-evaluation.
Development of effective methods for wild animal welfare science is crucial.
Without empirical methods, discussions remain speculative.