November 30, 2024, 8:49 am | Read time: 3 minutes
Until now, it has been common practice to boil crabs and lobsters alive. However, this must change. Because, as scientists have now discovered, crustaceans can indeed feel pain.
For a long time, it was assumed that crustaceans such as crabs and lobsters do not feel pain because there was no scientific basis for this. Unlike vertebrates, they can neither scream nor show any noticeable reactions that would indicate that they feel pain. However, this is likely to change now. Researchers at the University of Gothenburg have discovered that crustaceans do process pain in their brains. This is why there are now calls for more humane methods of killing these animals.
New study proves that crabs can feel pain
A major difficulty that arose in previous research was that crustaceans such as crabs have a unique nervous system. While this is concentrated in the brain in vertebrates, crabs and insects have a so-called rope-ladder nervous system.
However, this also reacts to harmful stimuli in crabs, as the study revealed. This is “just further proof” that these animals can feel pain, explains doctoral student Eleftherios Kasiouras. He and his team measured the brain activity of 20 shore crabs by attaching electrodes to some of the crustaceans’ nerves, which form their central nervous system. This is comparable to the vertebrate brain.
In order to stimulate these nerves, they were exposed to various painful stimuli such as vinegar and electric shocks. These stimuli were applied to the soft tissue of various parts of the body, which led to increased brain activity. However, the same effect was not observed when salt water and other non-painful stimuli were applied to these areas.1
“We need to find less painful methods of killing shellfish”
According to the authors of the study, this finding indicates that pain in crabs is “transmitted to the brain and registered there.” This is similar to other animals and humans. “We need to find less painful ways to kill shellfish if we want to keep eating them,” warns study co-author Lynne Sneddon. “Because now we have scientific proof that they both feel and respond to pain.”
Until now, it was assumed that crabs’ perception of pain was a reflex rather than actual pain. However, previous research suggested that crustaceans may feel pain when their soft tissues are exposed to mechanical shocks, electric shocks, or harmful acids. In previous experiments, the crustaceans reacted by trying to avoid the danger. This behavior led the researchers to assume that crustaceans could feel pain.2
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Crustaceans all have a similar nervous system
“It’s clear that all animals need some kind of pain system to avoid danger. I don’t think we need to test all species of crustaceans because they have a similar structure and, therefore, similar nervous systems,” concludes Eleftherios Kasiouras. It remains to be seen what this finding means for shellfish, as they are not currently covered by EU animal welfare legislation, but this could also change.