The marine animals are capable of feeling pain, hunger, joy, and excitement. The U.K. government will update its animal welfare bill.
The U.K. introduced a bill in May that recognized animals as sentient beings. The governmentcommissioned research into the sentience of crustaceans and cephalopods, and in light of these findings, it would consider further protections.
It was a smart decision to see that invertebrates are viewed as being lower in comparison to other animals. The question of problem-solving abilities and inquisitive, even playful, natures is answered by the Octopus.
A panel of experts have concluded that the group of crustaceans known as cephalopods, which includes lobsters, crabs, shrimp, prawns, crayfish, and decapods, is a group.
The review was led by Jonathan Birch, a professor at the Centre for Philosophy of Natural and Social Science at the London School of Economics. The team considered eight different criteria for sentience, including the presence of pain and brain regions, the capacity for associative learning, and flexible self-protective tactics used in response to injury and threat.
The animal welfare bill will be amended according to the findings. The updated bill provides a crucial assurance that animal wellbeing is considered when developing new laws, and because the science is now clear that decapods and cephalopods can feel pain, it is only right they are covered, said the animal welfare minister in a press release.
The updated bill will help to correct a discrepancy. In the U.K., there are already protections for cephalopods in the science world, but they have not been given outside science. He said that the UK can lead on animal welfare by protecting these animals.
The full impact of the bill is not yet known, but it means that stronger legal protections could eventually be given to these marine invertebrates. Birch and his colleagues evaluated several abusive commercial practices related to these creatures, and recommended against declawing, nicking, eyestalk ablation, and the sale of live deca.
The U.K. government says that the announcement that decapods are sentient beings will not affect any existing legislation or industry practices. The amendment will make sure that animal welfare is considered in future decision-making.
