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Wild Animal Initiative

@wildanimals.bsky.social
1.2K followers 741 following 359 posts

Conducting research, providing funding, and supporting researchers to accelerate science that helps wild animals. wildanimalinitiative.org

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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
📣 Call for proposals! Wild Animal Initiative funds research that advances the field of wild animal welfare science. We're now accepting EOIs for grants ranging from $30k to $200k, plus applications for our Fellowship Program. Learn more about project criteria and submit your EOI by October 31:
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Grants — Wild Animal Initiative
Our Research Grants and Fellowship Program are changing. Details will be announced mid-September. Sign up here to receive an email when the changes are announced.
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
ICYMI: We recently shared the results of our latest staff diversity and belonging survey. We welcome recommendations for how to measure and improve representation at WAI — get in touch with our JEDI Commitee if you have ideas!
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Results of our 2026 staff diversity survey — Wild Animal Initiative
August 12, 2026 Each year, our internal Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI) Committee conducts an anonymous survey of our staff’s diversity and feelings about what it’s like to…
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
If you'd like to stay up to date on our work and developments in the field of wild animal welfare science, subscribe to our monthly newsletter. We'll send you an email about once a month with the latest highlights.
wildanimalinitiative.org
Subscribe to monthly email newsletter — Wild Animal Initiative
Sign up to receive updates about Wild Animal Initiative and the field of wild animal welfare science.
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
Our free research community is an international network of 600+ wild animal welfare researchers and practitioners. By signing up, you'll get access to our member directory, listserv, opportunities board, and events calendar.
wildanimalinitiative.org
Join our Research Community — Wild Animal Initiative
Become a member of our community if you would like to engage researchers and practitioners around the world interested in understanding and improving the lives of animals in the wild.
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
Can wild animals consent to participating in scientific experiments? @jackmcgovan.bsky.social explores the "new frontier in wildlife studies" for @atmosmag.bsky.social — featuring research by WAI's @meekl.bsky.social, grantee Lauren Stanton, and a snippet from @wildanigraham.bsky.social.
atmos.earth
Puzzles, Treats, and Consent? The New Frontier in Wildlife Studies | Atmos
From raccoons solving puzzle boxes to dogs leaving saliva samples, scientists are experimenting with less invasive ways to study wildlife.
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
Have you voted for the fattest marmot yet? 👀 Our grantees Dan Blumstein and Emily Renkey — of @uclaioes.bsky.social and #OnlyMarms fame — have launched #FatMarmotWeek to support the Marmot Project at @rmblscience.bsky.social. Voting is open this week only! Choose your marmot! 👇️
sites.google.com
FAT MARMOT WEEK
About Fat Marmot Week The largest of the true hibernators, marmots bulk up all summer to survive the winter. Fat Marmot Week is an opportunity to get folks excited about yellow-bellied marmots, one of...
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
As part of our commitment to fostering inclusion and equity at Wild Animal Initiative, we conduct an annual survey on staff diversity and belonging. Now on our blog, you can read about our 2026 results. 👇️
wildanimalinitiative.org
Results of our 2026 staff diversity survey — Wild Animal Initiative
August 12, 2026 Each year, our internal Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI) Committee conducts an anonymous survey of our staff’s diversity and feelings about what it’s like to…
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
Research efforts to "decode" animal communication systems are booming. But what might listening in on — and even talking to — wild animals mean for their welfare?
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AI-assisted animal language translation — Wild Animal Initiative
May 31, 2025 Every animal welfare scientist has probably thought at some point in their career, “My job would be a lot easier if the animals could just tell me how they’re feeling.” The new — and…
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
How well represented are veterinarians in wildlife research, and wild animal welfare science in particular? A new study by @meekl.bsky.social explores these questions.
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The representation of veterinarians in wild animal welfare science — Wild Animal Initiative
Veterinarians have a lot to offer the field of wild animal welfare science, but research training and opportunities are essential.
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
We’re overhauling our grant types! We’ve funded lots of exciting projects over the past five years. Now, we want to see more projects build on each other, and we want to provide a clearer pathway for grantees interested in continued support for their wild animal welfare research programs. 🧵
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Cornish Jackdaw Project @cornishjackdaws.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
The special issue is out, including our contribution: "Social information about affective states in a human-altered world." Led by @lucahahn.bsky.social, @jackdawjordan.bsky.social & @margauxvanhussel.bsky.social. tinyurl.com/hyhfvmjn. @wildanimals.bsky.social @uniexecec.bsky.social.
tinyurl.com
Social information about others' affective states in a human‐altered world
Faced with anthropogenic change, animals now encounter challenges different from their evolutionary past. To cope with such challenges, animals may use social information about others' affective stat...
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
We're excited to be at #ISAE2026 this week 🇮🇳 If you're here, join @janirecas.bsky.social for a discussion on wild animal welfare methods — Friday at 10:30 am. You can also catch her poster (tomorrow at the 3:15 pm session) and talk (Friday at 2:45 pm). @applied-ethology.bsky.social #ISAEcongress
wildanimalinitiative.org
ISAE coffee hour discussion — Wild Animal Initiative
August 14, 2026 | 10:30 am | Auditorium 2, Gautam Buddha University Convention Center, Greater Noida, India
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 06/08/2026
Invertebrates make up most animal life on Earth, yet almost nothing is known about their welfare in the wild — or how to measure it. Funded by WAI, research by @cds-york.bsky.social will work towards developing a welfare assessment toolkit for wild insects. 🔗 Learn more: buff.ly/r5CuWvW
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 03/08/2026
Veterinarians have a lot to contribute to wild animal welfare science, but they're not currently as well represented in the research as they could be. A new study by @meekl.bsky.social et al. digs into the details.
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The representation of veterinarians in wild animal welfare science — Wild Animal Initiative
Veterinarians have a lot to offer the field of wild animal welfare science, but research training and opportunities are essential.
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
Validating ways to assess wild animal welfare is one of our priority research areas. Since welfare can't be measured directly, we fund research that validates indicators of welfare that can be measured in free-living wild animals.
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How to measure wild animal welfare — Wild Animal Initiative
Wild animal welfare scientists use a variety of metrics and indicators to find out about the subjective experiences of individual wild animals. These are some examples.
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
Managing wildlife to maximize individuals' welfare is a novel idea — so ensuring that wild animal welfare interventions are net positive will require careful monitoring. So far, we have identified three ways to approach this.👇️
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How can we make sure wild animal welfare interventions have positive outcomes? — Wild Animal Initiative
Intervening in ecosystems can have unintended effects. Ensuring that interventions intended to improve the welfare of wild animals have positive outcomes will require careful monitoring.
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
Don't miss our monthly updates! Click to subscribe to our newsletter and hear about the latest developments in wild animal welfare science.
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Subscribe to monthly email newsletter — Wild Animal Initiative
Sign up to receive updates about Wild Animal Initiative and the field of wild animal welfare science.
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
🐸 Emerging evidence suggests that frog calls could offer rapid insights into welfare. Funded by WAI, research from @erin-wall.bsky.social's lab will help identify acoustic signatures of welfare and develop a rapid, non-intrusive welfare detection tool for thousands of species of vocalizing frogs.
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 16/07/2026
Our latest paper is out in @cp-trendsecolevo.bsky.social! It’s an overview of the emerging field of wild animal welfare science. 🔗 buff.ly/hcIUr0g See 🧵 for some of the key points we make about the field, as well as opportunities, challenges, and research priorities.
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 13/07/2026
An excellent summary from Clear Sky Science on a new paper by Thomas Evans & Michael Mendl on the welfare impacts of biological invasions. We were excited to fund this research through our Grants Program. www.clearskyscience.com/en/10.1038/s...
clearskyscience.com
Quantifying and categorising the animal welfare impacts caused by biological invasions · Clear Sky Science
The study introduces AWICIS, a framework that measures how invasive birds and ants cause physical and mental suffering in individual animals, highlighting severe impacts from invasive ants.
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
Last fall, we received 400 expressions of interest in our call for proposals. Here are the 13 projects we selected to fund👇️ We're excited to share these researchers' progress with you over the coming months and years, and for the work they'll do to help accelerate science that helps wild animals.
wildanimalinitiative.org
Wild Animal Initiative awards 13 grants for wild animal welfare research — Wild Animal Initiative
This year, Wild Animal Initiative awarded $727,658 in grants to support high-priority research in wild animal welfare science.
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
We're hard at work on a serious research project. CRITTERS: What are they? Why is a mouse a critter but a bear is decidedly not? What are the attributes of a critter (versus a non-critter)? What we've got so far: 1. scuttly 2. smallish 3. ??? Let us know if you have any leads. 🤔
A picture of a whiteboard that has been written on with green and purple markers. There is some actual work-related content on the whiteboard, as well as: "Critters??? scuttly / smallish." Evidently this was a worthwhile thing to discuss on a recent team retreat.
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 02/07/2026
We know a great deal about the biodiversity and socioeconomic impacts of biological invasions, but the animal welfare dimensions have been almost completely neglected. @danielshailer.bsky.social covers new WAI-funded research by Thomas Evans & Michael Mendl for @mongabay.com.
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How much suffering do invasive species cause? Researchers are measuring that
Avian vampire flies (Philornis downsi) were not discovered in the Galápagos Islands for almost three decades after they were thought to have arrived from mainland Ecuador in the 1960s. Even then, the…
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 29/06/2026
🥁 Announcing our latest research grants! This year, we're funding 13 research projects that will advance wild animal welfare science. Visit our blog to learn more.👇️
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Wild Animal Initiative awards 13 grants for wild animal welfare research — Wild Animal Initiative
This year, Wild Animal Initiative awarded $727,658 in grants to support high-priority research in wild animal welfare science.
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Jeff Sebo @jeffsebo.bsky.social · 25/06/2026
The NYU Wild Animal Welfare Program is thrilled to be hosting our annual Wild Animal Welfare Summit! Two and a half days of talks, discussions, and networking among researchers, advocates, and policymakers about how to improve wild animal welfare at scale :)
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 26/06/2026
“‘We mostly think of nature as biodiversity, a concept, but this made it so personal, so emotional and so horrific.’” Fascinating study that asked volunteers to imagine — first-hand — what it might be like to live as a wild animal.
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 24/06/2026
At @scifaw.bsky.social ? Don't miss @janirecas.bsky.social's talk at 10:30 this morning — Associations between judgement bias and other indicators of affective state: a way to advance wild animal welfare science? #SciFAW100
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 23/06/2026
#SciFAW100! Be sure to check out our poster on wild animal welfare science as you peruse posters and sip drinks this evening — @meekl.bsky.social and @janirecas.bsky.social will be around to chat. 🍸️ 📈 @scifaw.bsky.social
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
We're at @scifaw.bsky.social in London this week! Stay tuned for highlights from the conference. And if you're here, come say hi! And don't miss our talk — Weds @ 10:30 🗓️ ⏰️ @janirecas.bsky.social @shannonwrites.bsky.social @meekl.bsky.social #SciFAW100
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
We're at @scifaw.bsky.social in London this week! Stay tuned for highlights from the conference. And if you're here, come say hi! And don't miss our talk — Weds @ 10:30 🗓️ ⏰️ @janirecas.bsky.social @shannonwrites.bsky.social @meekl.bsky.social #SciFAW100
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 20/06/2026
Looking for a new book? 📚️ Out this month, the Elephant Jungle explores the realities of advocating for wild animals in a place where poverty and human rights abuses are prevalent.
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 17/06/2026
ICYMI: The latest paper by our research team looks at the representation and contribution of veterinarians to wildlife research. The takeaway? Vets have huge potential to contribute to research on wild animal welfare.
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Ready to go wild? Factors affecting the representation and contribution of veterinarians in a selection of wildlife-oriented research disciplines
Veterinarians could enrich wildlife-oriented research through their unique perspective informed by health and welfare. However, embarking on this path…
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 14/06/2026
Injuries and deformities likely correlate with reductions in welfare in wild fish, but we know surprisingly little about how many fish experience them. New research by @simonliedholm.bsky.social takes a first look at the problem.
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New research: Injuries and deformities in wild fish — Wild Animal Initiative
Injuries and deformities likely affect welfare in wild fish, but we know surprisingly little about how prevalent they are. A new paper by Wild Animal Initiative's staff takes a first look.
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 12/06/2026
Biological invasions can be severely damaging to biodiversity — but how do they affect animal welfare? Thomas Evans on the findings of his WAI-funded research and the novel assessment framework he developed 👇️
theconversation.com
Biological invasions can cause severe animal suffering
Biological invasions can severely harm the welfare of animals, causing them to suffer. AWICIS is a new framework that can be used to assess the severity of these impacts.
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
Our 2025 annual report is a collection of our favorite stories from last year and the progress they reflect in the field of wild animal welfare science. 👉️ buff.ly/WA8QUPy We're excited to share what comes next!
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
🧪📣 New paper! How involved are veterinarians in wildlife research? buff.ly/eMYqqMe
sciencedirect.com
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Nature Communications @natcomms.nature.com · 29/05/2026
The animal welfare impacts of #biologicalinvasions is a neglected research topic. Here the authors developed a framework to assess their severity and type, and apply it to bird and ant #invasions, finding ants to cause widespread suffering of animals. www.nature.com/articles/s41...
nature.com
Quantifying and categorising the animal welfare impacts caused by biological invasions - Nature Communications
The animal welfare impacts of biological invasions is a neglected research topic. Here the authors developed a framework to assess their severity and type, and apply it to bird and ant invasions, find...
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Animal Welfare - the Science for Animal Welfare Journal @animal-welfare.bsky.social · 23/04/2026
🔍 NEW ARTICLE: Welfare implications of injuries and deformities in wild fish Author: Simon Eckerström Liedholm Read the full article: ow.ly/qxNx50YOlzh #AnimalWelfare #FishWelfare
An Atlantic salmon leaping through the water. Image features the UFAW banner and the text 'Animal Welfare - The UFAW Journal' and 'New Study' with a magnifying glass icon next to it.
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
Just a little buzz of warm weather energy 🌼 This ruby-throated hummingbird was photographed by our Visual Communications Specialist (and resident bird enthusiast), @jaciewoz.bsky.social, in her New Jersey backyard.
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WildCRU, Oxford @wildcru.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
Today is World Otter Day! 🦦 Otters are not just cute, but they are also the perfect animal to study. They have relatively small linear territories which they mark with spraint (poo). Researchers are looking at stress levels in otters and how they vary with population density 1/3 @biology.ox.ac.uk
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 24/05/2026
Don't want to miss out on developments in wild animal welfare science? Subscribe to our monthly newsletter.
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Subscribe to monthly email newsletter — Wild Animal Initiative
Sign up to receive updates about Wild Animal Initiative and the field of wild animal welfare science.
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
Not a member of our online research community yet? Join now to get access to our listserv emails — twice a month, we'll share career and funding opportunities in wild animal welfare science.
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Join our Research Community — Wild Animal Initiative
Become a member of our community if you would like to engage researchers and practitioners around the world interested in understanding and improving the lives of animals in the wild.
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 19/05/2026
One week left to submit your abstract for this year's #redCIBA conference! We'll be co-organizing a session on wild animal welfare — if you're conducting research in the field, we'd love to feature your work. Send abstracts to: genaro@unizar.es redciba.org
redciba.org
Home - redCIBA
Para hacerte socio, pincha aquí ¡¡NUEVO!! Próximamente las Cuartas Jornadas de la RedCIBA. Pincha aquí para más información Trabajamos por el bienestar animal con una visión científica y objetiva Red…
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 18/05/2026
With funding from Wild Animal Initiative, @viveknityananda.bsky.social and Sarah Scott are developing a judgment bias test for bumblebees that can be performed in the wild. Learn more 👇️
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A judgment bias test for wild bumblebees — Wild Animal Initiative
With funding from Wild Animal Initiative, researchers are developing a test that can be used to measure cognitive judgment bias in free-ranging bumblebees. They will conduct the first study of the…
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
ICYMI: New paper by @simonliedholm.bsky.social on the welfare implications of injuries and deformities in wild fish. 🧪 @animal-welfare.bsky.social
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Welfare implications of injuries and deformities in wild fish | Animal Welfare | Cambridge Core
Welfare implications of injuries and deformities in wild fish - Volume 35
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 11/05/2026
Validating indicators of wild animal welfare is one of our priority research areas. Here's what we know so far about how we can assess welfare in free-ranging animals — and what we still need to do. 🧪🐀
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How to measure wild animal welfare — Wild Animal Initiative
Wild animal welfare scientists use a variety of metrics and indicators to find out about the subjective experiences of individual wild animals. These are some examples.
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 09/05/2026
Conducting research on wild animal welfare? We'd love to hear about your work at the #redCIBA conference this September in Zaragoza, Spain. Abstract submissions are due by May 25. Send abstracts to: genaro@unizar.es redciba.org
redciba.org
Home - redCIBA
Para hacerte socio, pincha aquí ¡¡NUEVO!! Próximamente las Cuartas Jornadas de la RedCIBA. Pincha aquí para más información Trabajamos por el bienestar animal con una visión científica y objetiva Red…
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Vivek Nityananda @viveknityananda.bsky.social · 17/04/2026
Come work with us! Wide range of topics: #insect #emotions, #mantis stereo #vision and prey detection, insect active vision, cognition across species in the wild, bee reward perception, insect #attention. If any of that appeals, get in touch! #fellowships #postdoc (p.s. It's beautiful up North!)
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Vivek Nityananda @viveknityananda.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
Thanks to @wildanimals.bsky.social for the funding and this beautiful coverage of our work. Very exciting to be taking these ideas out into the field. Sarah has been absolutely brilliant and the results are coming in- watch this space for more!
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Wild Animal Initiative @wildanimals.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
With funding from Wild Animal Initiative, @viveknityananda.bsky.social and Sarah Scott are conducting the first study of the affective states of wild bumblebees. Learn more 👇️
wildanimalinitiative.org
A judgment bias test for wild bumblebees — Wild Animal Initiative
With funding from Wild Animal Initiative, researchers are developing a test that can be used to measure cognitive judgment bias in free-ranging bumblebees. They will conduct the first study of the…
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