Do crabs feel pain? Groundbreaking study reveals evidence of pain perception in them

The juicy, succulent crab meat bursting with sweet and briny flavors is a delicacy most pescatarians enjoy. Be it the hearty curry, or, a buttery garlic preparation, crab is a part of many pescatarians’ diet. As these crustaceans are part of the diet, catching them and killing them less painfully is the ethical way to go about it. But do crabs experience pain? Researchers from the University of Gothenburg have studied this, and their latest research provides the first direct evidence of pain signal transmission in shore crabs’ nervous systems.
As humans continued to kill the crabs for food, the researchers were in search of a better welfare of animals. They chose decapod crustaceans, which includes shellfish delicacies such as prawns, lobsters, crabs, and crayfish, both wild and farm.

Shellfish are currently are not covered by animal welfare legislation in the EU, but this might be about to change, and according to researchers, it's for a good reason.
“We need to find less painful ways to kill shellfish if we are to continue eating them. Because now we have scientific evidence that they both experience and react to pain,” Lynne Sneddon, zoophysiologist at the University of Gothenburg said in a statement.

Though previous researchers have studied the response of crustaceans to mechanical impact, electric shocks, or acids, the researchers at the University of Gothenburg are the first to carry out neurobiological studies via an EEG-style measurement.
Eleftherios Kasiouras, PhD student at the University of Gothenburg and lead author of the study published in the journal Biology, stated that they saw that the crab has some kind of pain receptors in its soft tissues because they recorded an increase in brain activity when they applied a potentially painful chemical, a form of vinegar, to the crab's soft tissues. A similar response was seen when they applied external pressure to the crab's body parts.
They measured central nervous system activity in crabs subjected to stress on claws, antennae, and legs. The findings suggest that shore crabs have pain signaling to the brain, with physical stress eliciting a shorter, stronger response compared to the longer-lasting effect of chemical stress.
“It is a given that all animals need some kind of pain system to cope by avoiding danger. I don't think we need to test all species of crustaceans, as they have a similar structure and therefore similar nervous systems. We can assume that shrimps, crayfish and lobsters can also send external signals about painful stimuli to their brain which will process this information,” Eleftherios Kasiouras adds.

They are also the first to prove that painful stimuli are sent to the brain of shore crabs providing more evidence for pain in crustaceans.

“We need more research to find less painful ways to kill shellfish. Because now we have scientific evidence that they both experience and react to pain” Lynne Sneddon said.
(Pic courtesy: Pexels)