research topics animals

162 Best Animal Research Topics To Nail Your Paper In 2023

The world is filled with living things. There are some animals that we know about, some that we will discover, and there are many that we might never know about. All our knowledge about animals is mostly dependant on researchers.

Well, we are rooting for you to be the next great researcher. Be it zoology, veterinary, or live wild stock, your study needs a research topic. If you’re looking for the best animal research topics to nail this year, we’re here with your help.

Table of Contents

Best Animal Research Topics

We have 162 Animal Research Topics that will help you get the best grades this year.

Physiology of Animals Research Topics

• Description of the knowledge required to work in animal physiology
• Study of animal species with different specialties in the sciences of nature and life
• Life sciences and socioeconomic impacts
• Neurulation appendages birds
• Exercises on gastrulation and neurulation
• Gastrulation amphibians birds
• Fertilization segmentation in the sea species
• Gametogenesis: A Detailed Introduction
• Study of Delimitation: bird appendages
• Particularities of the developmental biology of certain species
• Technical-commercial animal physiology
• Terrestrial and marine ecosystems
• Animal biology and forensic science: Is there a connection?
• Animal Biology Biotechnology and molecules of interest regarding food and industry
• The interest in biology in the diagnosis of animal and plant diseases
• Toxicology and environmental health concerns in animal physiology
• Animal and plant production
• Fundamentals of animal physiology research and analysis
• Behavior and evolution Genetics of behavior in animals
• Adaptation and evolution of behavior
• Comparative studies of general ecology, zoology, and animal physiology
• Study of animals about the conditions prevailing in their immediate environment
• Endocrine and neuroendocrine systems in animals
• Studying the nervous systems in birds
• Genitals and reproductive physiology of birds
• Understanding of the anatomical and functional particularities of invertebrates
• Biology and physiology of invertebrates
• Reconstruction of phylogenetic trees
• Morpho-anatomical arguments and the importance of fossils
• Argued classification of animals
• Study of the evolution of living organisms by making updates on recent advances in Animalia
• Phylogeny and Animal Evolution
• Principles of echolocation in the bats
• Possible evolution of the increase in complexity of the primitive nervous system
• The nervous system of the insect
• Circulation in animal physiology
• Animals without a differentiated circulatory system
• Water and mineral balance in animals
• Thermoregulation in animals
• Musculoskeletal system in animals
• Study of animal blood
• Biological rhythms of animals
• Skin and teguments of mammals
• Animal nutrition and metabolism
• Hormones and endocrine system of animals
• Emerging organic pollutants
• Mechanisms of toxicity in animals
• Animal physiology in animals from temperate regions
• Genetic correlations between animal species
• Animal communities, forest ecology, and forest birds
• Wildlife-habitat modeling

Looking for research topics in general? Read 402  General Research Paper Topics

Animal Research Topics For Student

• Impact of the agricultural raw materials crisis on the marketing of livestock feed
• Analysis of the competitiveness of poultry produced in the USA
• Animal cruelty in USA and European countries
• Seroprevalence of neosporosis in cattle herds
• The peri-urban dairy sector
• Effect of the liberalization of the veterinary profession on the vaccination coverage of livestock
• Why do people kill animals? The psyche behind animal cruelty
• Evaluation of the growth performance of three sheep breeds
• Study on the protection of terrestrial ecosystems
• Ecology of African dung beetles
• Effects of road infrastructure on wildlife in developing countries
• Analysis of the consequences of climate change related to pastoral livestock
• Strategies for management in the animal feed sector
• The feeding behavior of mosquitoes
• Bee learning and memory
• Immediate response to the animal cruelty
• Study of mass migration of land birds over the ocean
• A study of crocodile evolution
• The cockroach escape system
• The resistance of cockroaches against radiation: Myth or fact?
• Temperature regulation in the honey bee swarm
• Irresponsible dog breeding can often lead to an excess of stray dogs and animal cruelty
• Reliable communication signals in birds

Also see:  How to Write an 8 Page Research Paper ?

Animal Research Topics For University

• Color patterns of moths and moths
• Mimicry in the sexual signals of fireflies
• Ecophysiology of the garter snake
• Memory, dreams regarding cat neurology
• Spatiotemporal variation in the composition of animal communities
• Detection of prey in the sand scorpion
• Internal rhythms in bird migration
• Genealogy: Giant Panda
• Animal dissection: Severe type of animal cruelty and a huge blow to animal rights
• Cuckoo coevolution and patterns
• Use of plant extracts from Amazonian plants for the design of integrated pest management
• Research on flying field bug
• The usefulness of mosquitoes in biological control serves to isolate viruses
• Habitat use by the Mediterranean Ant
• Genetic structure of the  African golden wolf  based on its habitat
• Birds body odor on their interaction with mosquitoes and parasites
• The role of ecology in the evolution of coloration in owls
• The invasion of the red swamp crayfish
• Molecular taxonomy and biogeography of caprellids
• Bats of Mexico and the United States
• What can animal rights NGOs do in case of animal cruelty during animal testing initiatives?

Or you can try 297 High School Research Paper Topics to Top The Class

Controversial Animal Research Topics

• Is it okay to adopt an animal for experimentation?
• The authorization procedures on animals for scientific experiments
• The objective of total elimination of animal testing
• Are there concrete examples of successful scientific advances resulting from animal experimentation?
• Animal rights for exotic animals: Protection of forests and wildlife
• How can animal rights help endangered animals
• Animal experimentation are a type of animal cruelty: A detailed analysis
• Animal testing: encouraging the use of alternative methods
• Use of animals for the evaluation of chemical substances
• Holding seminars on the protection of animals
• Measures to take against animal cruelty
• Scientific research on marine life
• Scientific experiments on animals for medical research
• Experimentation on great apes
• Toxicological tests and other safety studies on chemical substances
• Why isn’t research done directly on humans rather than animals?
• Are animals necessary to approve new drugs and new medical technologies?
• Are the results of animal experiments transferable to humans?
• Humans are not animals, which is why animal research is not effective
• What medical advances have been made possible by animal testing?
• Animals never leave laboratories alive
• Scientific interest does not motivate the use of animal research
• Animal research is torture 
• How can a layperson work against animal testing?

Every crime is a controversy too, right? Here are some juicy  Criminal Justice Research Paper Topics  as well.

Animal Research Topics: Animal Rights

• Growing awareness of the animal suffering generated by these experiments
• What are the alternatives to animal testing?
• Who takes care of animal welfare?
• Major global organizations working for animal rights
• Animal rights in developing countries
• International animal rights standards to work against animal cruelty
• Animal cruelty in developing countries
• What can a layperson do when seeing animal cruelty
• Role of society in the prevention of animal cruelty
• Animal welfare and animal rights: measures taken against animal cruelty in developing countries
• Animal cruelty in the name of science
• How can we raise a better, empathetic and warm-hearted children to put a stop to animal cruelty
• Ethical animal testing methods with safety
• Are efforts being made to reduce the number of animals used?
• The welfare of donkeys and their socioeconomic roles in the subcontinent
• Animal cruelty and superstitious conceptions of dogs, cats, and donkeys in subcontinent
• Efforts made by international organizations against the tragedy of animal cruelty
• International organizations working for animal welfare
• Animal abuse: What are the immediate measures to take when we see animal cruelty
• Efforts to stop animal abuse in South Asian Countries
• Animal abuse in the name of biomedical research

Talking about social causes, let’s have a look at social work topics too: 206  Social Work Research Topics

Interesting Animal Research Topics

• The urbanization process and its effect on the dispersal of birds:
• Patterns of diversification in Neotropical amphibians
• Interactions between non-native parrot species
• Impact of landscape anthropization dynamics and wild birds’ health
• Habitat-driven diversification in small mammals
• Seasonal fluctuations and life cycles of amphipods
• Animal cruelty in African countries
• Evolution of the environmental niche of amphibians
• Biological studies on Louisiana crawfish
• Biological studies on Pink bollworm
• Biological studies on snails
• Biological Studies on Bush Crickets
• Biological Studies on Mountain Gorillas
• Biological studies on piranha
• Consequences of mosquito feeding
• Birds as bioindicators of environmental health
• Biological studies on victoria crowned pigeon
• Biological studies on black rhinoceros
• Biological studies on European spider
• Biological studies on dumbo octopus
• Biological studies on Markhor
• Study of genetic and demographic variation in amphibian populations
• Ecology and population dynamics of the blackberry turtle
• Small-scale population differentiation in ecological and evolutionary mechanisms
• Challenges in vulture conservation

Also interesting: 232  Chemistry Research Topics  To Make Your Neurochemicals Dance

Submarine Animals Research Topics

• The physiology behind the luminous fish
• A study of Fish population dynamics
• Study of insects on the surface of the water
• Structure and function of schools of fish
• Physiological ecology of whales and dolphins
• Form and function in fish locomotion
• Why do whales and dolphins jump?
• Impact of Noise on Early Development and Hearing in Zebrafish
• Animal cruelty against marine life on the hand of fishermen

Read More:  Accounting Research Topics

Animal Biology Research Topics

• Systematic and zoogeographical study of the ocellated lizards
• Morphological study of neurohistogenesis in the diencephalon of the chick embryo
• Anatomical study of three species of Nudibranch
• The adaptive strategy of two species of lagomorphs
• The Black vulture: population, general biology, and interactions with other birds
• Ocellated lizards: their phylogeny and taxonomy
• Studies on the behavior of ocellated lizards in captivity
• Comparative studies of the egg-laying and egg-hatching methods of ocellated lizards
• Studies on the ecology and behavior of ocellated lizards
• The taxonomic and phylogenetic implications of ocellated lizards
• Research on the egg-laying and egg-hatching methods of ocellated lizards
• Studies on the ecology and behavior of ocellated lizards in their natural environment
• Comparative studies of the egg-laying and egg-hatching methods of ocellated lizards in different countries
• Studies on the ecology and behavior of ocellated lizards in their natural environment in the light of evolutionary and ecological insights

Animal research topics are not hard to find for you anymore. As you have already read a load of them. You can use any of them and ace your research paper, and you don’t even need to ask permission. If you are looking for a  paper writing service , be it animal research, medical research, or any sort of research, you can contact us 24/7.

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Animal Research Topics Unleashed: Fauna Frontiers

Table of contents

• 1 How to Choose Animals Research Topics?
• 2.1 Animal Physiology Research Topics
• 2.2 Controversial Animal Topics
• 2.3 Animal Rights Topics For Research Paper
• 2.4 Interesting Animal Research Topics
• 2.5 Veterinary Topics For Research Paper
• 2.6 Animal Testing Research Topics
• 2.7 Animal Cruelty Topics
• 2.8 Research Questions about Animals
• 3 Get Professional Help for Your Animal Research Paper

Contrary to popular belief, animal research topics are not only used by veterinarians. They are also pursued by students majoring in Healthcare, Sound Engineering, and even subjects like Fashion Studies and Chemistry. Of course, it may require writing an excellent custom research paper because the trick here is to tailor things to what you need. The most challenging, however, is to choose your topic correctly and avoid being vague about what you must explore. Even if you would like to explore environmental issues, using animal research topics will be essential. You need to provide an explanation of your reasoning and the negative effects of human interaction with flora and fauna.

How to Choose Animals Research Topics?

While there may be no universal topic that will reflect all sides of animal-related research, consider those subjects that you know well. It must inspire you and be an area where you feel comfortable. If you love marine life and can provide personal research examples, it would be good to choose something that will suit a reflection journal. Alternatively, consider animal topics for research papers that can be supported by reliable sources and statistical information.

Start with an outline or a list of arguments that you would like to explore. Once done, continue with the wording for your topic that introduces the problem and offers a solution. You may also pose a research question about a problem or make a claim that will be supported by what you include in your paper. Always refer to your grading rubric and choose your research paper type accordingly. For example, your nursing research paper may talk about the use of animals for rehabilitation purposes, while a legal student may talk about animal rights in various countries. It all should be approached through the lens of what you learn as a primary subject!

50+ Most Interesting & Easy Animal Research Topics

Animal physiology research topics.

As you might already know, animal physiology studies anything related to the physical processes, changes in behaviors, breeding patterns, and more. As you think about choosing the animal physiology branch, always narrow things down if possible.

• Life-supporting properties of trained dogs in the wilderness.
• Homeostatic processes in migrating birds and the global warming challenges.
• The changes in circadian pacemakers and the processes of aging.
• The changes in flora and related metabolomic-based processes.
• Self-healing practices and digestive enzyme aspects.
• Food intake and glucose stimulation methods.
• Insensitivity to insulin: causes and consequences among domestic animals.
• Muscle cells development and fat management.
• Fish and Shellfish immunology processes in relation to Covid-19 studies.
• The role of mammals in the prevention of aquatic toxicology.

Controversial Animal Topics

This aspect of animal research essay writing may not be everyone’s cup of tea, which is why it is necessary to explore the facts and provide information that represents both sides of the debate. Stay sensitive and avoid being too graphic unless it is necessary. Below are some ideas to consider:

• The cultural practices of whaling in the Faroe Islands and Iceland.
• Animal testing and vaccination practices in Asian countries.
• The use of horses, camels, and donkeys to entertain tourists in the Middle East.
• The consequences of irresponsible dog breeding practices.
• Climate change and the subsequent loss of the natural habitat.
• The dark truth about the ivory trade.
• The use of pets for advertisement and promotional purposes.
• Animal rights protection and restrictions of breeding.
• SPA for the pets: a natural development or immoral practice?
• Animal trading and certification issues.

Animal Rights Topics For Research Paper

The subject of animal rights is popular among students coming from all academic disciplines. Since you can approach it via the philosophical, legal, or medical lens, think about how to reflect your primary skills. It will make your research of animal right topics sound more confident.

• The regulation of puppy mills and breeding in the United States.
• The legal aspect of animal sports and related regulation.
• How should one treat pets that have been abandoned by the owners?
• Clothing industry and legal regulations: from trading to advertisement.
• The use of innovative methods in medical research and experimentation.
• Animal ethics and the theological aspect of animal rights.
• Training your dog well: what are the basic behavior rules to consider?
• The breeding limitations and the farming practices in the United Kingdom.
• Animal rights in the United States vs regulations in Canada.
• Animal trading: what country should be held responsible for animal mistreatment?

Interesting Animal Research Topics

• Why do elephants remember everything and how does their brain work?
• Perception of love and affection among dogs vs cats.
• The communication methods used by the dolphins.
• Do horses feel the spirit of the competition during the ride?
• Perception of children and the elderly by mammals.
• Survival in the wilderness and the hunt for water.
• The navigation system of the working bee.
• How has technology changed domestic animals and their habits?
• The use of dogs in the world’s rescue operations: unusual case studies.
• Establishment of emotional bonds with dogs vs cats.

Veterinary Topics For Research Paper

In the majority of cases, you may refer to your veterinary branch first and proceed from there or take a look at the variety of veterinary research topics that we have presented below. Remember to quote every citation and idea that has been taken from other sources to avoid plagiarism.

• How to establish immune responses in chickens by using disease vaccine prevention methods?
• How do low doses of ketamine affect healthy dogs during epidural anesthesia?
• The use of biomarkers for therapeutic purposes and the role of pet owners.
• RNA genetic analysis and the use of AI-based endometria research to establish common sequences.
• What do we know about canine coronavirus research: pros and cons of artificial modeling.
• Egg production changes related to air pollution and chemical vapors.
• Wildlife surveillance ethics in the United States: pros and cons of modern remote monitoring.
• What are the causes and consequences of selenium deficiency and how can this aspect be addressed by the tissue analysis.
• Veterinary cardiology principles and the use of knowledge sourced from human cardio-vascular research.
• Canine immunopathologies and the high levels of stress caused by Covid-19 restrictions and social distancing.

Animal Testing Research Topics

Even though this subject seems to be discussed everywhere these days, finding good animals topics to write about that deal with animal testing is not easy. Think about what are the underlying reasons for testing and what forces scientists to use it as a method. It will help you come up with ideas and better exploration strategies.

• Does finding a cure without the use of animals represent only an economical challenge?
• Genetic research in the United States and the use of animals for research purposes.
• Should animal cloning and illegal breeding practices be banned?
• Beauty products industry and animal testing controversies.
• Stell Cell Research: the role of animals in the current advancement.
• Cell modulation and modeling as the replacement of animal testing.
• Animal experimentation and the history of the world’s vaccination methods.
• Does animal testing lead to safety in relation to emerging diseases?
• Animal lifespan and the research objectives for medical testing.
• Current human testing practices: do they represent an alternative to animal testing?

Animal Cruelty Topics

Warning: writing about animal cruelty subject is not for everyone, which is why you must be aware that the facts and statistics you may find will be shocking. It should be explored only if you are ready to embrace this disturbing subject. At the same time, you can explore milder animal cruelty cases like using pets as influencers on social media or the use of donkeys at the beaches to entertain tourists. There is always something to think about!

• The practice of cockfighting.
• The cultural heritage of bull-fighting in Spain.
• The use of monkeys for entertaining purposes.
• How are animal rights obeyed during filming practices?
• The use of pets as animal beauty promoters and social media influencers.
• Illegal farming practices in Asian countries and the Middle East.
• How can dog hunters be identified and punished?
• Why does whaling still continue in the Faroe Islands?
• The use of natural fur during beauty commercials.
• Vegetarian foods production: how justified it is for natural animal habitat?

Research Questions about Animals

When you would like to take a general approach to animals research, it is good to come up with a research question as a part of your thesis statement or main argumentation. See these animals research paper examples:

• The use of canines in cancer research methods: what breeds fit the most?.
• Pig kidney transplantation methods: what are the core genetic aspects.
• The use of rats in the decrease of immune diseases: why do they represent the most fitting species?
• Blood transfusions and the use of animal cardio-vascular system principles: what are the points to consider?
• Can animal behavior patterns be helpful for use in human mental diseases?
• Animal Welfare Regulations: are there mechanisms to have an impact on animal care?
• The use of dangerous dog breeds in the world: should such breeding be regulated like gun control?
• Improvement of cognitive functions among children who are dog owners: what is the role of the animals in question?.
• PTSD among military veterans: how can we use the animals to help the healing processes?
• The study of myocardial infarction in primates vs canine studies: why dogs represent better research models?

Get Professional Help for Your Animal Research Paper

Without a doubt, it is easy to get stuck with a multitude of topics and ideas. If you are planning to write about animal rights but do not know how to include certain animal physiology principles, it is safer to consider timely help with research paper. Our skilled team of specialists in this field will provide you with relevant sources and will help you polish things to perfection when you need assistance or do not know how to continue.

The same relates to checking your existing draft and citations in terms of plagiarism and originality. Writing about animals is never easy, which is why we know how you feel and also realize what your college professors expect to see. Take a look at our research topics about animals, trust us with your concerns and we shall help you achieve success!

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Published by Robert Bruce at August 29th, 2023 , Revised On September 5, 2023

Biology Research Topics

Are you in need of captivating and achievable research topics within the field of biology? Your quest for the best biology topics ends right here as this article furnishes you with 100 distinctive and original concepts for biology research, laying the groundwork for your research endeavor.

Table of Contents

Our proficient researchers have thoughtfully curated these biology research themes, considering the substantial body of literature accessible and the prevailing gaps in research.

Should none of these topics elicit enthusiasm, our specialists are equally capable of proposing tailor-made research ideas in biology, finely tuned to cater to your requirements. 

Thus, without further delay, we present our compilation of biology research topics crafted to accommodate students and researchers.

Research Topics in Marine Biology

• Impact of climate change on coral reef ecosystems.
• Biodiversity and adaptation of deep-sea organisms.
• Effects of pollution on marine life and ecosystems.
• Role of marine protected areas in conserving biodiversity.
• Microplastics in marine environments: sources, impacts, and mitigation.

Biological Anthropology Research Topics

• Evolutionary implications of early human migration patterns.
• Genetic and environmental factors influencing human height variation.
• Cultural evolution and its impact on human societies.
• Paleoanthropological insights into human dietary adaptations.
• Genetic diversity and population history of indigenous communities.

Biological Psychology Research Topics 

• Neurobiological basis of addiction and its treatment.
• Impact of stress on brain structure and function.
• Genetic and environmental influences on mental health disorders.
• Neural mechanisms underlying emotions and emotional regulation.
• Role of the gut-brain axis in psychological well-being.

Cancer Biology Research Topics 

• Targeted therapies in precision cancer medicine.
• Tumor microenvironment and its influence on cancer progression.
• Epigenetic modifications in cancer development and therapy.
• Immune checkpoint inhibitors and their role in cancer immunotherapy.
• Early detection and diagnosis strategies for various types of cancer.

Also read: Cancer research topics

Cell Biology Research Topics

• Mechanisms of autophagy and its implications in health and disease.
• Intracellular transport and organelle dynamics in cell function.
• Role of cell signaling pathways in cellular response to external stimuli.
• Cell cycle regulation and its relevance to cancer development.
• Cellular mechanisms of apoptosis and programmed cell death.

Developmental Biology Research Topics 

• Genetic and molecular basis of limb development in vertebrates.
• Evolution of embryonic development and its impact on morphological diversity.
• Stem cell therapy and regenerative medicine approaches.
• Mechanisms of organogenesis and tissue regeneration in animals.
• Role of non-coding RNAs in developmental processes.

Also read: Education research topics

Human Biology Research Topics

• Genetic factors influencing susceptibility to infectious diseases.
• Human microbiome and its impact on health and disease.
• Genetic basis of rare and common human diseases.
• Genetic and environmental factors contributing to aging.
• Impact of lifestyle and diet on human health and longevity.

Molecular Biology Research Topics 

• CRISPR-Cas gene editing technology and its applications.
• Non-coding RNAs as regulators of gene expression.
• Role of epigenetics in gene regulation and disease.
• Mechanisms of DNA repair and genome stability.
• Molecular basis of cellular metabolism and energy production.

Research Topics in Biology for Undergraduates

• 41. Investigating the effects of pollutants on local plant species.
• Microbial diversity and ecosystem functioning in a specific habitat.
• Understanding the genetics of antibiotic resistance in bacteria.
• Impact of urbanization on bird populations and biodiversity.
• Investigating the role of pheromones in insect communication.

Synthetic Biology Research Topics 

• Design and construction of synthetic biological circuits.
• Synthetic biology applications in biofuel production.
• Ethical considerations in synthetic biology research and applications.
• Synthetic biology approaches to engineering novel enzymes.
• Creating synthetic organisms with modified functions and capabilities.

Animal Biology Research Topics 

• Evolution of mating behaviors in animal species.
• Genetic basis of color variation in butterfly wings.
• Impact of habitat fragmentation on amphibian populations.
• Behavior and communication in social insect colonies.
• Adaptations of marine mammals to aquatic environments.

Also read: Nursing research topics

Best Biology Research Topics 

• Unraveling the mysteries of circadian rhythms in organisms.
• Investigating the ecological significance of cryptic coloration.
• Evolution of venomous animals and their prey.
• The role of endosymbiosis in the evolution of eukaryotic cells.
• Exploring the potential of extremophiles in biotechnology.

Biological Psychology Research Paper Topics

• Neurobiological mechanisms underlying memory formation.
• Impact of sleep disorders on cognitive function and mental health.
• Biological basis of personality traits and behavior.
• Neural correlates of emotions and emotional disorders.
• Role of neuroplasticity in brain recovery after injury.

Biological Science Research Topics: 

• Role of gut microbiota in immune system development.
• Molecular mechanisms of gene regulation during development.
• Impact of climate change on insect population dynamics.
• Genetic basis of neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s.
• Evolutionary relationships among vertebrate species based on DNA analysis.

Biology Education Research Topics 

• Effectiveness of inquiry-based learning in biology classrooms.
• Assessing the impact of virtual labs on student understanding of biology concepts.
• Gender disparities in science education and strategies for closing the gap.
• Role of outdoor education in enhancing students’ ecological awareness.
• Integrating technology in biology education: challenges and opportunities.

Biology-Related Research Topics

• The intersection of ecology and economics in conservation planning.
• Molecular basis of antibiotic resistance in pathogenic bacteria.
• Implications of genetic modification of crops for food security.
• Evolutionary perspectives on cooperation and altruism in animal behavior.
• Environmental impacts of genetically modified organisms (GMOs).

Biology Research Proposal Topics

• Investigating the role of microRNAs in cancer progression.
• Exploring the effects of pollution on aquatic biodiversity.
• Developing a gene therapy approach for a genetic disorder.
• Assessing the potential of natural compounds as anti-inflammatory agents.
• Studying the molecular basis of cellular senescence and aging.

Biology Research Topic Ideas

• Role of pheromones in insect mate selection and behavior.
• Investigating the molecular basis of neurodevelopmental disorders.
• Impact of climate change on plant-pollinator interactions.
• Genetic diversity and conservation of endangered species.
• Evolutionary patterns in mimicry and camouflage in organisms.

Biology Research Topics for Undergraduates 

• Effects of different fertilizers on plant growth and soil health.
• Investigating the biodiversity of a local freshwater ecosystem.
• Evolutionary origins of a specific animal adaptation.
• Genetic diversity and disease susceptibility in human populations.
• Role of specific genes in regulating the immune response.

Cell and Molecular Biology Research Topics 

• Molecular mechanisms of DNA replication and repair.
• Role of microRNAs in post-transcriptional gene regulation.
• Investigating the cell cycle and its control mechanisms.
• Molecular basis of mitochondrial diseases and therapies.
• Cellular responses to oxidative stress and their implications in ageing.

These topics cover a broad range of subjects within biology, offering plenty of options for research projects. Remember that you can further refine these topics based on your specific interests and research goals.

Frequently Asked Questions 

What are some good research topics in biology?

A good research topic in biology will address a specific problem in any of the several areas of biology, such as marine biology, molecular biology, cellular biology, animal biology, or cancer biology.

A topic that enables you to investigate a problem in any area of biology will help you make a meaningful contribution. 

How to choose a research topic in biology?

Choosing a research topic in biology is simple. 

Follow the steps:

• Generate potential topics. 
• Consider your areas of knowledge and personal passions. 
• Conduct a thorough review of existing literature.
•  Evaluate the practicality and viability. 
• Narrow down and refine your research query. 
• Remain receptive to new ideas and suggestions.

Who Are We?

For several years, Research Prospect has been offering students around the globe complimentary research topic suggestions. We aim to assist students in choosing a research topic that is both suitable and feasible for their project, leading to the attainment of their desired grades. Explore how our services, including research proposal writing , dissertation outline creation, and comprehensive thesis writing , can contribute to your college’s success.

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• UConn Library
• Animal Science Subject Guide
• Research Topics

Animal Science Subject Guide — Research Topics

• Starting Your Research Project
• Searching Scholarly Databases
• Encyclopedias & Handbooks
• Finding Books
• Other Information Sources
• Useful Tools

Narrowing a topic

Sometimes narrowing to a specific topic does not come naturally and can be a difficult task. Here are some techniques available to make this process simpler.

• First, pick a topic in which you are interested. You will spend a lot of time with your topic and you will do a better job with it if you find the topic enjoyable. As you search through potential topics, note which pique your interest and follow them further.
• Look for a topic with some recent controversy or a set of related topics which can be compared and contrasted.
• Pick a topic which you have some hope of understanding. If you cannot understand the basics you will not be able to write about it. Not all topics are appropriate for undergraduate paper writing.

Some additional sites with help on choosing and narrowing topics are listed below.

• Choosing and Narrowing a Topic
• Narrowing a Topic
• Narrowing a Topic and Developing a Research Question
• Identifying when a Topic is Too Narrow or Too Broad

Where to find possible topics for science papers

If you don't know on what topic you want to write a paper, start by looking in sources with broad spreads of relevant information. 

• Search any database by a particular journal or review journal (Science, Nature, Trends in Ecology & Evolution, etc.)
• Look for a classic topic in your textbook 
• Scan popular science sciences magazines such as Bioscience, Scientific American, Discover, etc.
• Go to the popular  website  www.sciencedaily.com which covers most aspects of science and search for a topic
• Search for ideas in the encyclopedias, handbooks or other books listed in this guide on a separate page
• If you have some idea of a topic, search for review articles on that topic in one of the science databases listed in this guide
• Search the table of contents of a journal which specializes in review articles, such as Trends in Ecology and Evolution

Search Strategies for Topics

Part of picking a topic will involve conducting literature searches. As you search for your topic(s) start with searches as BROAD as possible, while remaining relevant to your topic. Starting broad will give a breadth of coverage that allows you easy options for narrowing your topic. If you start with a narrow topic it is much harder to broaden your topic later to explore more options.

Describe your topic in a sentence.

How did carnivorous plants evolve digestive enzymes?

What are your major concepts? Identify the main elements of your topic.

Think of related terms for your concepts. Use both common words and scientific terms.

Add Boolean Operators (AND & OR) to structure the search in a database search interface.

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Best Animal Research Topics for Your Research Papers

Animals, of course is what almost everyone can relate with. However, you may never know you don’t know much about animals until your professor ask you to write a research paper on animals. Then you will begin to realize you have limited or no idea about some animals you have seen regularly.

Animal research paper may not be as easy as you think. Getting the right topic idea before the proper writing is as difficult as writing itself. Since you are writing about a general subject such as animals, the most impressive thing is to write about a seemingly unpopular idea about animals. This will make your research paper more valuable and commendable.

Your next question will then be, how do I get the right animal research topics? No doubt, it seems difficult to get the right topic to write about animals. However, we have helped to compile the best topics to consider in your next research paper. In this piece, you will find several topics for different types of essays and research papers.

Easy Animals Research Topics

There is no doubt about it, there are topics that can be considered as easy for research writing. Such topics are easy to research and develop. Students who do not enjoy tedious research will rather go for this kind of topic. The following are easy animal research paper topics you can consider;

• What is an Asiatic horse breed and what are its characteristics?
• Dog vs cat: What are the similarities and differences between these two pets?
• Simple ways to train a pony quickly.
• Can Polar bears be seen at the South Pole?
• Identifying the top 3 weirdest animals on Earth and their characteristics.
• What is poaching and what are the negative effects?
• What are penguins and why are they known as flightless birds?
• An in-depth analysis of Africa and its vast wildlife.
• What are migratory birds: Identifying the classification and characteristics.
• Poaching and its negative effects on wildlife and methods to discourage it.

Best Animal Research Topics and Questions

Every research paper must be able to give answers to a research question. In the case of animals, some questions beg for answers that can be considered for research writing. These kinds of questions present your research writing as a valid and relatable one. You can consider the following animal research questions in your next paper writing;

• Testing of antibiotics on animals: is it appropriate or the wrong approach?
• The extinction of dinosaurs: what are the factors responsible for their extinction?
• What is an exotic pet and how do you care for it?
• What is a better pet between a dog and a cat?
• What animal should be considered the largest predator and what are its characteristics?
• Keeping animals in zoos: will you consider this inhumane treatment?
• Do humans have the right to kill animals and what are animal rights?
• Hunting for sport: Is this activity improper and should it be banned?
• What are endangered species and how can they be protected?
• Exotic pets in the United Kingdom: What are the excesses and why should they be banned?

Simple Animal Topics for Research Papers on Animal Rescue

Animal rescue is an important discussion on animals in recent times. There are mixed submissions about this subject and these discussions have given birth to a lot of controversies. Addressing any of such topics in your research paper writing proves your knowledge about animals. Here are topics on animal rescue you can consider for your research writing;

• Rescuing animals in need or danger: what we should all know.
• A simple review of the Australian bushfire and its effects on wildlife.
• Poor social skills in rescuing animals and how to develop effectiveness.
• A simple review of wildfire in the United State and the consequent effect on wildlife.
• Rescuing dogs in the military: what are the resources guarding problems and how to address them?
• Analyzing the lack of proper veterinary care for rescued animals.
• What is an anxiety problem in animals using rescuing dogs as a case study?
• Evaluating rescue cats and their destructive problem.
• Analyzing the end of life of rescue animals: What eventually happened to these animals?
• Inadequate screening for the adoption of rescue animals and its effects on the entire process.

Animal Research Project Ideas College

College students who study animal science-related courses are likely to write often about animals. As such, there should be a dedicated topic section for college students. Writing about animals as a college student is no less than writing as a university student. However, college students should consider writing on the following topics about animals;

• Should a college student consider having a pet and what pet is the best consideration?
• Tardigrades: Do tardigrades live in space and how do they survive?
• Evaluating the process of using snake venom in the production of anticancer drugs.
• What are the factors to consider before buying your kids a pet?
• Analyzing the animal fight in the United Kingdom and the effect on animal rights.
• What are psychological issues present in zoo animals?
• Cats’ vaccination: What are the effects and why is it important?
• Evaluating animals in extreme weather conditions: What are their features and adaptation methods?
• Lab mice: why are these animals considered a perfect fit for experiments?
• What are dog vaccines and what is their importance?

Best Dog Research Topics

Dogs by far seem to be the most popular animals and pets on Earth. There are a lot of interesting things to explore about this unique animal. You may then want to write some research papers on dogs and their uniqueness. Here are research topics about dogs to consider;

• Research paper on the evolution of dogs from Gray Wolf.
• Dog as a human best pet ever: What are the factors responsible for dog wide acceptance as the best pet?
• All you need to know about classical conditioning and how to teach new tricks to your dog.
• What is ropeless dog lead and how feasible is this dog leading model?
• How to address the moral dilemma of incessant barking in dogs.
• Identifying the aggressive and unaggressive breeds of dogs and factors responsible for such behaviors.
• How does tail wagging signify the emotion and expression of happiness in dogs?
• What is animal-assisted therapy and how does your dog qualify for one?
• What is operant conditioning in dogs and what are the consequences?
• Why is a protection dog important and what breeds are the most suitable?

Animal Rights Topics for Research Paper

Animal rights have been one of the most trending topics about animals in recent times. While it is difficult to believe that animals have rights, a lot of people need to understand that they really do. Writing a research paper on animal rights can be an attempt to establish the truth about animals and their rights. The following are animal rights research topics to consider in your next research writing;

• Animal rights movement in the United State: an overview of the goals of the movement.
• Do animals require more rights and what should they be?
• An overview of animal rights in China and how effective it is.
• Discussing animal rights in the United Kingdom and evaluating the implementation so far.
• Does keeping animals in zoos violate animal rights and what are the best zoological practices?
• What are the violations of animal rights in fishing practices?
• What is the implication of animal rights on invasive species?
• Analyzing animal rights in Europe and what are the clauses that make up the right?
• Evaluating cow rights in India and Africa: what are the best practices to maintain animal rights?
• Can predator animals be killed without breaking animal rights rules?

Persuasive Essay Topics About Animals

Discussions on animals will either take the form of support or oppose the motion. While everyone may not have the same idea, persuasive essays help establish your idea in the best way to convince others. There are a lot of topics about animals that are best discussed in a persuasive essay. The following are persuasive animal topics to write about;

• Stopping deforestation and how it can help in preserving wildlife.
• A persuasive essay on stopping the eating of animal food to preserve animal life.
• What are the effects of global warming on wildlife and what we can do to ease the effect?
• What is using animals in circuses and why you should stop the act.
• What is pet insurance, does it worth it and why should you consider it?
• What are the negative effects of pollution on animals and what we should do to help the situation?
• Why should pet owners adopt their pets rather than buy them?
• Why you should not consider foxes as pets.
• Why you should stop eating pork and what are the health benefits attached to this action?
• Why you should get your pet a microchip for easy control and communication?

Argumentative Topics About Animals

An argumentative essay is the type of essay that seeks to argue out a point to convince others. The topic for such an essay must be one that allows for heated discussion on the subject of animals. There are quite a lot of animal topics that have generated debates over time. You can write an argumentative essay on the following research topics about animals;

• Do cats make the best pets as opposed to dogs?
• Why is it inappropriate to hold animals in captivity and what should be the right practices?
• Should exotic pet ownership be banned and why should this happen?
• Should a man feed wildlife and why?
• Debate on whether zoos should be more regulated and why?
• Debates on whether the Massai should be stopped from hunting lions and why?
• Are Hyenas becoming endangered species and arguing the causes.
• Why do we need more elephant sanctuaries and what is their importance?
• Debates on why dogs should be considered the best service animals and why?
• Arguing on the importance of flies to mankind as opposed to their disadvantages.

Veterinarian Research Paper Topics

Veterinarians are known to be the closest to animals. They are considered to have more understanding of animals than any other kind of person. As such, veterinarian subjects about animals must be more complex and detailed. Here are topics about animals for veterinarian research paper writing;

• Veterinarian: Explain the concept of veterinary and what are its unique functions?
• What are the dangers and the challenges of being a veterinary?
• How does a veterinarian explain Brucellosis?
• What are the most common health challenges of cats in the United Kingdom?
• Discussion on the recent biomedical research on animals.
• Poor veterinary care in rural Europe and the effects on animals.
• Identifying the technological breakthroughs in veterinary medicine and how they have enhanced animal care.
• Tapeworm infection in animals: what is the best approach to address it in dogs and cats?
• What is the veterinarian’s conclusion on using punishment for pet training purposes?
• What is mycotoxicosis and why are the implications on the health of animals?

Interesting Animal Research Topics

Animals research papers can be an interesting topic to discuss. Animals of course can be interesting to study in certain aspects. You must consider intriguing topics about animals to create an interesting animal research paper. The following are good topics for interesting animal research topics;

• Should mosquitoes be considered useless insects and what are the reasons?
• Analyzing the Lion pride of African wildlife.
• Exploring the anatomy of the hyena and what are its most striking features?
• What are Tardigrades: Exploring the features of this special animal.
• What is the IUCN red list of threatened species and what are the implications?
• Animal adaptation and survival in the desert: what features are responsible for the adaptation process?
• A cross-analysis of the butterfly life cycle and what are the interesting things to note?
• Dolphin: What factors make them intelligent animals as they are portrayed?
• Medical testing on animals: Is it a justifiable act or an inappropriate action?
• What are the unique features of monkeys that make tree climbing so easy for them?

Animal Topics About Your Favorite Pet

Writing about your favorite pet might be one of the easiest animal essay writings. Since you are close to your favorite pet, you should have more to say about the pet. As such, your writing must be written from a standpoint of a firsthand experience. The following are animal research paper topics good for your research writing on your favorite pet;

• What animal would you consider your favorite animal and why have you made the decision?
• Which animal can be considered the funniest animal and what are its characteristics?
• What features of the dog contribute to it being the most favorite pet of man?
• Should you consider owning an exotic pet? Why and why not?
• What can be considered the trait of your favorite animal?
• Can animals ever be loyal? Using a case study of your favorite animal.
• What is the best animal in the world and why will you consider it so?
• An essay on the death of your favorite pet and what led to the death.
• What animal would be your favorite pet if you could tame wildlife?
• Comparing dogs and cats: Which animal is best for pets and what are the reasons?  

Animal Research Topics for High School Students

High School students study a subject called animal science. This subject exposes them to some theories about animals and their characteristics. As such, high school students may write an essay or mini research on any animal of their choice. Here are some animal research topics high school students can consider;

• Expensive veterinary care: what factors are responsible for the high cost of service?
• Identifying the similarities and the difference between camels and dromedaries.
• Should high school students be allowed to come with their pets?
• Analyzing the conversion of wild animals to pets in the United States.
• What is a local animal shelter and how can you adopt animals from there?
• Can an elephant ever swim or it is just an assumption?
• First-hand comparison of a cat and dog from a student who has both as pets.
• Identifying irresponsible breeding of dogs and what are the consequences?
• Killer whale and how it hunts its prey.
• What is an Orangutan and analyzing its habitat loss?

Animal Abuse Research Topics

Animal rights advocates have over time insisted that animals are being abused. In fact, keeping animals in zoos is considered to be one such act of animal cruelty. Being a controversial topic, you can choose to write a research paper on it. Here are topics on animal abuse you can write about in your research paper;

• Prevailing animal abuse acts in the United States.
• What is the difference between animal abuse and animal cruelty?
• Animal abuses in China and what are the moves to curtail the act.
• What is animal hoarding behavior and what are the effects on animal health?
• The relationship between cruelty towards animals and their aggressive response.
• Can we consider animal testing as animal abuse?
• Analyzing animal neglect as a form of animal abuse.
• India and the rising case of animal abuse: Cow and bull as a case study.
• Animal fights and sports as a form of animal abuse and cruelty.
• An overview of the animal abuse law in the United States.

Endangered Animal Research Topics

Certain animals are considered to be endangered species. This is because due to manhunts and poaching they are becoming extremely rare. There are many of these animals and you can choose to write a research paper on any of them. Here are the best research questions about animals called endangered species;

• What is the whooping crane and can it be saved?
• The Bonobo monkey and how it can be saved from extinction.
• Peregrine falcon: Where was it found, what treatment is it subjected to, and how can it be preserved?
• What is the Galapagos penguin and what factors make it an endangered species?
• The black-footed ferret and its high chances of getting extinct.
• Whale shark: what are its vulnerabilities and the moves to save it from extinction?
• What is the monarch butterfly, where is it found, and how can it be preserved?
• What are the factors responsible for the dwindling population of the loggerhead sea turtle?
• The shout Asian dolphin, its vulnerability, and how it can be saved.
• Evaluating the extinction of the dinosaur and factors that may be responsible for this.

How Can I Get My Animal Research Paper?

Writing your animal research topics become an easy task when you have the right topic to research. You only do the task of carrying out research and developing your point. However, when you are a student with a lot of social activities alongside your academics, these simple tasks may seem cumbersome also.

We have got you covered as we have a service that allows you to order your research paper. Our league of writers features experts in animal science and related courses who can write you a perfect research paper. You can achieve this by contacting our support agent to inquire about the ordering process. You can rest assured of a high-quality paper with no grammatical errors or plagiarism when you use this service.

Research papers on animal topics are inevitable for students who study animal science, zoology, biology, and some other related courses. All levels of education including universities, colleges, and high school students can write on this subject matter. There are various subject matters in animal science to discuss and evaluate.

There is a lot of discourse such as animal abuse, animal rights, and animal cruelty that can be the central idea of a research paper. While some of these ideas might be difficult to analyze, having the right topics can make it a seamless task as it will give you headway. However, if you still find it difficult to write your research paper, you can order an animal research paper expert on our platform.

Hire a dissertation writer and explore a wide range of captivating animal research topics with the expertise of our professional writers. Our skilled team is ready to assist you in selecting compelling topics and crafting high-quality research papers that meet the highest academic standards.

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Nature’s Secrets: Top 200 Ecology Research Topics

Welcome to the world of Ecology, where the study of nature evolves like an interesting story. Ecology helps us solve the complex relationships between living organisms and their environments. In this fascinating journey, we will see ecology research topics that reveal the secrets of ecosystems, biodiversity, and the delicate balance of nature. 

From understanding how different species react to the impact of human activities on our planet, Ecology offers insights that go beyond the ordinary. 

So, whether you’re fascinated by the web of life in a forest, the dynamics of a coral reef, or the challenges of conservation, these research topics will guide you into the heart of ecological wonders. Let’s start this adventure of knowledge, discovering the hidden secrets that shape the world around us.

What Is Ecology?

Table of Contents

Ecology is the study of how living things interact with each other and their environment. It explores relationships between plants, animals, and their surroundings, helping us understand how nature works and how different elements in ecosystems connect.

What Are The 6 Topics Studied In Ecology?

Ecology studies the relationships between living things and their environment. Here are six topics studied in ecology:

• Ecosystems: Examining how living organisms, like plants and animals, interact with each other and their non living surroundings, such as soil, water, and air.
• Biodiversity: Analyzing the variety of life in different ecosystems, including the number and types of species present.
• Population Dynamics: Understanding how the numbers of individuals in a species change over time, including factors like birth rates, death rates, and migration.
• Community Interactions: Exploring how different species in a specific area interact with each other, such as through competition or cooperation.
• Ecological Succession: Studying the increasing changes in ecosystems over time, including how new communities of plants and animals replace older ones.
• Conservation Biology: Focusing on protecting and preserving ecosystems and species, especially those facing threats or endangerment.

Top 200 Ecology Research Topics

Now the wait is over and here we will be listing top 200 ecology research topics. And they are as:

Top 10 Ecology Research Topics On Biodiversity Conservation

• Conservation Genetics and its Role in Biodiversity Preservation
• Ecological Consequences of Habitat Fragmentation on Biodiversity
• Monitoring and Assessing Biodiversity in Changing Landscapes
• Conservation Strategies for Endangered Species
• The Significance of Protected Areas in Biodiversity Conservation
• Ecosystem Services and Biodiversity Conservation
• Citizen Science Initiatives in Biodiversity Monitoring
• Integrating Indigenous Knowledge in Biodiversity Conservation
• Climate Change Impacts on Biodiversity and Conservation Measures
• Human-Wildlife Conflict and its Implications for Biodiversity Conservation

Top 10 Research Topics On Climate Change Impacts

• Climate Change Effects on Biodiversity and Ecosystems
• Influence of Climate Change on Global Water Resources
• Rising Sea Levels and Coastal Ecosystem Vulnerability
• Climate Change Affects on Agriculture and Food Security
• Extreme Weather Events and their Ecological Consequences
• Ocean Acidification: Ecological and Marine Life Impacts
• Changes in Species Distribution by Climate Change
• Climate Change and Migration Patterns of Wildlife
• Effects of Climate Change on Polar and Alpine Ecosystems
• Climate Change and Human Health: Ecological Perspectives

Top 10 Ecology Research Topics On Habitat Restoration

• Ecosystem Recovery after Habitat Disturbance
• Effects of Restoration Techniques on Soil Health
• Ecological Succession in Restored Habitats
• Invasive Species Management in Restoration Projects
• Role of Native Plant Species in Habitat Restoration
• Impact of Restoration on Wildlife Communities
• Community Engagement in Urban Habitat Restoration
• Restoration of Wetland Ecosystems and Biodiversity
• Historical Ecology and its Role in Habitat Restoration
• Evaluating Long-Term Success of Habitat Restoration Projects

Top 10 Research Topics On Ecosystem Services

• Valuation of Ecosystem Services for purpose of Sustainable Resource Management
• Biodiversity’s Role in Providing Ecosystem Services
• Climate Change Impacts on Ecosystem Services
• Urban Ecosystem Services and Green Infrastructure
• Cultural Ecosystem Services: Linking Nature and Well-being
• Watershed Services: Sustainable Water Resource Management
• Forest Ecosystem Services and Sustainable Forestry Practices
• Marine Ecosystem Services: Conservation and Management
• Agricultural Practices and Ecosystem Service Delivery
• Restoration Ecology for Enhancing Ecosystem Services

Top 10 Ecology Research Topics On Wildlife Ecology

• Behavior and Social Structure of Wild Animal Populations
• Conservation Genetics in Wildlife Management
• Human-Wildlife Conflict and Mitigation Strategies
• Wildlife Habitat Use and Selection
• Effects of Climate Change on Wildlife Ecology
• Wildlife Disease Ecology and Emerging Infectious Diseases
• Predator-Prey Dynamics in Natural Ecosystems
• Movement Ecology and Migration Patterns
• Wildlife Monitoring Techniques and Technology
• Restoration Ecology for Wildlife Habitat Enhancement

Top 10 Ecology Research Topics On Marine Ecology

• Coral Reef Resilience and Conservation
• Marine Biodiversity in Deep-Sea Ecosystems
• Ocean Acidification & its Impact on Marine Life
• Fisheries Management for Sustainable Marine Ecology
• Marine Protected Areas and Conservation Strategies
• Plastic Pollution & its impact on Marine Ecosystems
• Seabird Ecology and Conservation
• Mangrove Ecosystems: Function and Conservation
• Climate Change Impacts on Marine Ecosystems
• Seagrass Ecology and Restoration efforts in Coastal Areas

Top 10 Research Topics On Urban Ecology

• Urban Biodiversity and Conservation Strategies
• Green Spaces & Ecosystem Services in Urban Environments
• Urban Heat Island Effect and Mitigation Measures
• Urban Wildlife Ecology and Human-Wildlife Interactions
• Sustainable Urban Planning and Design for Ecosystem Health
• Urban Agriculture: Impacts on Biodiversity and Food Security
• Air Quality and Urban Tree Canopy: A Nexus in Urban Ecology
• Stormwater Management and Ecological Solutions in Urban Areas
• Urbanization Effects on Microbial Communities in Soil
• Citizen Science Contributions to Urban Ecology Research

Top 10 Ecology Research Topics On Forest Ecology

• Old-Growth Forest Ecology and Conservation
• Forest Fragmentation and its Impact on Biodiversity
• Fire Ecology: Natural Processes and Human Intervention
• Forest Carbon Sequestration and Climate Change Mitigation
• Dynamics of Tree-Soil Interactions in Forest Ecosystems
• Invasive Species Management in Forested Landscapes
• Forest Restoration Ecology and Reforestation Strategies
• Effects of Logging and Timber Harvesting on Forest Ecology
• Microbial Communities in Forest Soils: Diversity and Function
• Ecological Consequences of Climate Change in Forested Regions

Top 10 Research Topics On Invasive Species Management

• Ecological Impacts of Invasive Species
• Mechanisms of Invasion Success
• Early Detection and Rapid Response Strategies
• Effects of Climate Change on Invasive Species Dynamics
• Management Strategies for Aquatic Invasive Species
• Biological Control of Invasive Species
• Evolutionary Responses in Invasive Species
• Community-Level Impacts of Invasive Species
• Economic Costs and Benefits of Invasive Species Management
• Restoration Ecology After Invasive Species Removal

Top 10 Ecology Research Topics On Conservation Genetics

• Genetic Diversity and Conservation of Endangered Species
• Population Genetics of Rare and Threatened Plants
• Conservation Genomics in Wildlife Management
• Genetic Adaptation to Changing Environments
• Genomic Approaches in Assessing Inbreeding Depression
• Landscape Genetics and Habitat Connectivity
• Genetic Monitoring for Effective Conservation
• Genomic Tools in Studying Hybridization and Introgression
• Conservation Genetics of Migratory Species
• Genetic Markers for Non-Invasive Monitoring of Wildlife

Top 10 Research Topics On Landscape Ecology

• Spatial Patterns and Dynamics in Landscape Ecology
• Connectivity and Fragmentation of Landscape
• Urbanization and its Impact on Landscape Structure
• Landscape Heterogeneity and Biodiversity Conservation
• Ecosystem Services in the Context of Landscape Ecology
• Remote Sensing and GIS Applications in Landscape Ecology
• Modeling Landscape Change and Future Scenarios
• Landscape Ecology and Climate Change Impacts
• Land-Use Change Effects on Landscape Patterns
• Resilience and Sustainability in Landscape Ecology

Top 10 Ecology Research Topics On Agroecology

• Sustainable Farming Practices for Agroecosystem Health
• Agroecology and Biodiversity Conservation in Agricultural Landscapes
• Soil Health and Nutrient Cycling in Agroecosystems
• Organic Farming Systems: Ecological Impacts and Benefits
• Agroecological Approaches to Pest Management
• Agroforestry Systems and Ecosystem Services
• Climate-Resilient Agriculture in Agroecological Frameworks
• Indigenous and Traditional Agro Ecological Knowledge
• Integrating Livestock into Agroecosystems for Sustainability
• Socioeconomic Dimensions of Agroecological Transition

Top 10 Research Topics On Ecological Modeling

• Spatial and Temporal Dynamics in Ecological Models
• Integrating Climate Change in Ecological Modeling
• Agent-Based Modeling in Ecological Studies
• Ecological Network Models: Structure and Dynamics
• Predictive Modeling for Conservation Planning
• Individual-Based Models in Animal Behavior Ecology
• Dynamic Energy Budget Models in Population Ecology
• Bayesian Approaches in Ecological Modeling
• Ecological Niche Modeling for Species Distribution
• Coupling Ecological and Economic Models for Sustainability

Top 10 Ecology Research Topics On Environmental Pollution

• Affects of Air Pollution on Ecosystems and Human Health
• Microplastics in Aquatic Ecosystems: Sources and Effects
• Soil Pollution and its Consequences for Terrestrial Ecology
• Noise Pollution and its Effects on Wildlife Behavior
• Heavy Metal Contamination in Urban Ecosystems
• Emerging Contaminants: Pharmaceuticals in the Environment
• Pesticide Pollution and Agricultural Ecosystems
• Oil Spills and Marine Ecosystems: Recovery and Resilience
• Plastic Waste in Marine Environments: Ecological Impacts
• Urbanization and its Role in Environmental Pollution

Top 10 Research Topics On Ecotourism Impact

• Ecotourism and Biodiversity Conservation
• Socioeconomic Impacts of Ecotourism on Local Communities
• Sustainable Practices in Ecotourism Operations
• Wildlife Disturbance and Ecotourism: Balancing Conservation
• Ecotourism and Cultural Heritage Preservation
• Assessing the Environmental Footprint of Ecotourism
• Ecotourism and Sustainable Resource Management
• Community Involvement in Ecotourism Development
• Monitoring and Mitigating Ecotourism Impacts on Fragile Ecosystems
• Ecotourism Certification and Standards for Responsible Tourism

Top 10 Ecology Research Topics On Plant Ecology

• Plant-Animal Interactions and Mutualistic Relationships
• Impacts of Climate Change on Plant Communities
• Plant Functional Traits and Ecosystem Functioning
• Plant-Insect Interactions: Pollination and Herbivory
• Dynamics of Plant Communities in Disturbed Habitats
• Plant Defense Mechanisms Against Herbivores
• Allelopathy: Chemical Interactions among Plants
• Plant Invasions and their Ecological Consequences
• Influence of Soil Microbes on Plant Health and Diversity
• Role of Mycorrhizal Fungi in Plant Ecology

Top 10 Research Topics On Evolutionary Ecology

• Adaptation and Evolutionary Dynamics in Changing Environments
• Coevolutionary Interactions between Species
• Evolutionary Consequences of Mutualistic Relationships
• Evolutionary Ecology of Life History Strategies
• Evolutionary Responses to Anthropogenic Stressors
• Evolutionary Ecology of Invasive Species
• Historical Biogeography and Evolutionary Patterns
• Evolutionary Ecology of Plant-Animal Interactions
• Evolutionary Drivers of Biodiversity
• Evolutionary Consequences of Climate Change

Top 10 Ecology Research Topics On Freshwater Ecology

• Biodiversity and Conservation of Freshwater Ecosystems
• Aquatic Macroinvertebrates as Bioindicators of Water Quality
• Effects of Climate Change on Freshwater Ecology
• Nutrient Cycling in Freshwater Environments
• Impact of Invasive Species on Freshwater Ecosystems
• Dynamics of Aquatic Food Webs in Lakes and Rivers
• Restoration Ecology of Freshwater Habitats
• Ecological Consequences of Dams and Water Management
• Microbial Communities in Freshwater Environments
• Threats to Freshwater Ecosystems: Pollution and Habitat Loss

Top 10 Research Topics On Microbial Ecology

• Microbial Diversity in Natural Environments
• Microbial Interactions in Soil Ecosystems
• Human Microbiome and Health
• Microbial Ecology of Extreme Environments
• Microbes in Aquatic Ecosystems: Dynamics and Roles
• Microbial Communities in Plant Rhizospheres
• Microbial Biogeography and Distribution Patterns
• Impact of Climate Change on Microbial Ecology
• Microbial Responses to Pollution and Environmental Stress
• Microbial Roles in Biogeochemical Cycling

Top 10 Ecology Research Topics On Sustainable Agriculture

• Agroecological Practices for Sustainable Farming
• Soil Health Management in Sustainable Agriculture
• Water Conservation Strategies in Agricultural Systems
• Organic Farming: Impacts on Ecology and Sustainability
• Integrated Pest Management for Sustainable Agriculture
• Biodiversity Enhancement through Crop Rotation
• Agroforestry: Integrating Trees into Agricultural Landscapes
• Climate-Smart Agriculture Approaches
• Efficient Nutrient Management in Sustainable Farming
• Sustainable Livestock Farming Practices

Top 50 Ecology Essay Topics

In addition to the above topics we are giving you a bonus of top 50 ecology essay topics based on different categories and they are as:

Top 10 Essay Research Topics On Environmental Sustainability

• Climate Change Impacts and Mitigation Strategies
• Biodiversity Conservation and Ecosystem Restoration
• Sustainable Agriculture Practices
• Renewable Energy Solutions
• Waste Management and Circular Economy
• Urban Planning for Sustainable Cities
• Water Conservation and Management
• Environmental Policies and Governance
• Corporate Social Responsibility in Sustainability
• Indigenous Knowledge and Practices in Environmental Sustainability

Top 10 Essay Research Topics On Social Justice and Equity

• Racial Inequality and Systemic Racism
• Gender Equality and Women’s Rights
• LGBTQ+ Rights and Inclusivity
• Economic Disparities and Poverty
• Access to Education: Challenges and Solutions
• Criminal Justice Reform and Fair Policing
• Disability Rights and Inclusion
• Indigenous Rights and Land Sovereignty
• Immigration Policies and Human Rights
• Healthcare Disparities: Addressing Equity in Access and Treatment

Top 10 Essay Research Topics On Technology and Society

• Ethical Implications of Artificial Intelligence
• Digital Privacy and Security Concerns
• Impact of Social Media on Society
• The Role of Technology in Education
• Automation and the Future of Work
• Cybersecurity Challenges and Solutions
• Internet of Things (IoT) and Smart Cities
• Biotechnology and Bioethics
• Technology and Healthcare: Advancements and Concerns
• Accessibility and Inclusivity in Technological Innovations

Top 10 Essay Research Topics On Health and Wellness

• Mental Health Stigma and Awareness
• Healthcare Disparities in Underserved Communities
• Impact of Technology on Mental Health
• Lifestyle Factors and Chronic Disease Prevention
• Access to Affordable Healthcare
• Public Health Strategies for Disease Prevention
• Global Health Challenges and Solutions
• Integrative Medicine and Holistic Health Approaches
• Nutrition and its Role in Overall Wellness
• Aging Population: Health Challenges and Innovations

Top 10 Essay Research Topics On Global Economic Trends

• The Impact of Globalization on Economic Inequality
• Sustainable Development Goals and Economic Growth
• Technological Advancements and Economic Transformation
• Trade Wars and their Effects on Global Economies
• The Rise of Gig Economy and Changing Workforce Dynamics
• Financial Inclusion and Economic Empowerment
• COVID-19 Pandemic’s Impact on Global Economic Trends
• Green Finance and Environmental Sustainability in Economics
• Economic Policies for Post-Pandemic Recovery
• The Role of Emerging Markets in Shaping Global Economic Trends

As we conclude our exploration of Ecology Research Topics, we’ve uncovered a big collection of subjects into the wonders of our natural world. From studying Biodiversity Conservation to researching Microbial Ecology, these topics offer a deeper understanding of the balance of our ecosystems. 

In addition to these research topics, we’ve provided a bonus of 50 Ecology Essay Topics, adding more layers to your knowledge. Remember, Ecology is like solving nature’s puzzle, and each topic contributes to revealing its secrets. 

We’ve also touched upon the six fundamental topics in Ecology, providing a foundation for your ecological journey. So, let curiosity be your guide, and explore the mysteries that our planet holds.

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The Oxford Scientist

The University of Oxford's independent science magazine

The Controversial World of Animals in Research

Animal experimentation is one of the greatest ethical dilemmas facing modern science. While animal research leads to life-saving treatments, to anti-vivisectionists (people who oppose the use of animals in scientific research) the practice is cruel and barbaric, regardless of its potential benefit to human health. But what are the issues with animal research, and what is currently being done to overcome them?

For years, Oxford University has been under fire for using animals in medical research. Oxford has one of the largest biomedical research centres in Europe and undertakes the greatest number of scientific procedures on animals annually. Naturally, it is a hub of fierce anti-vivisectionist activity. In the mid-2000s, protests led to violence over the construction of the Biomedical Sciences Building — a state-of-the-art research facility to rehouse laboratory animals from around Oxford. There were arson attacks and bomb threats, and researchers were even followed to their homes. Consequently, the University took out an injunction against specific animal rights groups to protect staff and researchers.

But opposition to the use of animals remains. In April 2019, a 400-strong protest marking the 40th anniversary of the World Day for Animals in Laboratories called for an end to animal research in Oxford. Protestors claimed that ‘50 per‐cent of animal experiments in UK universities are for curiosity’s sake’, with a devastating 70,000 people killed or disabled by animal-tested drugs in England each year. Moreover, animal rights activist Peter Egan stated, ‘90 percent of all tests on animals as models for human diseases fail’. These statistics appear damning for the use of animal experimentation in science.

Contrarily, Oxford describes its animal research programmes as at the ‘forefront of innovative and life-saving science’. Animal research has played a pivotal role in developing drugs that have saved millions of lives. Animals give us the capacity for gene editing, exploring brain activity, and manipulating complex biological systems, all of which are ethically dubious in humans. Invariably, some people do experience adverse effects when they take drugs tested on animals, but all prescribed substances have also been deemed safe in extensive clinical trials. Animal experimentation therefore forms only part of the research framework that integrates in vitro work, studies in humans, and epidemiological evidence.

But animal research is not perfect, and there are major issues translating findings into successful clinical trials. This is partly due to the intrinsic physiological differences between laboratory animals and humans, as well as the experimental conditions under which drugs are trialled. Despite these differences, even fruit flies and nematode worms can be useful, due to biochemical pathways highly conserved throughout evolution.

While claims of mistreatment are a mainstay of anti-vivisectionist campaigns, rigorous regulatory systems govern animal research in the UK. The Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act of 1986 regulates experiments conducted on animals, including a cost-benefit analysis on whether the potential benefit to human health outweighs the suffering caused. In fact, the UK goes above and beyond the EU laws on animal research, with Oxford’s ‘gold standard’ policy on welfare exceeding both national and international guidelines.

The other guiding principle of animal research is the 3 R’s – the replacement of animals by using different experimental models, the reduction of the number of procedures undertaken on animals by utilising better experimental design, and refinement of procedures on animals to minimise suffering. By following these guidelines, the total number of procedures conducted on animals reduced by 7 percent since 2017 in the UK, with the number of non-human primates used in Oxford falling to only 10, compared to 52 in 2004. Moreover, refinement includes group-housing several animals in a cage to replicate their natural social environment or using less invasive techniques. Not only do these principles improve animal welfare, they generate more reproducible data, meaning fewer animals are needed in the future.

As a DPhil student working with animals, these principles are hard to forget — improving animal welfare is at the forefront of experimental design. However, to those outside the industry, there is a perception of secrecy that only encourages exaggerated claims. Consequently, Oxford University signed a Declaration of Openness on Animal Research, even letting BBC cameras film inside laboratories in 2014. Nonetheless, only 34 percent of the UK public feel well-informed about animal research, so more needs to be done to better inform the public about the realities of animals in science.

From my perspective, animal research is still necessary for much of the science being undertaken in Oxford. Furthermore, every individual I have met has the utmost care for the animals they use and do everything they can to minimise their suffering. Nevertheless, mounting social pressure to move away from animal experimentation will only accelerate the development of alternative techniques, for example the use of human stem cells and computational modelling. Although animal testing is still necessary and cannot yet be replaced, it is important to increase public awareness of the realities of animal research. Not only will this dispel myths disseminated by anti-vivisectionists, but it will also better address the ethical controversies of animal experimentation.

This article was first published in our Michaelmus Term 2019 Issue: Perspective

The artwork is by Danielle Edmunds.

From this section

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The Post COVID-19 Era

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Re-imagining climate justice for humans and more-than-humans

Animal Studies Research Guide

• Research your topic
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Contact Special Collections

What is animal studies?

A growing body of scholarship that centers nonhuman animals in a range of contexts: historical, ethical, sociological, literary. Animal studies borrows methods and theories from disciplines in both the sciences and humanities, and is rapidly developing its own unique approach to questions of animal liberation, animality, and interspecies relationships. Because animal studies is still taking shape, scholars have different visions of how to define the field.

Get acquainted with the three main approaches to the field

Posthumanism, posthumanism emphasizes theoretical undermining of humanist understandings of species difference and subjectivity..

• Human, All Too Human: "Animal Studies" and the Humanities (PMLA) [pdf download] by Cary Wolfe Publication Date: 2009

Critical Animal Studies

"critical animal studies is a critical approach to human-animal relationships and explicitly committed to a global justice for animals, humans, and the earth." ( carol gigliotti, 2017 ).

• The Rise of Critical Animal Studies (Originally published in State of Nature) by Steve Best Publication Date: Summer 2009

Animal Studies

Much animal scholarship reflects a blend of posthumanism and critical animal studies, making animal studies the most fitting umbrella term for the field..

• Animal Studies Cross Campus to Lecture Hall (New York Times) by James Gorman Publication Date: Jan. 2, 2012

Search terms for animals studies research topics

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• Last Updated: May 17, 2024 7:12 PM
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Animal behaviour articles from across Nature Portfolio

Animal behaviour is the scientific study of the behaviour of animals. The discipline covers study under experimental conditions, behaviourism, or natural conditions, ethology.

Sex organs sense vibrations through specialized touch neurons

A little-studied sensory structure called the Krause corpuscle is responsible for detecting light touch and is essential for normal sexual behaviour in mice. The findings have interesting implications for human sexual intimacy.

• Anastasia-Maria Zavitsanou
• Ishmail Abdus-Saboor

Pressure and particle motion enable fish to sense the direction of sound

Scientists have long sought to explain how fish can sense the direction of sound, given the challenges that hearing underwater poses. An experimental study testing a variety of models now provides some answers.

• Catherine E. Carr

African savannah elephants call one another by ‘name’

Using a combination of machine learning and playback experiments in the field, we find that African savannah elephants address members of their family with individually specific, name-like calls. These ‘names’ are probably not imitative of the receiver’s calls, which is similar to human naming but unlike known phenomena in other animals.

Latest Research and Reviews

Domestic chickens solving mirror-mediated spatial location tasks uncovering their cognitive abilities

• Sonja Hillemacher
• Inga Tiemann

Divergent evolution of sleep in Drosophila species

We all feel tired without sleep, but we still don’t know why. Is tiredness a crucial, evolutionarily conserved feature of sleep? Joyce et al. show that some species have circadian but not homeostatic regulation of rest and suggest this is the ancestral drive of sleep evolution.

• Michaela Joyce
• Federica A. Falconio
• Giorgio F. Gilestro

Parental developmental experience affects vocal learning in offspring

• Fanny-Linn H. Kraft
• Ondi L. Crino
• Katherine L. Buchanan

Dairy cows’ motivation to nurse their calves

• Emma Hvidtfeldt Jensen
• Melissa Bateson
• Margit Bak Jensen

Thermotactic behaviour in lacustrine and riverine forms of Salmo trutta and its relevance to an emerging parasitic disease (PKD) in the wake of climate change

• Alexander Brinker

Disturbance of hibernating bats due to researchers entering caves to conduct hibernacula surveys

• Jericho C. Whiting
• Bill Doering
• Bryan F. Bybee

News and Comment

Sensory secrets of penis and clitoris unlocked after more than 150 years

Low-frequency vibrations arouse genital nerve cells in mice — a finding that might lead to treatments for erectile dysfunction and more.

• Sara Reardon

Do elephants have names for each other?

Machine learning and careful observation suggest that some of the animals’ calls are specific to individuals, similar to a person’s name.

• Gemma Conroy

How we packed off the giant pandas from the Smithsonian’s National Zoo

As the zoo prepares to welcome two giant pandas from China, its director Brandie Smith discusses the departure of their predecessors, Tian Tian, Mei Xiang and a three-year-old cub.

• Anne Gulland

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Science News

Can leeches leap? New video may help answer that debate

For some, it’s the stuff of nightmares. But a grad student’s serendipitous cell phone video might resolve a long-running debate over leech acrobatics.

‘Cull of the Wild’ questions sacrificing wildlife in the name of conservation

Fossil finds amplify europe’s status as a hotbed of great ape evolution, more stories in animals.

Horses may have been domesticated twice. Only one attempt stuck

Genetic evidence suggests that the ancestors of domestic horses were bred for mobility about 4,200 years ago.

Bird flu can infect cats. What does that mean for their people?

Pet owners can take precautions to avoid H5N1, such as keeping cats indoors and making sure they don’t eat raw meat or milk.

A built-in pocket protector keeps sawfish from ‘sword fighting’ in the womb

What’s to prevent pups, with a snout that resembles a hedge trimmer, from slicing and dicing each other in mom’s uterus? Scientists have the answer.

Human body lice could harbor the plague and spread it through biting 

Rats and fleas previously got all the blame, but humans’ own parasites could be involved.

Sumatran orangutans start crafting their engineering skills as infants

By 6 months old, young orangutans are experimenting with construction materials, and by 6 years old, they are building platforms 20 meters in the air.

Genetic analyses of the bird flu virus unveil its evolution and potential

The H5N1 outbreak in cattle is giving flashbacks to the COVID pandemic. But this time is different.

How did an ancient shark parasite end up fossilized in tree resin?

A worm preserved in 99-million-year-old amber resembles modern flatworms in shark intestines. The rare finding has scientists stumped.

Tiger beetles may weaponize ultrasound against bats

In response to recordings of echolocating bats, tiger beetles emit noises that mimic toxic moths that bats avoid.

Cows might host both human and bird flus

Both kinds of influenza viruses may break into cattle cells using receptors similar to those in people, wild birds and poultry.

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Social Science Research Topics for Animal Welfare

Table of contents.

This is a list of social science research topics related to animal welfare, developed by researchers on the Open Phil farm animal welfare (FAW) team. 

Additional context:

• In the interest of brevity, we have not provided much context for each topic. But if you are a graduate student or academic, we may be able to provide you with more detail on our motivation and our interpretation of the current literature. Please email Martin Gould with your questions, or any other feedback on this list.
• The topics covered in this document are the ones we find most interesting; for other lists of research topics, see here . We do not attempt to cover animal welfare science in our list, and the topics are listed in no particular order (we don’t place a higher priority on those listed first).
• In some areas, we are not fully up to date on the existing literature, so some of our questions may have been answered by research already conducted.
• We think it is generally valuable to use back-of-the-envelope calculations to explore ideas and findings.
• If you complete research on these topics, please feel free to share your work with us and the broader animal advocacy movement (one option is to post here ) . We’re happy to see published findings, working papers, and even detailed notes that you don’t intend to formally publish

Corporate commitments

• How does this differ by the type of reform? (For example, cage-free vs. Better Chicken Commitment ?)
• How does this differ by country or geographical region (For example, the EU vs. Brazil?) 
• What are the production costs associated with specific animal welfare reforms? Here is an example of such an analysis for the European Chicken Commitment .

Policy reform

• Which jurisdictions are most amenable to FAW policy reform over the next 5-10 years? Which specific reform(s) are most tractable, and why?
• To what extent is animal welfare a politically polarizing issue (i.e., clearly associated with a particular political affiliation)? Is this a barrier to reform? If so, how might political polarization of animal welfare be reduced?
• What conclusions should be drawn about the optimal timing of policy reform campaigns? 
• What would be the cost-effectiveness of a global animal welfare benchmarking project? (That is, comparing FAW by country and by company, as a basis to drive competition. Similar models have been used in human rights and global development.)
• Does this vary by geographical region (for example, Asia vs. Latin America)?

Alt protein

• Is the displacement rate different across PBMA products? More specifically, does it differ between “next-generation” products like Beyond and Impossible vs. other PBMA products?
• What other foods are PBMA products displacing? (For example, what fraction of PBMA units/meals are replacing tofu rather than chicken?)
• What are the product qualities that are most important in driving this?
• What share of the global meat market will PBMA and/or cultured meat products account for in 10, 30, or 50 years?
• What is the impact on sales of labeling laws that restrict the terms that can be used to describe/advertise PBMAs and other plant-based products?
• Are there clear ways in which non-PBMA plant-based products could be improved to increase uptake and displace meat consumption? 
• What government alt protein R&D is most impactful and tractable to advocate for?
• How can alt protein be supported most effectively by government policy (outside of government R&D)?

Dietary/mindset change

• What are the rates of vegetarianism and veganism (collectively “veg*nism”) in populous countries (e.g., the US , China, India, EU countries)? How have these changed, if at all, over recent decades?
• What percentage of people will be veg*n in 20, 50, or 100 years?
• Which settings are most conducive to running rigorous experiments on dietary change interventions, and how can these settings be accessed/used? (For example, college cafeterias often allow researchers to use data on purchases, which means they don’t have to rely on self-reports.)
• What about the cost-effectiveness of documentaries or other forms of mass media?
• How impactful are meat advertising bans such as this one ?
• Has the success of animal advocacy efforts on social media changed over time (based on standard social media metrics and possibly other metrics)? If so, why might this be the case?
• How impactful would it be to get more animal welfare content into TV shows and/or movies? If this seems promising, what are the best ways to achieve it?
• How impactful would it be to get already sympathetic celebrities to speak up more about animal welfare? If this seems promising, what are the best ways to achieve it?

Movement building

• How strong is the relationship between country-level per capita income/wealth and FAW reform tractability?
• How does an increase in the number of advocates in a given geography increase (or otherwise impact) the likelihood of finding cost-effective interventions there?

Other interventions

• The UN estimates that 17% of food is wasted. Are there any cost-effective ways to help animals by reducing animal product food waste?
• In the retail sector, how have the availability and sales of shrimp products changed over time? When retailers and food service companies drop shrimp products from their assortment, what are the most common reasons (e.g., environmental concerns)?
• Are there datasets which don’t exist (and could be funded by philanthropy or others) that would increase the effectiveness of the animal welfare movement?
• What are effective ways to influence the views of more thought leaders, policymakers, and other elites on animal welfare?
• Where is the use of broiler cages increasing, and how prevalent are they in those areas? Are there any tractable interventions that could undermine those trends?
• What are the most tractable and cost-effective interventions to improve wild animal welfare? 

Other questions

• The Welfare Footprint Project has four ‘categories of pain intensity’ , and it estimates the time spent in each category of pain given different farming systems ( example ). How might these categories be weighted to arrive at an overall welfare score?
• Funding for farm animal welfare advocacy organizations has increased in recent years (even excluding Open Philanthropy funding) – why?
• To make this more tractable, consider one species of animal in a single geography.

Footnotes [+] Footnotes [−]

Privacy Overview

Articles on Animal biology

Displaying 1 - 20 of 35 articles.

How bats ‘leapfrog’ their way home at night – new research

Thomas Woolley , Cardiff University and Fiona Mathews , University of Sussex

How a Victorian trip to Palestine spurred modern ornithology – and left it with imperial baggage

Jasmine Donahaye , Swansea University

Male dogs are more likely to develop contagious nose cancer from sniffing other dogs’ genitals

Andrea Strakova , University of Cambridge

The spider that looks like bird poo – and other amazing (and gross) tricks animals deploy to survive

Romane H Cristescu , University of the Sunshine Coast

Octopus farms raise huge animal welfare concerns - and they’re unsustainable too

Alexandra Schnell , University of Cambridge ; Heather Browning , London School of Economics and Political Science , and Jonathan Birch , London School of Economics and Political Science

How we discovered that sea turtles in Seychelles have recovered from the brink

April J Burt , University of Oxford ; Adam Pritchard , University of Exeter , and Cheryl Sanchez , University of Pisa

Sea lion whiskers can move like human fingertips: here’s how we found out

Robyn Grant , Manchester Metropolitan University

The endangered condor surprised researchers by producing fatherless chicks. Could ‘virgin birth’ rescue the species?

Jenny Graves , La Trobe University

Remembering Tilly Edinger, the pioneering ‘brainy’ woman who fled Nazi Germany and founded palaeoneurology

Alice Clement , Flinders University

How we discovered three new species of penguin in the Southern Ocean

Jane Younger , University of Bath

Animals are picky eaters too – we’re trying to discover if parents teach them what’s safe to eat

Camille Troisi , University College Cork

This lizard lays eggs and gives live birth. We think it’s undergoing a major evolutionary transition

Charles Foster , University of Sydney and Camilla Whittington , University of Sydney

Why do snakes produce venom? Not for self-defence , study shows

Wolfgang Wüster , Bangor University and Kevin Arbuckle , Swansea University

Curious Kids: why do tigers have whiskers?

Alexander Richard Braczkowski , The University of Queensland

Geckos walk on water – we filmed them to find out how

Jasmine Nirody , University of Oxford

Knickers the giant cow: why do some animals grow so big?

Jan Hoole , Keele University

Yes, Knickers the steer is really, really big. But he’s far short of true genetic freak status

Sonja Dominik , CSIRO

Obese dogs could have similar ‘personality’ traits to overweight humans – new study

Naomi D Harvey , University of Nottingham

Some lizards have green blood that should kill them – and scientists can’t work out why

Anita Malhotra , Bangor University

‘Talking’ killer whale reveals orcas can learn to mimic human speech

Luke Rendell , University of St Andrews

Related Topics

• Animal behaviour
• Animal evolution
• Global perspectives
• Marine biology

Top contributors

Fellow, Keele University

Senior Lecturer in Applied Mathematics, Cardiff University

Senior Lecturer in Molecular Biology, University of Sydney

Royal Society Dorothy Hodgkin Research Fellow, University of Exeter

Lecturer, Southern Ocean Vertebrate Ecology, University of Tasmania

Principal Lecturer in Wildlife Conservation, Nottingham Trent University

Senior Lecturer in Ecology and Evolutionary Genetics, Bangor University

Senior Lecturer in Animal Science, Nottingham Trent University

Senior Lecturer, Evolutionary Biology, University of Sydney

Professor of Zoology, Bangor University

Senior Lecturer in Biosciences, Swansea University

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Lecturer in Animal Science, Newcastle University

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Research Animals

This comprehensive resource looks at the animals most commonly used in research and dissection, examining issues like the Animal Welfare Act, breeding and transport, research alternatives and more.

On this Page

Research on animals costs many millions of lives each year. And millions more animals are kept confined in laboratories and cages, awaiting their turn for experimentation. Biomedical research using animals is a largely secretive process and the public knows little about what goes on in research labs. This exclusive Faunalytics Fundamental examines the use of animals in research, estimating the scope and nature of the problem based on the best available data. We hope you find the information useful in your advocacy for research animals. Please see all the sources here.

Meet the Animals

Animals live rich and complex lives. Primates exhibit deep thought and intricate social structures; their similarity to humans has made using other primates unthinkable for most purposes other than experimentation (and “entertainment”). Dogs like beagles are docile, friendly, and cooperative – traits that make them easier to manage as test subjects. Guinea pigs, which have become synonymous with animal research, are gentle and even purr like cats when they’re happy. Mice and rats are empathetic and studies have shown that they will risk themselves to rescue cage-mates in captivity. There is no doubt that the animals we use for research and dissection are capable of thinking, feeling, and suffering just like we are. Check out the interactive graphics below to explore facts about some of the animals most commonly used in research. Of course, we’re only scratching the surface of what makes these animals unique, sentient, and deserving of their own rights to life and freedom.

Rats & Mice

Show empathy in different forms to other rats and mice in trouble.

• Sentient & Smart – Remember sources of pain and have a long-lasting aversion to them
• Cage Boredom – Can quickly become bored unless provided with enrichment
• Have A Heart – Have gregarious personalities and live in cohesive social groups

Guinea Pigs

Need companionship and enjoy cuddling and sleeping together.

• Active Animals – Love to play and need “boredom breakers” to stay stimulated
• Happy Pop – Known to jump in the air—called “popcorning”—when excited
• A Balancing Act – Have complex and delicately balanced social structures

Used in research because they are gentle, sweet, and curious.

• Mother’s Intinct – Are highly protective of their own puppies and even human babies
• Strength In Numbers – Have a deep pack instinct and struggle with separation anxiety
• Led By The Nose – Have an extraordinary sense of smell and a strong urge to investigate scents

Often become bored, depressed, and aggressive in captivity.

• Healing Touch – Groom each other after conflicts to repair damaged relationships
• Getting Their Point Across – Communicate through vocalizations, facial expressions, and gestures
• Cool Tools – Use a variety of objects as tools to help solve problems

Opinions about the use of animals for research are complicated and often divided when it comes to different purposes or types of research. For instance, a clear majority of people are against the use of animals for testing cosmetics and personal care products . However, if the research is claimed to save or improve human lives, then opinions shift, even if those claims are hypothetical or baseless. Attitudes regarding the use of animals for student dissection are less clear given there are fewer surveys of those audiences. However, the limited research shows that many students and teachers prefer non-animal alternatives to dissection – see our “In The Classroom” section below for a detailed breakdown.

What about trends over time? The Gallup figures shown in the graphic above have shown a consistent decline in the perceived moral acceptability of testing on animals. From 65% saying “acceptable” in 2001 to 51% saying “acceptable” in 2017 (a record low). Through our Animal Tracker survey, Faunalytics has monitored attitudes about animals used for research since 2008. In the selection of Animal Tracker charts below, you can see that feelings about the protection of animals in laboratories has fluctuated since 2008/2009, but only slightly. In summary, belief in the importance of research animal welfare has stayed strong, most people continue to question the adequacy of laws protecting laboratory animals, and belief in the necessity of animal research and dissection appears to be dropping in recent years.

Breeding and Transport

Before they arrive at the laboratory, animals used for research are most often born and housed in large breeding facilities found throughout the world. Some research animals may come from relatively regulated companies such as Charles River or Interfauna, based in countries like the United States, England, or Spain. Other animals, such as monkeys, more often come from international suppliers that operate in Southeast Asia, parts of Africa, and China. Below, we connect some of the dots of the global breeding and transport of research animals, with Southeast Asia as an example.

In the Laboratory

How many animals are bred for research, kept in laboratories, and used in experiments? Unfortunately, under current regulations in virtually any country, it’s impossible to know the exact answer. Estimates for the total number of animals used in research worldwide hover around 115 million to 127 million, while estimates for the U.S. specifically hover around 25 million. In the U.S., researchers are not required to report the numbers of rats, mice, and birds used in experiments, and these species combined make up an estimated 95% of all animals used in research. The chart below provides the best estimates for the numbers of mice, rats, and birds used in the United States in 2015, as well as the other species whose use is covered by the Animal Welfare Act.

Immediately, we can see that the Animal Welfare Act is inadequate and ignores the big picture. Not only does the act not cover these animals, it also does not mandate that researchers maintain any statistics for these species. Therefore, we can only make educated estimates on the numbers of animals being used. Secondly, we see that researchers, who already keep hidden from public view, have very few official controls or oversight for most of the work they do. For animal advocates, it is important to spotlight these facilities and the often egregious suffering that they house.

The above map shows animal experimentation labs and breeding facilities in the U.S. You can look up the animal research facilities in your state using this tool put together by HSUS . The prevalence of such operations throughout the country may be shocking to see. Unlike the farms and feedlots that we often see while driving through the countryside, animal research and breeding facilities are much more hidden from view. Likewise, the laws that govern and regulate experimentation in the U.S. (and many other places in the world) do their part to obscure both the scope and the nature of animal research.

In the Classroom

Conventional wisdom says that the best way for students to learn about biology is through hands-on methods, usually involving the dissection of dead animals. Dissection has been used as a learning tool for many decades, and it’s estimated that 6-12 million animals are used each year – though that is a very loose estimate and no official statistics are kept. Thankfully, scientific advancements and public opinion are starting to help turn the tide. Recently, a study by Faunalytics on behalf of the National Anti-Vivisection Society found that only half of students are interested in dissecting animals and more than a third (37%) of students would prefer to use alternatives to animal dissection. What’s more, a study by the American Anti-Vivisection Society found that 75% of U.S. adults agree that “students taking biology courses should be allowed to choose alternative methods of learning that do not involve dissecting animals.”

Support for dissection isn’t just dwindling. Students are actively demanding alternatives to the use of animals in grade school classrooms. In response, many schools have created what are called “student choice policies,” which allow students to opt-out of dissection for ethical reasons. Unfortunately, such policies are not ubiquitous yet; in the U.S., only 18 states and the District of Columbia allow students to choose alternatives. Even when such policies exist, teachers and students may not be aware of them. The Faunalytics/NAVS study mentioned earlier showed that only 53% of educators in states with student choice policies knew about those policies. The same study found that 38% of students didn’t know if alternatives were available to them. Thanks to the work of anti-vivisection groups, this is changing.

Alternatives

If you aren’t swayed by the ethical arguments against animal research, perhaps this will change your mind: Approximately 100 vaccines have shown effectiveness against HIV-like animal viruses, but none prevent HIV in humans. Up to 1,000 drugs have shown effectiveness for neuroprotection in animals, but none for humans. While the biomedical research industry is quick to claim victories, the reality is less glamourous: nine out of ten drugs fail in clinical studies because they cannot predict how they will behave in people; only 8% of drugs tested on animals are deemed fit for human use; one meta-study found that animal trials overestimate the likelihood that a treatment works by 30% because negative results often go unpublished. Fortunately, using animals in scientific research is not a foregone conclusion. On the contrary, there is a burgeoning field of alternatives to animal research, and many such alternatives are already in use today.

The above graphic shows a small selection of some of the most exciting and promising alternatives to animal research that exist today. There are many others that are available, and even more are on the way. Among the many organizations and institutions working on better alternatives are FRAME , INTERNICHE , and Animalearn who are leading the way in promoting clinical and educational alternatives.

This Faunalytics Fundamental has provided a visual overview of the use of animals in research. The result is a complex picture: public opinion is mixed and context-specific; the number of animals used is a guesstimate due to lack of reporting for certain species; and laws are not keeping pace with students’ interest in dissection alternatives. The scientific establishment has a lot of inertia in favor of continuing the use of animals in research, but is slowly shifting towards alternatives.

Meanwhile, millions of animals are trapped in labs, waiting for us to help them. The data presented here raise many questions for how to invest limited advocacy resources:

• How can advocates galvanize the majority of the public that believes research animal welfare is important and guide them towards supporting elimination and alternatives? Looking a public opinion research such as this and this can help advocates to target different public audiences on a case by case basis.
• What can animal advocates – and members of the public – do to contribute to the development of research alternatives? Education about alternatives and their effectiveness is key.
• Public opinion for various animal research issues is somewhat contradictory and confused. What are the most effective ways that advocates can clarify the issues? First, animal advocates needs to educate themselves on the science , and then communicate that effectively.
• As animal research regulations become more stringent in some parts of the world, “outsourcing” to laboratories in other parts of the world becomes a bigger issue. How can advocates anticipate and prevent this trend?

These are questions advocates should think about and possibly research further.

We hope you find the above information useful in your advocacy for animals used in research. Check out all the sources here.

There is so much more work to be done to give advocates the insight they need to choose the most effective ways to help animals. Please donate generously now to help us bring you and other advocates this crucial information.

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Women in Fungal Secondary Metabolites and Mycotoxins 2024

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At present, less than 30% of researchers worldwide are women. Long-standing biases and gender stereotypes are discouraging girls and women away from science-related fields, and STEM research in particular. Science and gender equality are, however, essential to ensure sustainable development, as highlighted by UNESCO. In order to change traditional mindsets, gender equality must be promoted, stereotypes defeated, and girls and women should be encouraged to pursue STEM careers. Therefore, Frontiers in Fungal Biology is proud to offer this platform to promote the research of women scientists, across secondary metabolites and mycotoxins. The work presented here highlights the diversity of research performed across the entire breadth of Fungal Secondary Metabolites and Mycotoxins research and presents advances in theory, analytical innovation, experiment modelling approach, and methodology with applications to compelling problems specifically focused on this area. Fungal secondary metabolites serve pivotal roles in environmental interactions such as defence, communication, and competition despite not being directly linked to growth, development, or reproduction. Due to their diverse functionalities, fungi exhibit a vast array of secondary metabolites, which have found applications in pharmaceuticals, agriculture, and food production. Additionally, some secondary metabolites produced by fungi can be highly toxic to both animals and plants. The collection showcases contemporary contributions, encompassing a wide range of perspectives, including but not limited to: • Gain insights into fungal production of secondary metabolites • Explore the utilization and diverse applications of these secondary metabolites • Learn about advanced techniques for the detection and analysis of fungal metabolites • Understand the potential consequences of exposure to fungal metabolites

Keywords : Women in Science, STEM, Mycology, Mycotoxicosis, Predicted mycology, Fermentation, Biocontrol, Biomarkers

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Sick chimps seek out medicinal plants to heal themselves, study finds

• A new study concludes that chimpanzees displaying a range of ailments seek out plants with known medicinal properties to treat those ailments.
• The finding is important because it’s a rare instance where a species is shown to consume a plant as medicine rather than as part of its general diet.
• The study identified 13 plant species that the chimpanzees in Uganda’s Budongo Forest relied on, which can help inform conservation efforts for the great apes.
• The finding could also hold potential for the development of new drugs for human use.

Wild chimpanzees actively seek out plants with medicinal properties to treat themselves for specific ailments,a new study has found.

While most animals consume foods with medicinal properties as part of their routine diet, few species have been shown to engage in self-medication in a way that suggests they have basic awareness of the healing properties of the plants they’re feeding on.

Until now, the challenge has been to distinguish between normal consumption of food that has medicinal value, on the one hand, and ingesting such foods for the purpose of treating a condition, on the other.

“Self-medication has been studied for years, but it has been historically difficult to push the field forward, as the burden of proof is very high when attempting to prove that a resource is used as a medicine,” Elodie Freymann, a scientist at the University of Oxford in the U.K. and lead author of the study, told Mongabay in an email.

To deal with the challenge, the study adopted a multidisciplinary approach, combining behavioral data, health monitoring, and pharmacological testing of a variety of plant materials chimpanzees feed on. It pooled together 13 researchers comprising primatologists, ethnopharmacologists, parasitologists, ecologists and botanists.

According to the study, pharmacological data interpreted on its own is important for establishing the presence of medicinal resources in chimpanzee diets. However, this study also relied on observational information and health monitoring to determine whether chimps were deliberately self-medicating.

Over a period of eight months, the scientists monitored the feeding behaviors of two communities of chimpanzees ( Pan troglodytes ) familiar with humans around them in Budongo Forest in Uganda.

They collected samples from plant parts associated with chimpanzee behaviors that previous research had flagged up as possibly linked to self-medication: consuming bark, dead wood and bitter pith.

The researchers collected samples from 13 plant species known to be consumed at least occasionally by the Budongo chimpanzees, testing the samples for their ability to suppress bacterial growth and inflammation (testing for antiparasitical properties was beyond the scope of the study).

The researchers also tracked the health of individual chimpanzees, analyzing fecal matter and urine and monitoring individuals with wounds, parasite infestations or other known ailments.

They observed that individuals with injuries or other ailments such as parasite infestations, respiratory symptoms, abnormal urinalysis or diarrhea ingested plants or parts of plants that laboratory testing found to have healing properties.

“We describe cases where chimpanzees with possible bacterial infections or wounds selected bioactive plants,” Freymann said. “We also describe cases where wounded individuals selected rarely consumed plants with demonstrated anti-inflammatory properties — suggesting they could be ingesting plants to aid in wound-healing, a novel finding.”

In addition, unlike previous studies that focused on single plant resources, this one identified 13 species with medicinal potential.

“This greatly expands what we know about chimpanzee medicinal repertoires. This study also highlights the unique medicinal repertoires of two chimpanzee communities with no previous systematic research on their self-medication behaviors,” Freymann said.

According to Freymann, identifying plants that could have medicinal value for chimpanzees is important for the conservation of the species.

“If we know which plants chimpanzees need to stay healthy in the wild, we can better protect these resources to ensure chimpanzees have access to their wild medicine cabinets,” she said. “If these plants disappear, it could leave our primate cousins susceptible to pathogens they could previously defend against.”

This is also important, Freymann said, because “we could learn from the chimpanzees which plants may have medicinal value which could lead to the discovery of novel human drugs.”

The study adds to a growing body of research on primates using medicinal plants to treat sickness. In another recent report, a wild orangutan in Sumatra was observed treating a facial wound with a plant known for its healing properties. Erin Wessling, co-lead of the working group on chimpanzee cultures at the IUCN, the global wildlife conservation authority, said part of the reason for the recent attention to these types of medicative behaviors is because they’re relatively rare and can only be identified in species that have been closely monitored over long periods of time.

“It takes years to be able to watch apes in the wild to this level of detail, and even more years after that to be able to identify with any certainty what are core components of an ape’s diet versus the much more rare medicinal use cases,” she said.

Wessling, who was not part of the study, told Mongabay that while it’s been known that chimpanzees have these rare cases of medicinal use, scientists are finally getting to a level where they can point to self-medication as a widespread and diverse behavior used across medicinal contexts.

She said the Budongo study “points out really nicely that conservation is more than just a numbers game — that there’s real value in thinking about how organisms interact with the ecosystems they reside in, and that even the most uncommon components of those ecosystems can be critical for an organisms’ survival.

“Further, results such as these offer a nice insight into the intrinsic value of chimpanzees, demonstrating what we’ve suspected for a long time — that chimpanzees have the capability to recognize and treat an ailment with plants that have natural (and measurable) medicinal properties,” Wessling said.

“It shows we have a great deal left to learn about the natural world, not only our ape cousins, and provides even more reason to make sure there is a future for them.”

The chimp doctor will see you now: Medicating apes boost the case for conservation

Freymann E, Carvalho S, Garbe LA, Dwi Ghazhelia D, Hobaiter C, Huffman MA, et al. (2024). Pharmacological and behavioral investigation of putative self-medicative plants in Budongo chimpanzee diets. PLOS ONE, 19 (6), e0305219. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0305219

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China has become a scientific superpower

From plant biology to superconductor physics the country is at the cutting edge.

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I n the atrium of a research building at the Chinese Academy of Sciences ( CAS ) in Beijing is a wall of patents. Around five metres wide and two storeys high, the wall displays 192 certificates, positioned in neat rows and tastefully lit from behind. At ground level, behind a velvet rope, an array of glass jars contain the innovations that the patents protect: seeds.

CAS —the world’s largest research organisation—and institutions around China produce a huge amount of research into the biology of food crops. In the past few years Chinese scientists have discovered a gene that, when removed, boosts the length and weight of wheat grains, another that improves the ability of crops like sorghum and millet to grow in salty soils and one that can increase the yield of maize by around 10%. In autumn last year, farmers in Guizhou completed the second harvest of genetically modified giant rice that was developed by scientists at CAS .

The Chinese Communist Party ( CCP ) has made agricultural research—which it sees as key to ensuring the country’s food security —a priority for scientists. Over the past decade the quality and the quantity of crop research that China produces has grown immensely, and now the country is widely regarded as a leader in the field. According to an editor of a prestigious European plant-sciences journal, there are some months when half of the submissions can come from China.

A journey of a thousand miles

The rise of plant-science research is not unique in China. In 2019 The Economist surveyed the research landscape in the country and asked whether China could one day become a scientific superpower. Today, that question has been unequivocally answered: “yes”. Chinese scientists recently gained the edge in two closely watched measures of high-quality science, and the country’s growth in top-notch research shows no sign of slowing. The old science world order, dominated by America, Europe and Japan, is coming to an end.

One way to measure the quality of a country’s scientific research is to tally the number of high-impact papers produced each year—that is, publications that are cited most often by other scientists in their own, later work. In 2003 America produced 20 times more of these high-impact papers than China, according to data from Clarivate, a science analytics company (see chart 1). By 2013 America produced about four times the number of top papers and, in the most recent release of data, which examines papers from 2022, China had surpassed both America and the entire European Union ( EU ).

Metrics based on citations can be gamed, of course. Scientists can, and do, find ways to boost the number of times their paper is mentioned in other studies, and a recent working paper, by Qui Shumin, Claudia Steinwender and Pierre Azoulay, three economists, argues that Chinese researchers cite their compatriots far more than Western researchers do theirs. But China now leads the world on other benchmarks that are less prone to being gamed. It tops the Nature Index, created by the publisher of the same name, which counts the contributions to articles that appear in a set of prestigious journals. To be selected for publication, papers must be approved by a panel of peer reviewers who assess the study’s quality, novelty and potential for impact. When the index was first launched, in 2014, China came second, but its contribution to eligible papers was less than a third of America’s. By 2023 China had reached the top spot.

According to the Leiden Ranking of the volume of scientific research output, there are now six Chinese universities or institutions in the world top ten, and seven according to the Nature Index. They may not be household names in the West yet, but get used to hearing about Shanghai Jiao Tong, Zhejiang and Peking (Beida) Universities in the same breath as Cambridge, Harvard and ETH Zurich. “Tsinghua is now the number one science and technology university in the world,” says Simon Marginson, a professor of higher education at Oxford University. “That’s amazing. They’ve done that in a generation.”

Today China leads the world in the physical sciences, chemistry and Earth and environmental sciences, according to both the Nature Index and citation measures (see chart 2). But America and Europe still have substantial leads in both general biology and medical sciences. “Engineering is the ultimate Chinese discipline in the modern period,” says Professor Marginson, “I think that’s partly about military technology and partly because that’s what you need to develop a nation.”

Applied research is a Chinese strength. The country dominates publications on perovskite solar panels, for example, which offer the possibility of being far more efficient than conventional silicon cells at converting sunlight into electricity. Chinese chemists have developed a new way to extract hydrogen from seawater using a specialised membrane to separate out pure water, which can then be split by electrolysis. In May 2023 it was announced that the scientists, in collaboration with a state-owned Chinese energy company, had developed a pilot floating hydrogen farm off the country’s south-eastern coast.

China also now produces more patents than any other country, although many are for incremental tweaks to designs, as opposed to truly original inventions. New developments tend to spread and be adopted more slowly in China than in the West. But its strong industrial base, combined with cheap energy, means that it can quickly spin up large-scale production of physical innovations like materials. “That’s where China really has an advantage on Western countries,” says Jonathan Bean, CEO of Materials Nexus, a British firm that uses AI to discover new materials.

The country is also signalling its scientific prowess in more conspicuous ways. Earlier this month, China’s Chang’e-6 robotic spacecraft touched down in a gigantic crater on the far side of the Moon, scooped up some samples of rock, planted a Chinese flag and set off back towards Earth. If it successfully returns to Earth at the end of the month, it will be the first mission to bring back samples from this hard-to-reach side of the Moon.

First, sharpen your tools

The reshaping of Chinese science has been achieved by focusing on three areas: money, equipment and people. In real terms, China’s spending on research and development ( R & D ) has grown 16-fold since 2000. According to the most recent data from the OECD , from 2021, China still lagged behind America on overall R & D spending, dishing out $668bn, compared with $806bn for America at purchasing-power parity. But in terms of spending by universities and government institutions only, China has nudged ahead. In these places America still spends around 50% more on basic research, accounting for costs, but China is splashing the cash on applied research and experimental development (see chart 3).

Money is meticulously directed into strategic areas. In 2006 the CCP published its vision for how science should develop over the next 15 years. Blueprints for science have since been included in the CCP ’s five-year development plans. The current plan, published in 2021, aims to boost research in quantum technologies, AI , semiconductors, neuroscience, genetics and biotechnology, regenerative medicine, and exploration of “frontier areas” like deep space, deep oceans and Earth’s poles.

Creating world-class universities and government institutions has also been a part of China’s scientific development plan. Initiatives like “Project 211”, the “985 programme” and the “China Nine League” gave money to selected labs to develop their research capabilities. Universities paid staff bonuses—estimated at an average of $44,000 each, and up to a whopping $165,000—if they published in high-impact international journals.

Building the workforce has been a priority. Between 2000 and 2019, more than 6m Chinese students left the country to study abroad, according to China’s education ministry. In recent years they have flooded back, bringing their newly acquired skills and knowledge with them. Data from the OECD suggest that, since the late 2000s, more scientists have been returning to the country than leaving. China now employs more researchers than both America and the entire EU .

Many of China’s returning scientists, often referred to as “sea turtles” (a play on the Chinese homonym haigui , meaning “to return from abroad”) have been drawn home by incentives. One such programme launched in 2010, the “Youth Thousand Talents”, offered researchers under 40 one-off bonuses of up to 500,000 yuan (equivalent to roughly $150,000 at purchasing-power parity) and grants of up to 3m yuan to get labs up and running back home. And it worked. A study published in Science last year found that the scheme brought back high-calibre young researchers—they were, on average, in the most productive 15% of their peers (although the real superstar class tended to turn down offers). Within a few years, thanks to access to more resources and academic manpower, these returnees were lead scientists on 2.5 times more papers than equivalent researchers who had remained in America.

As well as pull, there has been a degree of push. Chinese scientists working abroad have been subject to increased suspicion in recent years. In 2018 America launched the China Initiative, a largely unsuccessful attempt to root out Chinese spies from industry and academia. There have also been reports of students being deported because of their association with China’s “military-civilian fusion strategy”. A recent survey of current and former Chinese students studying in America found that the share who had experienced racial abuse or discrimination was rising.

The availability of scientists in China means that, for example in quantum computing, some of the country’s academic labs are more like commercial labs in the West, in terms of scale. “They have research teams of 20, 30, even 40 people working on the same experiments, and they make really good progress,” says Christian Andersen, a quantum researcher at Delft University. In 2023 researchers working in China broke the record for the number of quantum bits, or qubits, entangled inside a quantum computer.

China has also splurged on scientific kit. In 2019, when The Economist last surveyed the state of the country’s scientific research, it already had an enviable inventory of flashy hardware including supercomputers, the world’s largest filled-aperture radio telescope and an underground dark-matter detector. The list has only grown since then. The country is now home to the world’s most sensitive ultra-high-energy cosmic-ray detector (which has recently been used to test aspects of Albert Einstein’s special theory of relativity), the world’s strongest steady-state magnetic field (which can probe the properties of materials) and soon will have one of the world’s most sensitive neutrino detectors (which will be used to work out which type of these fundamental subatomic particles has the highest mass). Europe and America have plenty of cool kit of their own, but China is rapidly adding hardware.

Individual labs in China’s top institutions are also well equipped. Niko McCarty, a journalist and former researcher at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who was recently given a tour of synthetic biology labs in China, was struck by how, in academic institutions, “the machines are just more impressive and more expansive” than in America. At the Advanced Biofoundry at the Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, which the country hopes will be the centre of China’s answer to Silicon Valley, Mr McCarty described an “amazing building with four floors of robots”. As Chinese universities fill with state-of-the-art equipment and elite researchers, and salaries become increasingly competitive, Western institutions look less appealing to young and ambitious Chinese scientists. “Students in China don’t think about America as some “scientific Mecca” in the same way their advisers might have done,” said Mr McCarty.

Take AI , for example. In 2019 just 34% of Chinese students working in the field stayed in the country for graduate school or work. By 2022 that number was 58%, according to data from the AI talent tracker by MacroPolo, an American think-tank (in America the figure for 2022 was around 98%). China now contributes to around 40% of the world’s research papers on AI , compared with around 10% for America and 15% for the EU and Britain combined. One of the most highly cited research papers of all time, demonstrating how deep neural networks could be trained on image recognition, was written by AI researchers working in China, albeit for Microsoft, an American company. “China’s AI research is world-class,” said Zachary Arnold, an AI analyst at the Georgetown Centre for Emerging Security and Technology. “In areas like computer vision and robotics, they have a significant lead in research publications.”

Growth in the quality and quantity of Chinese science looks unlikely to stop anytime soon. Spending on science and technology research is still increasing—the government has announced a 10% increase in funding in 2024. And the country is training an enormous number of young scientists. In 2020 Chinese universities awarded 1.4m engineering degrees, seven times more than America did. China has now educated, at undergraduate level, 2.5 times more of the top-tier AI researchers than America has. And by 2025, Chinese universities are expected to produce nearly twice as many P h D graduates in science and technology as America.

To see further, ascend another floor

Although China is producing more top-tier work, it still produces a vast amount of lower-quality science too. On average, papers from China tend to have lower impact, as measured by citations, than those from America, Britain or the EU . And while the chosen few universities have advanced, mid-level universities have been left behind. China’s second-tier institutions still produce work that is of relatively poor quality compared with their equivalents in Europe or America. “While China has fantastic quality at the top level, it’s on a weak base,” explains Caroline Wagner, professor of science policy at Ohio State University.

When it comes to basic, curiosity-driven research (rather than applied) China is still playing catch-up—the country publishes far fewer papers than America in the two most prestigious science journals, Nature and Science . This may partly explain why China seems to punch below its weight in the discovery of completely new technologies. Basic research is particularly scant within Chinese companies, creating a gap between the scientists making discoveries and the industries that could end up using them. “For more original innovation, that might be a minus,” says Xu Xixiang, chief scientist at LONG i Green Energy Technology, a Chinese solar company.

Incentives to publish papers have created a market for fake scientific publications. A study published earlier this year in the journal Research Ethics , featured anonymous interviews from Chinese academics, one of whom said he had “no choice but to commit [research] misconduct”, to keep up with pressures to publish and retain his job. “Citation cartels” have emerged, where groups of researchers band together to write low-quality papers that cite each other’s work in an effort to drive up their metrics. In 2020 China’s science agencies announced that such cash-for-publication schemes should end and, in 2021, the country announced a nationwide review of research misconduct. That has led to improvements—the rate at which Chinese researchers cite themselves, for example, is falling, according to research published in 2023. And China’s middle-ranking universities are slowly catching up with their Western equivalents, too.

The areas where America and Europe still hold the lead are, therefore, unlikely to be safe for long. Biological and health sciences rely more heavily on deep subject-specific knowledge and have historically been harder for China to “bring back and accelerate”, says Tim Dafforn, a professor of biotechnology at University of Birmingham and former adviser to Britain’s department for business. But China’s profile is growing in these fields. Although America currently produces roughly four times more highly influential papers in clinical medicine, in many areas China is producing the most papers that cite this core research, a sign of developing interest that presages future expansion. “On the biology side, China is growing remarkably quickly,” says Jonathan Adams, chief scientist at the Institute for Scientific Information at Clarivate. “Its ability to switch focus into a new area is quite remarkable.”

The rise of Chinese science is a double-edged sword for Western governments. China’s science system is inextricably linked with its state and armed forces—many Chinese universities have labs explicitly working on defence and several have been accused of engaging in espionage or cyber-attacks. China has also been accused of intellectual-property theft and increasingly stringent regulations have made it more difficult for international collaborators to take data out of the country; notoriously, in 2019, the country cut off access to American-funded work on coronaviruses at the Wuhan Institute of Virology. There are also cases of Chinese researchers failing to adhere to the ethical standards expected by Western scientists.

Despite the concerns, Chinese collaborations are common for Western researchers. Roughly a third of papers on telecommunications by American authors involve Chinese collaborators. In imaging science, remote sensing, applied chemistry and geological engineering, the figures are between 25% and 30%. In Europe the numbers are lower, around 10%, but still significant. These partnerships are beneficial for both countries. China tends to collaborate more in areas where it is already strong like materials and physics. A preprint study, released last year, found that for AI research, having a co-author from America or China was equally beneficial to authors from the other country, conferring on average 75% more citations.

Several notable successes have come from working together, too. During the covid-19 pandemic a joint venture between Oxford University’s Engineering Department and the Oxford Suzhou Centre for Advanced Research developed a rapid covid test that was used across British airports. In 2015 researchers at University of Cardiff and South China Agricultural University identified a gene that made bacteria resistant to the antibiotic colistin. Following this, China, the biggest consumer of the drug, banned its use in animal feed, and levels of colistin resistance in both animals and humans declined.

In America and Europe, political pressure is limiting collaborations with China. In March, America’s Science and Technology Agreement with China, which states that scientists from both countries can collaborate on topics of mutual benefit, was quietly renewed for a further six months. Although Beijing appears keen to renew the 45-year-old agreement, many Republicans fear that collaboration with China is helping the country achieve its national-security goals. In Europe, with the exception of environmental and climate projects, Chinese universities have been effectively barred from accessing funding through the Horizon programme, a huge European research initiative.

There are also concerns among scientists that China is turning inwards. The country has explicit aims to become self-reliant in many areas of science and technology and also shift away from international publications as a way of measuring research output. Many researchers cannot talk to the press—finding sources in China for this story was challenging. One Chinese plant scientist, who asked to remain anonymous, said that she had to seek permission a year in advance to attend overseas conferences. “It’s contradictory—on the one hand, they set restrictions so that scientists don’t have freedoms like being able to go abroad to communicate with their colleagues. But on the other hand, they don’t want China to fall behind.”

Live until old, learn until old

The overwhelming opinion of scientists in China and the West is that collaboration must continue or, better, increase. And there is room to do more. Though China’s science output has grown dramatically, the share that is conducted with international collaborators has remained stable at around 20%—Western scientists tend to have far more international collaborations. Western researchers could pay more attention to the newest science from China, too. Data from a study published last year in Nature Human Behaviour showed that, for work of equivalent quality, Chinese scientists cite Western papers far more than vice versa. Western scientists rarely visit, work or study in China, depriving them of opportunities to learn from Chinese colleagues in the way Chinese scientists have done so well in the West.

Closing the door to Chinese students and researchers wishing to come to Western labs would also be disastrous for Western science. Chinese researchers form the backbone of many departments in top American and European universities. In 2022 more of the top-tier AI researchers working in America hailed from China than from America. The West’s model of science currently depends on a huge number of students, often from overseas, to carry out most day-to-day research.

There is little to suggest that the Chinese scientific behemoth will not continue growing stronger. China’s ailing economy may eventually force the CCP to slow spending on research, and if the country were to become completely cut off from the Western science community its research would suffer. But neither of these looks imminent. In 2019 we also asked if research could flourish in an authoritarian system. Perhaps over time its limits will become clear. But for now, and at least for the hard sciences, the answer is that it can thrive. “I think it’d be very unwise to call limits on the Chinese miracle,” says Prof Marginson. “Because it has had no limits up until now.” ■

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This article appeared in the Science & technology section of the print edition under the headline “Soaring dragons”

From the June 15th 2024 edition

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