3R principles in wildlife research

Lack of implementation of the 3Rs principles

In 1959, William Russell and Rex Burch made a great leap forward in the consideration of animal welfare by introducing the 3Rs principles (Replacement, Reduction, Refinement) for use in laboratory animal models. These same principles can, and should, also be applied to research involving wildlife in order to bridge the gap between species conservation and animal welfare. Unfortunately, there has been a notable lack of implementation of the 3Rs principles in wildlife research, even though non-invasive alternative techniques have been developed. This may be due to a lack of awareness among wildlife researchers.

Databases provide remedy

Currently, there are databases available that provide information on the 3Rs principles and alternative methods for laboratory and toxicology studies, however, there has been no such resource to help guide researchers working with wildlife. Therefore, to promote the appropriate implementation of the 3Rs principles into wildlife research, Dr. Miriam Zemanova developed an online resource aimed specifically at wildlife biologists, ecologists, and conservation managers.

The database provides a comprehensive source of evidence-based non-lethal and non-invasive approaches to use in studies on wild animals. It reduces the amount of time and effort required to search, find, and assess the available studies.

The first part of the database outlines the significance of wildlife research, potential animal welfare concerns that may arise from capture, invasive or lethal sampling, the 3Rs principles of animal research, and how the 3Rs can be applied to research on wildlife. The second part gives explicit illustrations of peer-reviewed studies that either created or put into practice a non-invasive or non-lethal technique.