Animal welfare & alternatives

Declines in insectivorous birds associated with high neonicotinoid concentrations

Populations of common insectivorous birds like starlings and swallows are declining in farmland areas with high levels of the neonicotinoid insecticide imidacloprid.

Should neonicotinoids be banned permanently?

In today’s staff blog post, Head of Online Communication Richard Scrase wonders where all the butterflies have gone.

Mice use minimised by mini-liver break through

Research that has for the first time successfully grown "mini-livers" from adult mouse stem cells has won the UK's international prize for the scientific and technological advance with the most potential to replace, reduce or refine the use of animals in science (the 3Rs).

42 thousand red-listed turtles taken per year

A new study has found that 42 countries or territories around the world permit the harvest of marine turtles – and estimates that more than 42,000 turtles are caught each year by these fisheries.

Bat populations rise

by Theodore Roethke

Avoiding turtle by-catch in the Mediterranean

The Mediterranean is a dangerous place for turtles with between 10 and 20 % of the population killed annually.

Declining Hen Harrier populations in the UK

The hen harrier (Circus cyaneus) was once widespread across Britain, but it has endured decades of persecution, which first forced this bird of prey out of mainland Britain by 1900.

Largest lake in Britain and Ireland has lost three quarters of winter water birds

The largest lake in Britain and Ireland, Lough Neagh, has lost more than three quarters of its overwintering water birds according to researchers at Queen’s University Belfast.

New botox could reduce animal toxicology testing

Scientists have developed a new form of botox that lasts for months without the toxic side-effects of the current treatment used in the medical and cosmetic industries.

‘Turning point’ in Alzheimer’s treatment

A new compound that reduces brain cell death in mice could mark a new target for treatments against Alzheimer’s disease.

New EU guide to alternatives to animal testing

The European Commission's Joint Research Centre (JRC) has published a second edition of its European Reference Laboratory for Alternatives (EURL Ecvam) to Animal Testing search guide.

Fire salamanders wiped out by newly found fungus

Fire salamanders are now all but extinct in Holland.

Animal research awards

The Basel Declaration has announced the winner of its Award for Education in Animal Research

Symposium on the 3Rs

The joint NC3Rs and Society of Biology symposium held in London on Wednesday brought together researchers from disparate fields to share their work in replacing, refining and reducing the use of animals in research.

Prize for technique that reduces number of animals in spinal injury research

A scientist from the University of Glasgow has been awarded a 3Rs Prize for developing a cell-based technique that models severed nerves usually studied in animals.