Comparative evolutionary approach to pain perception in fishes

Abstract

Arguments against the fact that fish feel pain repeatedly appear even in the face of growing evidence that they do. The standards used to judge pain perception keep moving as the hurdles are repeatedly cleared by novel research findings. There is undoubtedly a vested commercial interest in proving that fish do not feel pain, so the topic has a half-life well past its due date. Key (2016) reiterates previous perspectives on this topic characterised by a black-or-white view that is based on the proposed role of the human cortex in pain perception. I argue that this is incongruent with our understanding of evolutionary processes. The question of whether teleost fish feel pain in a manner similar to humans is still hotly debated. The answer to this question has big implications not just for fish welfare, but also for the fishing and aquaculture industries. For this reason, the debate is often politicised. However, good science should not be directed or distracted by political interests.