Annual statistics for regulated scientific procedures performed on protected animals 2023

In the UK, research with protected (sentient) animals that has the potential to cause suffering is regulated under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 (Amended Regulations 2012), usually referred to as ASPA. This regulation requires researchers to minimise animal use and suffering, and to report the number of procedures used and the severity of any associated harms to the Home Office. As a signatory of the Concordat on Openness on Animal Research, Cefas is publishing its statistics on the use of animals in regulated scientific procedures in 2023 (Table 1), with additional tables to enable comparison to previous years (Tables 2 and 3)

Cefas conducts applied research using aquatic animals which aims to: protect wild populations, biodiversity and the environment; and reduce disease and improve welfare in cultured stocks. In support of these aims, in 2023 Cefas carried out 72 scientific procedures that had the potential to cause suffering to the individual fish (Table 1). Three species were used (Table 1), reflecting their importance to fisheries and population conservation.

There is considerable variation between years in the species used and numbers of procedures (Table 3). The total number of procedures in 2023 was by far the lowest since 2016, continuing the downward trend from 2016 (Table 2). Annual fluctuations largely reflect changes in laboratory and field research programmes, with some programmes being limited by COVID-19 restrictions in 2020 and 2021. In 2023, Cefas laboratory (aquarium) research did not involve regulated procedures, and Cefas partnered with a different establishment to tag Atlantic salmon under their project licence.

The figures in Table 2 also include minor revisions for 2018 to 2020 following retrospective review by our Animal Welfare and Ethical Review Body and project licence holders. Actual severity was mild instead of moderate for 43 fish (8 bass, 16 undulate ray, 13 starry smooth hound in 2018, and 6 bass in 2019), reflecting the external tagging method used, and there were two additional fish with mild severity (one Atlantic bluefin tuna in each of 2019 and 2020). These revisions were reported to the Home Office.

The most common severity recorded in 2023 was moderate, with 47 of the 72 procedures (65%, Table 3). These procedures used internal electronic tags to study the natural behaviour and movements of individual Atlantic salmon and European eel in the field. The pattern of severity is different to earlier years where more mild procedures were carried out in field programmes using external tags to study migration.  

Cefas maintains a culture of care, supported by its Animal Welfare and Ethical Review Bodies which ensure all protected animal use is justified. Researchers optimise numbers used via appropriate experimental designs and minimise suffering by implementing humane end-points and frequent monitoring. We incorporate environmental enrichment into laboratory tanks where appropriate. Cefas researchers are active in the implementation and promotion of the 3Rs (Replacement, Refinement & Reduction) of animal use in research. For example, Cefas has a long track record of developing and using electronic data storage tags that collect a wealth of data from individual wild fish. This year our scientists co-chaired the international Workshop on Mark-Identification Tagging (WKTAG) that included identifying best practices for handling, tagging and releasing fish. Cefas scientists also contributed to the RSPCA meeting “Focus on severe suffering – Humane endpoints in regulatory toxicology – UK, 2023”.

Table 1: Cefas use of protected animals within regulated scientific procedures in 2023 by actual severity level. Number of individual procedures by species. Names are according to the FAO’s ASFIS List of Species for Fishery Statistics Purposes.

Common name	Scientific name	Sub-threshold	Non-recovery	Mild	Moderate	Severe	Total	%
Atlantic bluefin tuna	Thunnus thynnus	0	0	25	0	0	25	35%
European eel	Anguilla anguilla	0	0	0	25	0	25	35%
Atlantic salmon	Salmo salar	0	0	0	22	0	22	31%
Total for all species	Total for all species	0	0	25	47	0	72	100%
Percentage (%)	%	0%	0%	35%	65%	0%	100%

Table 2: Cefas use of protected animals within regulated scientific procedures 2016 to 2023 by species. Number of individual procedures by species and year. Names are according to the FAO’s ASFIS List of Species for Fishery Statistics Purposes.

Common name	Scientific name	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	Annual average
Atlantic salmon	Salmo salar	4,568	707	983	0	457	2,490	0	22	1,153
Sea trout	Salmo trutta	4,549	3,756	554	0	0	25	0	0	1,110
Ballan wrasse	Labrus bergylta	0	1,041	2,338	0	0	0	0	0	422
Rainbow trout	Oncorhynchus mykiss	36	882	0	47	1,293	845	0	0	388
Common carp	Cyprinus carpio	590	160	120	316	84	234	480	0	248
European eel	Anguilla anguilla	1,297	204	68	0	0	0	0	25	199
European seabass	Dicentrarchus labrax	309	573	68	476	51	34	0	0	189
Lumpfish	Cyclopterus lumpus	0	0	0	239	408	448	0	0	137
Eurasian minnow	Phoxinus phoxinus	0	0	1,006	0	0	0	0	0	126
Zebrafish(=Zebra danio)	Danio rerio	0	0	0	0	0	0	879	0	110
Bullhead	Cottus gobio	0	0	802	0	0	0	0	0	100
Three-spined stickleback	Gasterosteus aculeatus	0	0	142	285	0	0	0	0	53
Tench	Tinca tinca	0	0	0	0	0	0	240	0	30
Rudd	Scardinius erythrophthalmus	0	0	0	0	0	0	240	0	30
Orfe(=Ide)	Leuciscus idus	0	0	0	0	0	0	240	0	30
Chub	Squalius cephalus	0	160	2	0	0	0	0	0	20
Barbel	Barbus barbus	0	160	0	0	0	0	0	0	20
European smelt	Osmerus eperlanus	50	0	0	79	12	18	0	0	20
Turbot	Scophthalmus maximus	0	84	56	0	0	0	0	0	18
Starry smooth-hound	Mustelus asterias	0	14	99	12	0	0	0	0	16
Goldfish	Carassius auratus	0	0	120	0	0	0	0	0	15
Thornback ray	Raja clavata	0	51	0	51	0	0	0	0	13
Atlantic bluefin tuna	Thunnus thynnus	0	0	0	4	19	13	14	25	9
Grayling	Thymallus thymallus	34	21	15	0	0	0	0	0	9
Undulate ray	Raja undulata	0	0	65	5	0	0	0	0	9
Small-eyed ray	Raja microocellata	0	0	0	65	3	0	0	0	8
Blonde ray	Raja brachyura	0	0	0	1	61	0	0	0	8
Picked dogfish	Squalus acanthias	0	0	0	1	0	43	0	0	6
Stone loach	Barbatula barbatula	0	0	39	0	0	0	0	0	5
Roach	Rutilus rutilus	0	3	26	0	0	0	0	0	4
Sea lamprey	Petromyzon marinus	0	28	0	0	0	0	0	0	4
European brook lamprey	Lampetra planeri	0	0	18	0	0	0	0	0	2
Spotted ray	Raja montagui	0	0	0	0	17	0	0	0	2
European perch	Perca fluviatilis	0	0	8	0	0	0	0	0	1
Northern pike	Esox lucius	0	3	3	0	0	0	0	0	1
Gudgeon	Gobio gobio	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
Angelshark	Squatina squatina	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0
Total for all species	Total for all species	11,433	7,847	6,533	1,581	2,405	4,151	2,093	72	4,514
Number of species used	Number of species used	8	16	21	13	10	10	6	3	11

Table 3: Cefas use of protected animals within regulated scientific procedures 2016 to 2023, percentage of procedures by severity (actual severity for 2018 onwards).

Year	Sub-threshold	Non-recovery	Mild	Moderate	Severe	Total
2016	1%	0%	93%	6%	0%	100%
2017	3%	0%	84%	11%	2%	100%
2018	4%	0%	83%	13%	0%	100%
2019	16%	0%	76%	7%	1%	100%
2020	10%	0%	36%	53%	1%	100%
2021	19%	0%	17%	61%	3%	100%
2022	17%	0%	44%	12%	27%	100%
2023	0%	0%	35%	65%	0%	100%

Glossary (terms as defined in the Guidance on the Operation of ASPA):

Establishment: “A place holding a licence which has been granted under section 2C of ASPA.”

Project licence: “The regulated procedures to be carried out must be authorised by a ‘project licence’, which specifies the programme of work within which the procedures are being performed”.

Protected animal: “Any living vertebrate, other than man, and any living cephalopod.” “Larval forms of fish and amphibians are protected animals once they are capable of feeding independently. Cephalopods are protected animals from the point when they hatch.”

Regulated procedure: “A procedure is regulated if it is carried out on a protected animal for a scientific or educational purpose and may cause that animal a level of pain, suffering, distress or lasting harm equivalent to, or higher than, that caused by inserting a hypodermic needle according to good veterinary practice.”

Sub-threshold: “below the level of pain, suffering, distress or lasting harm equivalent to that caused by inserting a hypodermic needle according to good veterinary practice”.

Non-recovery: “Procedures which are performed entirely under general anaesthesia from which the animal shall not recover consciousness”.

Mild: “Procedures on animals as a result of which the animals are likely to experience short-term mild pain, suffering or distress, as well as procedures with no significant impairment of the well-being or general condition of the animals”.

Moderate: “Procedures on animals as a result of which the animals are likely to experience short-term moderate pain, suffering or distress, or long-lasting mild pain, suffering or distress as well as procedures that are likely to cause moderate impairment of the well-being or general condition of the animals”.

Severe: “Procedures on animals as a result of which the animals are likely to experience severe pain, suffering or distress, or long-lasting moderate pain, suffering or distress, as well as procedures that are likely to cause severe impairment of the well-being or general condition of the animals”.

Note

Rounding in the tables uses the IEC 60559 standard of “round to the even digit” when rounding 0.5.