Tortoises are creatures ensconced in hard shells who step about slowly but surely. And they might not seem as if they would let a bad day get to them. But new research shows that the cold-blooded reptiles have moods in much the same way as warm-blooded mammals and birds. A study was performed by scientists at the University of Lincoln in the UK. They found that red-footed tortoises have mood states. The research was published in the journal Animal Cognition. It greatly advances knowledge about reptiles. It also upends long-held ideas about them. What's the main wrong idea? Tortoises don’t possess complex thoughts and emotions. In fact, they do. The study team put red-foots through a series of brain tests. The team surveyed the red-foots' response to cloudy situations. It also surveyed their response to stimuli that induced anxiety. The team found that red-foots living in more enriched places responded to murky events with more hopeful responses. This suggests an upbeat mood. The reverse was true for red-foots housed in less enriched places. Next, red-foots were placed in settings that induced anxiety. Red-foots that showed an upbeat mood in the former tests showed less anxiety in this second setting. Thus, the study found that mood and behavior are linked in tortoises as they are in other animals. Reptiles are known for their smarts, such as problem-solving and learning, wrote Phys.org. It added that the study now also provides clear data that they also have long-term mood states. The study’s results could have long-term impacts for how tortoises are seen and treated by humans, scientists say. Animal welfare laws, for instance, now might need to be shifted for tortoises, Phys.org wrote. Reflect: If you could understand the moods of any animal, which one would you choose and why? Gif of a tortoise from GIPHY.
