Dr Andrew Crump
Lecturer - Animal Welfare & Cognition
Department: Pathobiology & Population Sciences
Research Groups: Animal Welfare Science and Ethics, Brain Health and Behaviour
Andrew is a Lecturer in Animal Cognition & Welfare. Specialising in invertebrate welfare and animal sentience, he is especially eager to turn scientific findings into real-world impact.
Andrew joined the RVC in 2023 as a Lecturer in Animal Cognition & Welfare. He previously worked as a Postdoctoral Researcher in Animal Sentience at the London School of Economics, a role he began in 2020. He has experience with various species, including macaques, dogs, cattle, chickens, hermit crabs, and bees.
In 2021, Andrew was part of a team, led by Prof. Jonathan Birch, that advised the UK government to protect certain invertebrates under animal welfare law. The government responded by , so it now covers cephalopod molluscs and decapod crustaceans.
Andrew’s background is in biology. Specialising in animal behaviour and welfare, he completed a Ph.D. in Biological Sciences at Queen’s University Belfast in 2020. In 2016, he was awarded a first-class degree in Biological Sciences from the University of Oxford.
Andrew is an Associate Editor in Zoology for the Cell Press journal , serves on the 's Coordinating Group, and is an Affiliate of the . At RVC, he sits on the Animal Welfare & Ethical Review Body (AWERB) and Student Resolution & Compliance (SRC) panels, and was formerly the Local Lead.
Every year, humans slaughter over a trillion insects and perhaps 500 billion crustaceans. These numbers dwarf the combined total of mammal and bird livestock, yet animal welfare scientists almost exclusively study vertebrates. Andrew aims to improve our understanding of invertebrate welfare and apply this knowledge to minimise any pain and suffering.
A key question is whether and which invertebrates are sentient: capable of subjectively experienced mental states (“feelings”). An animal must be sentient, in Andrew’s view, for us to care about its welfare. He, therefore, investigates cognitive and behavioural indicators of sentience in bees. Andrew and colleagues have found that bees are not simple stimulus-response robots, but react to stimuli in sophisticated, context-dependent ways. These findings are at least consistent with sentience.
Andrew also collaborates on ongoing research investigating reptile and amphibian welfare in zoos, crustacean behaviour and cognition, and animal welfare in the Global South. He has previously worked on crested macaques, dogs, dairy cattle, broiler chickens, and Siamese fighting fish.
If you're interested in working with Andrew (or just keen to chat about invertebrates, sentience, or animal welfare), then please get in touch!
Ssuna, P., Crump, A., & Siegmund, K. (2024). . Animals, 14(13), 2012.
Gibbons, M., Pasquini, E., Kowalewska, A., Read, E., Gibson, S., Crump, A., Solvi, C., Versace, E., & Chittka, L. (2024). Noxious stimulation induces self-protective behaviour in bumblebees. iScience, in press.
Crump, A., Birch, J., Browning, H., Chittka, L., Fisher, D., Gibbons, M., Rowe, E., & Sebo, J (2024). Farmed insects: Opportunities for welfare improvement in the UK. Insect Institute.
Crump, A., Jenkins, K., Bethell, E. J., Ferris, C. P., & Arnott, G. (2024). . Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science, 27(2), 234-242.
Crump, A., Fischer, B., Arnott, G., Birch, J., Briffa, M., Browning, H., ... & Barrett, M. (2024). . Insect Welfare Research Society.
Crump, A., Gibbons, M., Barrett, M., Birch, J., & Chittka, L. (2023). . PLoS Biology, 21(6), e3002138.
Baqueiro-Espinosa, U., Lo, T. H., Hunter, R., Donnelly, P., McEvoy, V., Crump, A., & Arnott, G. (2023). . Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 262, 105904.
Crump, A., Aiken, C., Cunningham, E. M., & Arnott, G. (2023). . Animals, 13(6), 1055.
McDaid, A., Cunningham, E. M., Crump, A., Arnott, G., & Hardiman, G. (2023). . Science of the Total Environment, 855, 158576.
Gibbons, M., Crump, A., Barrett, M., Sarlak, S., Birch, J., & Chittka, L. (2022). . In R. Jurenka (Ed.), Advances in Insect Physiology (pp. 155-229). Academic Press.
Crump, A., Browning, H., Schnell, A. K., Burn, C., & Birch, J. (2022). . Animal Sentience, 32(31).
Crump, A., Browning, H., Schnell, A. K., Burn, C., & Birch, J. (2022). . Nature Food, 1-3.
McEvoy, V., Baqueiro Espinosa, U., Crump, A., & Arnott, G. (2022). . Animals, 12(21), 2895.
Crump, A. (2022). . Animal Sentience, 31(15).
Birch, J., & Crump, A. (2022). . Current Biology, 32, R1-R3.
Gibbons, M., Versace, E., Crump, A., Baran, B., & Chittka, L. (2022). . Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 119(31), e2205821119.
Crump, A., Browning, H., Schnell, A. K., Burn, C., & Birch, J. (2022). . Animal Sentience, 7(32).
Crump, A., & Birch, J. (2022). . Journal of Consciousness Studies, 29(3-4), 104-128.
Birch, J., Broom, D. M., Browning, H., Crump, A., Ginsburg, S., Halina, M., Harrison, D., … & Zacks, O. (2022). Journal of Consciousness Studies, 29(3-4), 8-28.
Birch, J., Burn, C., Schnell, A. K., Browning, H., & Crump, A. (2021). . Department for Environment, Food, & Rural Affairs (Defra).
Crump, A., & Birch, J. (2021). . Learning & Behavior, 1-2.
Cunningham, E. M., Mundye, A., Kregting, L., Dick, J., Crump, A., Riddell, G., & Arnott, G. (2021). . Royal Society Open Science, 8, 211089.
Anderson, M. G., Campbell, A. M., Crump, A., Arnott, G., & Jacobs, L. (2021). . Scientific Reports, 11(1), 16966.
Anderson, M. G., Campbell, A. M., Crump, A., Arnott, G., Newberry, R. C., & Jacobs, L. (2021). . Animals, 11(8), 2383.
Crump, A., Jenkins, K., Bethell, E. J., Ferris, C. P., Kabboush, H., Weller, J., & Arnott, G. (2021). . Scientific Reports, 11, 4882.
Crump, A., Bethell, E. J., Earley, R., Lee, V. E., Mendl, M., Oldham, L., Turner, S. P., & Arnott, G. (2020). . Proceedings of the Royal Society B, 287, 28720201715.
Crump, A., Mullens, C., Bethell, E. J., Cunningham, E. M., & Arnott, G. (2020). . Biology Letters, 16(4), 20200030.
Crump, A., Jenkins, K., Bethell, E. J., Ferris, C. P., & Arnott, G. (2019). . Animals, 9(11), 902.
Crump, A., Arnott, G., & Bethell, E. J. (2018). . Animals, 8(8), 136.
Andrew teaches animal behaviour, cognition, and welfare, especially on our pathway (ABWE). He's the Module Leader for the ABWE 2nd-year projects, Deputy Leader of the "Animals & Human Society" module, and an academic tutor for ABWE students. He also guest lectures on Queen's University Belfast's .
Andrew has a Postgraduate Certificate in Veterinary Education (with distinction) and is a .
He welcomes enquiries about supervising student projects, from undergraduate to PhD level – especially those involving invertebrates or zoo animals.
Andrew works with governments and NGOs to inform animal welfare policy. He and his colleagues recommended including certain invertebrates in the UK's Animal Welfare (Sentience) Act 2022, and legal protection for cephalopod molluscs and decapod crustaceans. He also wrote a major report on farmed insect welfare for the UK government.
In partnership with Defra and NGOs, Andrew has chaired stakeholder workshops on invertebrate sentience. South Korean and New Zealand government advisors have also invited him to discuss welfare law.
He collaborates with various NGOs, including the , , and . As a hired consultant, he has also advised industry on animal welfare issues.
Andrew is always keen to talk about animal welfare with school and college students.