For years they have been considered animals of habit, guided above all by instinct. Now, however, new international research overturns this vision once again: cows are able to recognize human faces and associate a voice with the correct person. A complex cognitive ability that until now was attributed almost exclusively to species considered much more evolved.
The study, published in the scientific journal Plos Onewas conducted by a group of researchers from INRAE in Nouzilly, France, led by scientist Océane Amichaud. The findings add an important piece to the growing list of intelligent behaviors observed in cattle in recent years.
The experiment with video, audio and heart rate
To reach these conclusions, the scholars observed 32 Prim’Holstein cows, animals accustomed to daily contact with humans. The cows were subjected to a series of very particular visual and sound tests. The animals watched muted videos of familiar and unfamiliar men, while the researchers recorded how long they stared at each face. Subsequently, the audio of human voices was added to the videos, creating correct or deliberately “wrong” combinations between face and voice.
The result surprised even the experts themselves: the cows observed the unfamiliar faces longer, a sign that they were able to distinguish familiar people from those they had never seen. The second step was even more interesting: when the voice corresponded to the right face, the animals maintained their attention on the screen for longer, demonstrating their ability to integrate visual and auditory information.
Heart rate was also monitored during the experiment to understand whether the cattle reacted emotionally to the images or sounds. In this case no significant differences emerged between known and unknown people.
An intelligence much more advanced than expected
The research is part of a scientific trend that in recent months is redefining the relationship between man and cattle. Only in January, in fact, another study published on Current Biology had documented a cow capable of consciously using a mop as a tool, behavior rarely observed outside the world of primates.
According to the authors, this new discovery demonstrates that cows possess a sophisticated ability for cross-modal recognition, that is, the ability to connect different stimuli – sight and hearing – belonging to the same person.
Because this discovery could change farming
Understanding how cows perceive humans is not just a scientific curiosity. Experts point out that these results could have concrete implications for animal welfare, reducing stressful situations. If cows can actually distinguish who cares for them, how they are treated on a daily basis could affect their balance much more profoundly than previously imagined.
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