Document type: scientific article published in Applied Animal Behaviour Science
Authors: Maria Vilain Rørvang, Rebecca K. Meagher, Johanna Stenfelt, Emily K. Miller-Cushon, Sheikh Rishad Ahmmad, Maria Camila Ceballos
Abstract in French (translation): The Sensory World of Cattle: Perceptual Capabilities, Limitations, and Challenges in Human-Designed Environments
Cattle have played a central role in human societies for millennia, but our scientific understanding of how they perceive their environment remains limited. While the biology of cattle has been extensively studied, their sensory perceptions have received relatively little direct attention and are often studied indirectly through production-based indicators.
This review provides a comprehensive and critical synthesis of current knowledge on the sensory capabilities of cattle, particularly with regard to vision, hearing, olfaction, taste, and touch. For each modality, we have integrated anatomical, physiological, behavioral, and evolutionary perspectives to characterize perceptual capabilities and limitations and to identify key knowledge gaps.
The scientific literature is highly variable; while the visual and auditory systems are relatively well described, olfactory, gustatory, and tactile perceptions remain poorly understood, particularly with regard to affective experience and individual variations. Across all modalities, cattle perception is context-dependent and shaped by learning and prior experience. Mismatches between species-specific sensory capabilities and human-designed environments can influence behavioral responses, stress, and human-animal interactions.
By synthesizing scattered data and identifying priorities for future research, this review highlights the need for greater integration between sensory biology and ethology to improve our understanding of cattle behavior and guide the future design of environments better suited to cattle perception.
Preview:
Cattle have been central to human societies for millennia, yet scientific understanding of how they perceive their environment remains limited. While cattle biology has been extensively studied, sensory perception has received comparatively little direct attention and is often investigated indirectly through production-oriented outcomes.
This review provides a comprehensive and critical synthesis of current knowledge of cattle sensory abilities across vision, hearing, olfaction, taste, and touch. For each modality, we have integrated anatomical, physiological, behavioural, and evolutionary perspectives to characterise perceptual capacities and limitations and to identify key knowledge gaps.
Research coverage is highly uneven with visual and auditory systems relatively well described, whereas olfactory, gustatory, and tactile perception remain poorly understood, particularly in relation to affective experience and individual variation. Across modalities, cattle perception is context-dependent and shaped by learning and prior experience. Mismatches between species-specific sensory capacities and human-designed environments may influence behavioural responses, stress, and human–animal interactions.
By synthesising the dispersed evidence and identifying priorities for future research, this review highlights the need for stronger integration between sensory biology and ethology to improve understanding of cattle behaviour and inform the future design of environments to be better aligned with bovine perception.
