Cambridge Scientists Show Sheep Can Recognise Human Faces

Can sheep be taught to recognise faces? Scientists from the University of Cambridge certainly think so.

The results of a new study were published on Wednesday, November 8, in the Royal Society’s Open Science journal</a>. Researchers said they were able to train sheep to recognise the faces of four celebrities, whose portraits were displayed on a computer screen. The sheep were also able to pick out the familiar faces in different perspectives, a skill only previously demonstrated in humans, the researchers said.

“Anyone who has spent time working with sheep will know that they are intelligent, individual animals who are able to recognise their handlers,” Prof Jenny Morton, who led the study, said in a statement</a>.

“We’ve shown with our study that sheep have advanced face-recognition abilities, comparable with those of humans and monkeys,” Morton said.

The study was conducted as part of research into Huntington’s disease by Cambridge’s Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience. Credit: Jenny Morton/University of Cambridge. via Storyful