Not just a long face: horses have 'complex repertoire' of expressions, study finds

They might get asked by bartenders about their countenance, but horses pull a variety of expressions when interacting with each other, researchers have found.

- Nicola Davis

While facial movements can help members of the same species communicate emotions or other signals to each other, they can also be important for inter-species understanding. In horses, for example, ear movements have long been viewed as important indicators of their internal state. However, the new work suggests there are many more signals to look out for.

"Horses produce a rich and complex repertoire of facial expressions, and we should not overlook the nuances in these if we want to truly understand the subjective experiences of horses," said Dr Kate Lewis, the first author of the research, from the University of Portsmouth. But Lewis said the new work could also have other applications, including for improving the care and welfare of horses.

The latest research is not the first to explore facial expressions in horses in a systematic way; however, Lewis noted previous studies have been restricted to a small number of contexts that are usually human-created, such as preventing a horse from accessing its feed, resulting in it becoming frustrated.