Figure 1.

An adapted version of the Five Domains Model (44) designed to guide the assessment of the harmful effects of human activities on the welfare of wild cetaceans. Within the framework, Domains 1–4 list factors affecting cetacean welfare that could, potentially, be observable and/or measurable. Domain 5 takes aspects from each of these domains and infers the mental states that the animal may experience as a result of external stresses and challenges. These words are, necessarily, a surmised interpretation of cetaceans' mental states based on our own human emotional experiences. All negative domain states should be interpreted to mean negative states beyond an animal's normal coping capacity. It is expected that a number of the factors listed are likely to be of considerably greater significance to some cetacean species, for example, the known complexity of, and reliance on, social groupings in certain species.