Hana Oliver on Unsplash

When people say an animal appears happy or sad, are they simply anthropomorphizing—or can they actually suss out other species’ emotional states?

A new study suggests the latter: Most people can accurately tell how chickens are feeling by listening to their voices, researchers report today in Royal Society Open Science.

Scientists asked nearly 200 volunteers to listen to 16 recordings of hens. Half were of “food calls,” short, fast clucks a flock of hens made when they were about to be fed.

The other half were of “gakel calls,” long, low whines made by the frustrated hens when their food bowl came out empty.

Some 69% of volunteers correctly distinguished the calls made by the excited chickens from those of the disappointed ones. The authors note that by listening to their birds, farmers and breeders can care for their well-being more effectively.

Large-scale farms might even employ acoustic monitoring systems to keep tabs on the moods of entire flocks, The Guardian reports. The study adds to a growing body of evidence that humans can pick up on emotions conveyed by other animals’ cries.