Scientists have trained African giant pouched rats to detect illegally trafficked wildlife products. These rats can now find items like pangolin scales, rhino horns, and elephant ivory hidden among other goods.
Wildlife trafficking is a large criminal business, threatening animals like elephants, rhinos, and pangolins. Traffickers often hide these animals or their parts in shipping containers, making it hard for authorities to find them. Currently, tools like X-ray scanners are used, but they are expensive and slow.
Researchers at the APOPO Training and Research Centre in Tanzania decided to try using African giant pouched rats. These rats are intelligent, have a great sense of smell, and can move easily in small spaces.
They have already been used to find landmines and detect tuberculosis.
The rats were trained to sniff out the scent of certain wildlife products. In the study, the rats accurately detected pangolin scales, rhino horns, and elephant ivory, even when these were hidden.
The rats were also able to reject other items commonly used by traffickers to mask the scent of wildlife products.
Using rats could help reduce the cost of detecting wildlife crime. They are cheaper to train and maintain compared to dogs, and they can work well with different handlers.
The following steps involve testing the rats in real situations, like at shipping ports, to see if they can be effective in real-world conditions.
The research ‘Ratting on wildlife crime: training African giant pouched rats to detect illegally trafficked wildlife’ was published in the scientific journal Frontiers.
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