Native Plant Conservation Campaign News: Specialists train dogs to identify plant species by scent.
March 5, 2019
From NPCC Affiliate Laukahi: The Hawai'i Plant Conservation Network. They have been doing some trials with using detector dogs with regard to 
plant scents -
plant scents -They completed 10 weekends of scent work classes where the participating dogs imprinted on the target odor of the native ‘ākia plant. They video'ed the entire class including training sessions and the final odor recognition tests.
Nine or ten dogs and handlers participated in the classes (6 on Saturdays, 6 on Sundays).
All tests were blind to the dog and the handler.
- The "Single Odor ORT (Odor Recognition Test)" is a simple test where 12 covered boxes are laid out, with one box containing the target plant, and the remaining 11 being empty.
- The "Discrimination ORT (Odor Recognition Test)" similarly has 12 boxes laid out, with one box containing the target plant, and each of the 11 remaining boxes containing a different non-target plant.
- The "Field Trial" was a simple exterior search where a single target clipping was hidden in an area approximately 250 sq ft.
In summary, after ten two-hour classes,
- 100% of the dogs who took the single odor ORT passed.
- 90% passed the discrimination ORT.
- 91% passed the mini field trial.
The field trial we did was very easy in the sense that it was a tiny search area and only one target. But I think the results are promising, given these were amateur pet dogs and dog owners who only trained during 10 short classes.
For more information, contact Joshua.P.Atwood@Hawaii.gov.
In related news, a recent study showed that dogs are able to detect plant diseases by scent in crop plants. Read the full story:
