Diving in Nose First: The Influence of Unfamiliar Search Scale and Environmental Context on the Search Performance of Volunteer Conservation Detection Dog–Handler Teams

Abstract

Conservation detection dogs (CDDs) are trained to locate biological material from plants and animals of interest to conservation efforts and are often more effective and economical than other detection methods. However, the financial costs of developing and appropriately caring for CDDs can nonetheless prohibit their use, particularly by smaller conservation organizations. Training skilled volunteers to work with suitable pet dogs may help address this constraint. We sought to further develop the skills of 13 volunteer dog–handler teams that were trained in a previous study to detect myrrh essential oil in controlled laboratory conditions. We assessed search sensitivity, search effort, search precision and false-alert instances through progressive training stages increasing in size and environmental complexity. First, teams searched various-sized areas before and after 12 weeks of search training on a sports-field. Next, teams searched various-sized areas before and after seven weeks of training in bushland. Overall, search sensitivity decreased by approximately 20% in each unfamiliar context, compared to performance in familiar contexts. However, sensitivity typically improved from baseline performance by 10–20% after a period of training. Six teams found at least 78% of targets after training in bushland, yet sensitivity ranged from 29% to 86% between teams. We maintain that the foundational skills developed previously were necessary to prepare volunteer teams for field surveys involving conservation related targets. However, our results highlight the need to also train volunteer CDD teams in search scale and environmental contexts similar to their intended working conditions.

Detection dogs provide a powerful method for conservation surveys

“…Performance evaluation and search strategies are needed to deploy dogs effectively (Rutter et al., 2021b), and the source of the dog and handler can result in significant performance and cost differences (Bennett et al., 2020), meaning that evaluation should be considered project‐specific. Training requirements vary with the experience of the dog and handler, type of target and complexity of the survey environment.…”

Expert Perspectives on the Performance of Explosive Detection Canines: Performance Degrading Factors

“…While the EDC team is currently the best mobile capability available to perform this task, they are pitted against intelligent adversaries and must perform at a consistently high level in challenging environments [5]. These realities underpin the importance of understanding, preparing for, and mitigating as much performance degradation as possible [8,21].…”

Improving access to conservation detection dogs: identifying motivations and understanding satisfaction in volunteer handlers

“…During Part A, 19 dog-handler teams undertook a 12-week training program in controlled laboratory conditions, during which they learned initial dog training and scent detection principles in order to search for myrrh essential oil (Rutter et al 2021a). Following Part A, 14 teams commenced Part B, during which they spent 12 weeks learning search strategies and skills to enable them to search for myrrh in simple field conditions on an open sports field (Rutter et al 2021b). Thirteen teams then completed a 7-week training phase in Part C, where they learned to search for myrrh in complex field conditions (i.e.…”

“…Thirteen teams then completed a 7-week training phase in Part C, where they learned to search for myrrh in complex field conditions (i.e. box-ironbark bushland) (Rutter et al 2021b), before transferring their detection skills to scats of the threatened greater glider (Petauroides volans) in an additional 4 weeks of training (unpublished). In Part D, eight of these teams participated in up to 3 days of www.publish.csiro.au/wr Wildlife Research pilot field deployment searches for greater glider scats.…”

“…In a pilot program, a small group of Australian volunteers and their pet dogs were trained to detect Tiger quoll (Dasyurus maculatus) scats (Conservation Ecology Centre 2017). Following the initial success of this program, a series of studies by Rutter et al (Rutter et al 2021a(Rutter et al , 2021b(Rutter et al , 2021c documented the development of a program in which 19 volunteers and their pet dogs participated in CDD team training and deployment. While this work indicates that volunteer teams can be trained to perform CDD roles, the long-term feasibility of such a model remains unclear.…”