2 dogs from Texas sniff out snails in Ecuador's Galapagos
2 dogs from Texas sniff out snails in Ecuador's Galapagos
By GONZALO SOLANO, Associated Press | April 23, 2015 | Updated: April 23, 2015 11:06pm
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Photo By Rebecca Ross/AP
In this Oct. 25, 2014 photo, courtesy of Rebecca Ross, Darwin the Labrador retriever sniffs at a snail in
while being trained in Texas. Darwin traveled in December from Texas to the the Galapagos island
Santa Cruz. Darwin is one of two dogs selected to hunt the mollusk on the island, which is the largest
species of snail found on land and can grow to 20 centimeters (7.8 inches) long. (Rebecca Ross/Dogs
for Conservation via AP)
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QUITO, Ecuador (AP) — When Darwin the Labrador retriever crashed out of a service dog program for people, conservationists found him a very different sort of job: sniffing out giant African land snails that are threatening crops on the most visited of Ecuador's Galapagos Islands.
The pooch even has the perfect name. English naturalist Charles Darwin studied the archipelago's endemic species during a visit in 1835 that helped develop his theory of evolution.
The gold-colored Darwin and his pal Neville, a black Labrador rescued from an animal shelter, traveled in December from Texas to Santa Cruz, the island in the chain visited by tourists. The dogs were selected to hunt the mollusk, which is the largest species of snail found on land and can grow to 20 centimeters (7.8 inches) long.
The dogs were donated by a U.S. organization called Dogs for Conservation, which trains canines to help people working to preserve wildlife. Darwin and Neville are still being trained, but have already begun their work sniffing out snails and their eggs, which are then removed by environmental workers.
More:
http://www.chron.com/news/texas/article/2-dogs-from-Texas-sniff-out-snails-in-Ecuador-s-6220872.php
(Hope Darwin and his friends get good treats after a day sniffing for snails. He doesn't look impressed.)
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