Detector Dogs, Dynamite Dolphins, and More Animals with Super Sensory Powers

June 1, 2022
Introductions to animals that have been selected for their special senses or abilities to perform tasks ranging from testing treated water to predicting earthquakes. Focusing on eight main subjects but including briefer notes on many more, the roster includes homing pigeons and honeybees but otherwise goes well beyond the usual sorts of animal "helpers." The book follows a herd of California brush abatement goats employed to reduce wildfire hazards in terrain that is hard for human firefighters to tackle; introduces Eba, a terrier who helps researchers track endangered orcas and is "possibly the only dog in the world trained to sniff killer whale poop"; and describes how the ICARUS program monitors the movements of tagged livestock from space as a way of predicting earthquakes. Along with explaining how dog noses (those "booger-resistant marvels of engineering"), goat stomachs, whiskers, and other specialized body parts function, the authors suggest simple experiments to test our own abilities to follow a scent trail, use echolocation, detect various (nonpoisonous) foreign substances in water, and other tasks that parallel what these animals can do. Musings on the ethical ins and outs of putting other species to sometimes-dangerous work provide food for thought, as do some of the photos (of, for instance, trained dolphins being airlifted in coffinlike stalls) interspersed with Duncan's lighthearted cartoon illustrations. Both sorts of pictures portray a racially diverse assortment of human figures, and the source notes and bibliography offer unusually wide arrays of leads to information sources, technical or otherwise, for each chapter. An engaging survey, thoroughly documented and as ethically nuanced as it is lively. (index) (Nonfiction. 10-13)

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September 15, 2022
Grades 4-7 What's a better opening than following Eba, a terrier mix who's been trained to sniff out southern resident killer whale poop along Washington's coastal waterways? As the authors describe how Eba is part of a conservation program to study endangered species, they also describe a dog's special design and the organs that allow it to smell exponentially better than humans. From dolphins that use echolocation to detect underwater mines to bluegill fish whose breathing helps monitor for contaminants at a water treatment center to ICARUS, a project that monitors animals worldwide from space in an effort to detect natural disasters, more fascinating chapters explain how animals perceive their environment and how their developed senses make the planet safer for all of natural life. Throughout these animal profiles, the authors also point out ethical concerns, like whether animals should be working for humans. Overall, the subject remains upbeat with photos of the featured animals in the field and colorful diagrams. Readers can even test their own senses with related activities. Sense-ational STEM that's sure to surprise.

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