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1 August 2003 Ability of Canine Termite Detectors to Locate Live Termites and Discriminate Them from Non-Termite Material
Shawn E. Brooks, Faith M. Oi, Philip G. Koehler
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Abstract

Dogs were trained to detect Eastern subterranean termites, Reticulitermes flavipes (Kollar), using the United States Customs method of scent detection dog training modified with a food reward. Dogs were tested with various numbers of Eastern subterranean termites placed in vented PVC containers. Trained dogs were 95.93% accurate in finding ≥40 Eastern subterranean termite workers (positive indications) and incorrectly indicated the presence of termites in 2.69% of the containers without termites. Multiple species of termites [dark southern subterranean, R. virginicus (Banks); Formosan subterranean, Coptotermes formosanus Shiraki; powderpost, Cryptotermes cavifrons Banks; and southeastern drywood termites, Incisitermes snyderi (Light)], were similarly evaluated. Dogs trained to locate Eastern subterranean termites were also 100% accurate in finding dark southern subterranean termites, 98.89% accurate in finding Formosan subterranean termites, 97.33% accurate in finding powderpost termites, and 88.89% accurate in finding southeastern drywood termites. Dogs were able to discriminate live termites from non-termite material. Trained dogs’ false response rate was 25.33% to Eastern subterranean termite–damaged wood, 6.67% to American cockroaches, Periplaneta americana (L.), and 2.67% to Florida carpenter ants, Camponotus floridanus Buckley.

Shawn E. Brooks, Faith M. Oi, and Philip G. Koehler "Ability of Canine Termite Detectors to Locate Live Termites and Discriminate Them from Non-Termite Material," Journal of Economic Entomology 96(4), 1259-1266, (1 August 2003). https://doi.org/10.1603/0022-0493-96.4.1259
Received: 19 August 2002; Accepted: 1 March 2003; Published: 1 August 2003
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KEYWORDS
American cockroach
dog
drywood termites
subterranean termites
termite detection
termite-damaged wood
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