Dogs detect dangerous plant invaders

It is well known that dogs can use their highly developed sense of smell to search out drugs and disaster survivors.Now,some dogs are being trained to find a different kind of threat—plant species that can harm the environment.

An invasive plant species starts to spread in New York's major parks.It is a yellow-flowered bush called Scotch broom.The plant spreads quickly,grows thick and can crowd out native plants.The growth of this invasive species can also close off areas to wildlife.Officials are seeking to stop the plant's growth before it becomes widespread.

One not-for-profit group is using the dogs to help fight Scotch broom and other invasive species.After the dogs identify the species,people then attempt to remove them before they become a wider problem.

A study found that trained dogs could smell and find twice more invasive plants than humans could observe with their eyes.Joshua Beese,a dog handler,has worked with a dog called Dia to hunt for Scotch broom in New York state parks.“If we had to find all these plants ourselves,combing the grass for every tiny plant,it would take so much longer.And we'd still miss a lot,”said Beese.Dia was able to lead him to hundreds of small Scotch broom plants largely hidden by other growth.

Another not-for-profit organization working on the problem is Working Dogs for Conservation.It seeks to train dogs to protect wildlife and wild places,including doing invasive species work.The organization's director,Pete Coppolillo,said,“We've trained over 200 dog and handler teams to help in global wildlife trafficking(非法交易),and now we're doing a lot of invasive species work.” Coppolillo added that human teams had tried for years to find and remove a destructive plant without much success.But after the dogs were brought in to help,the species nearly disappeared within a few years.

Dogs are especially effective at this work because they can smell plants hidden among other species.

閱讀檢測

1.Why do people want to get rid of Scotch broom?

A.It has done great harm to the environment.

B.It seriously affects the growth of native plants.

C.It can easily make the wildlife poisoned.

D.It has invaded the habitat of wild animals.

2.Why are dogs good at recognizing Scotch broom?

A.They possess sharp sense of smell.

B.They are interested in the plant.

C.They can see the plant clearly.

D.They have received special training.

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It is known that...句型

It is well known that dogs can use their highly developed sense of smell to search out drugs and disaster survivors.眾所周知，狗可以利用他們高度發達的嗅覺來搜索出毒品和災難中的幸存者。

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