Giant African rats may soon be the key to fighting illegal wildlife trafficking. New research from nonprofit APOPO, published Oct. 29, shows that African giant pouched rats can be trained to identify ...

While the jury is still out on whether or not the African giant pouched rat is cute, it’s harder to deny the impressive power of its nose. Tanzania-based non-profit APOPO has already demonstrated the ...

MOROGORO, Tanzania – Rats have long been misunderstood, often seen as pests rather than pals. However, the African giant pouched rat, the largest in the world, possesses special qualities that have ...

Jess Thomson is a Newsweek Science Reporter based in London UK. Her focus is reporting on science, technology and healthcare. She has covered weird animal behavior, space news and the impacts of ...

Scientists are training the first generation of rats in Tanzania to detect illegal wildlife trafficked products. Their research shows that African giant pouched rats can locate concealed wildlife ...

In the past, African giant pouched rats have learned to detect explosives and the tuberculosis-causing pathogen. Now, a team of researchers have trained these rats to pick up the scent of pangolin ...

Trained rats could help counter the multi-billion-dollar illegal wildlife trade by deploying their heightened sense of smell to catch trafficked animal products. The nonprofit organisation APOPO ...

Poachers and wildlife traffickers go to great lengths to disguise their contraband products so they can smuggle them out of a country. They’ll paint ivory tusks black, or coat them in chocolate and ...