Heroic Rat: Clearing Hundreds of Landmines in 5 Years, Saving 2.2 Million Lives on the Battlefield

 

Even after the war ended, the cruelty of wartime continues to cause harm. More than 60 countries around the world are still shrouded in the shadow of landmines, and the heroes responsible for saving lives are actually little mice? The Tanzanian-based nonprofit organization APOPO and "HeroRATs" work closely together to continuously remove underground dangers in a safe and efficient way.

Why rats? Since 2000, APOPO has been breeding African giant pouched rats at Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA) in Tanzania as landmine detection experts. The African giant kangaroo is a local species; unlike a regular kangaroo, the "pouch" in its name refers to its cheek pouches (the bulging cheeks of a chipmunk where it stores food).

The African giant kangaroo is able to perform such a difficult task because its weight of about 1 kilogram prevents it from triggering landmines, and it has an extremely keen sense of smell that can locate explosives. Furthermore, they are naturally calm and intelligent, easy to care for, train, and move, making them very reliable partners for human trainers during missions. In addition, African giant kangaroos have a long lifespan, typically reaching 8 years in captivity, with some retired hero kangaroos even living to be over 10 years old.

APOPO emphasizes the organization's commitment to animal welfare. Baby mice grow up peacefully with their mothers and siblings, and human keepers interact with them from a young age to build trust and rapport. The mine-detecting mice are trained using positive reinforcement, such as rewarding young mice with banana puree after they hear a sound, allowing them to associate specific sounds and smells with food, proving useful in mine-detection operations.

Typically, after just one year of training, the Hero Rats can search an area the size of a tennis court in half an hour, far exceeding the efficiency of humans using metal detectors. These highly trained personnel and Hero Rat teams have been deployed to countries such as Angola, Cambodia, Ethiopia, and Azerbaijan, saving the lives and safety of over 2.2 million people.

APOPO's most successful member to date was a heroic rat named Magawa. Born in SUA in November 2013, Magawa went to Cambodia in 2016 to begin his demining career. Until his retirement in 2021, Magawa successfully located over 100 landmines and explosives, allowing community residents to live in peace. Magawa was awarded a gold medal of honor and received professional care and companionship in his later years. This unsung hero, Magawa, passed away peacefully on January 8, 2022, forever living on in people's hearts as a hero.