Data from: An evaluation of Spotted Lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula) detection dog training and performance

Spotted Lanternfly (SLF) is an invasive foreign insect that is threatening U.S. forestry and agriculture. In 2017, it was estimated that SLF generated over $ 300 million in losses to Pennsylvania’s agriculture and forestry. Because of the SLF life cycle, the most efficient way to eradicate or prevent its spread is to identify and destroy the egg masses before they hatch. However, egg masses are difficult to locate because they are camouflaged making it difficult to be detected by the human eye. A recent study found that detection dogs can be trained to detect dead SLF egg masses, suggesting that dogs can be used to find egg masses in the field. The aim of this study was to further evaluate dogs’ detection capability by performing a detailed evaluation of dog training and performance. Ten dogs were trained to detect dead SLF egg masses using an automated olfactometer. The training was divided into eight phases in which we tested dogs’ ability to transfer to novel SLF samples and to discriminate SLF egg masses from different environmental distractors followed by a final validation phase. Results show that after training with a single set of samples, dogs were able to transfer their training to different novel samples. In training, dogs showed higher false alerts to distractor tree barks and to freeze-dried crickets than to any other distractor. During the validation phase, dogs’ average sensitivity and specificity to SLF egg masses on bark were 99. 14 ± 0.33% and 99.41 ± 0.21%, respectively. Data show that dogs can easily detect and discriminate SLF egg masses from other environmental distractors and highlight the importance of training dogs with relevant distractors they will encounter in the field to prevent false alerts. Our experiment further confirms that detection dogs can be used as an effective partner to help in SLF eradication efforts.

斑衣蜡蝉（Spotted Lanternfly, SLF）是一种入侵性外来昆虫，正威胁美国的林业与农业。据2017年估算，斑衣蜡蝉给宾夕法尼亚州的农林产业造成了超过3亿美元的损失。受其生命周期影响，根除或阻止其扩散的最有效方式，是在卵块孵化前识别并销毁它们。但由于卵块具有伪装性，人类肉眼难以发现。近期一项研究表明，可通过训练搜救犬检测死亡的斑衣蜡蝉卵块，这提示犬只可用于野外搜寻此类卵块。本研究旨在通过详细评估犬只的训练流程与表现，进一步验证犬只的检测能力。研究团队使用自动化嗅觉仪，对十只犬开展了死亡斑衣蜡蝉卵块检测的训练。训练共分为八个阶段：首先测试犬只将所学技能泛化至新型斑衣蜡蝉样本的能力，随后测试其区分斑衣蜡蝉卵块与不同环境干扰物的能力，最后设置最终验证阶段。结果显示，仅使用单一组样本完成训练后，犬只即可将训练成果泛化至不同的新型样本。训练过程中，犬只对干扰物树皮与冻干蟋蟀的误报率高于其他任何干扰物。在验证阶段，犬只针对树皮上的斑衣蜡蝉卵块的平均灵敏度为99.14±0.33%，平均特异性为99.41±0.21%。实验数据表明，犬只可轻松检测并区分斑衣蜡蝉卵块与其他环境干扰物，同时凸显了使用野外实际会遭遇的相关干扰物训练犬只以避免误报的重要性。本实验进一步证实，搜救犬可作为高效合作伙伴，助力斑衣蜡蝉的根除工作。