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University of Montana Scientists use light beams to track mine-seeking bees

University of Montana scientists have known for some time that honeybees can be trained to find buried explosives and land mines, but through a collaboration with colleagues at Montana State University, the patterns produced by the searching insects now can be tracked by laser.

Associated Press The Billings Gazette

The potential market is worldwide, said UM biology professor Jerry Bromenshenk.

"There’s so much mine area in the world that the Rand Report to the White House this year said it would take 500 years just to clear what they know," he said. "We think if this technology can reduce that from 10- to 15-fold, you might cut that down to 50 years."

War-torn countries are littered with such devices; the United Nations estimates mines are responsible for 30,000 to 40,000 deaths each year.

It takes about 48 hours to train honeybees to recognize the chemicals emitted from explosive devices. The chemicals vaporize, disperse through the soil and create a plume that the conditioned bees are attracted to.

"The one reward that drives them is syrup, free food," Bromenshenk said.

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Health Sciences Rm 110

Division of Biological Sciences

The University of Montana-Missoula 59812-4824

Telephone: 406-243-5648

Fax: 406-243-4194

Main Office, Division of Biological Sciences: 406-243-5122

Jerry Bromenshenk, Ph.D., Team Leader
E-mail:

http://beekeeper.dbs.umt.edu/bees/

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Colin Henderson, assistant professor of biology at UM, said testing has shown bees are even more sensitive to the emissions than previously known.

The laser system used to track the insect’s activities in test mine fields this summer at Fort Leo-nard Wood, Mo., proved highly accurate and provided almost immediate information. Bees moving in the tens of thousands across a field show up more often in places where they get a scent to which they’re attracted.

That allows bees to work an 8,000-square-meter area in three days. Dogs, which have been used to locate buried mines since the mid-1990s, cover 800 square meters in several weeks at a 71 percent success rate. By contrast, analysis indicated the insects were successful in finding the buried explosives 91 percent to 95 percent of the time.

The laser system, which MSU scientists borrowed from the National Oceanic and Atmo-spheric Administration, is called LIDAR, for light detection and ranging. It’s similar to radar but uses light instead of radio waves.

"It’s a three-dimensional approach: land mines in the earth, bees flying above and the laser finding the bees whereas the dogs have to be almost in the same plane," said Steve Rice, dean of the electronics department of the College of Technology.

Joe Shaw, assistant professor of electronics and computer engineering at MSU, worked with LIDAR technology when he was employed by NOAA.

Even more encouraging is that the results were obtained using laser technology not specifically modified for such use. Lee Spangler, vice president for MSU’s research and director of special programs, said there’s potential in designing and constructing a more portable model. "We’re looking at things that are approaching suitcase size."

And the process can use bees from anywhere in the world, so there’s no need to import specially trained insects.

While the humanitarian aspects of the technology are of obvious importance, so is the potential economic benefit to the state, Bromenshenk said. But because the laser technology is being developed in Bozeman for other applications, specific funding is required to build the portable model for the project.

"We want to see this stay in Montana," said Bromenshenk, a third-generation Montanan. "We developed it here. We really don’t want it to go out of state. We want it to be a sustainable business and I guess we’re looking for the business community of Montana to help us do that."

Copyright © 2003 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Copyright © The Billings Gazette, a division of Lee Enterprises.

http://www.billingsgazette.com/index.php?id=1&display=rednews/2003/12/07/build/state/45-minebees.inc

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