From the British paper The Observer comes this story, the second on our blog about dolphins and Katrina:
It may be the oddest tale to emerge from the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Armed dolphins, trained by the US military to shoot terrorists and pinpoint spies underwater, may be missing in the Gulf of Mexico.
Experts who have studied the US navy's cetacean training exercises claim the 36 mammals could be carrying 'toxic dart' guns. Divers and surfers risk attack, they claim, from a species considered to be among the planet's smartest. The US navy admits it has been training dolphins for military purposes, but has refused to confirm that any are missing.
After reading this, I wondered about other military animal training applications, and it brought me to the Bat Bombers:
On January 12, 1942, Dr. Adams sent to the White House a proposal to investigate the possible use of bats as bombers. In those days, well-meaning citizens were proposing all kinds of warfare ideas, most of them impractical. However, this idea, after being sifted through a top-level scientific review, became one of the very few given the green light. It was passed to the Army Chemical Warfare Service (CWS) for further inquiry in conjunction with Army Air Forces. The official CWS history states simply: "President Roosevelt OK'd it and the project was on."
Does anyone know more about the training that goes into these situations?
> Does anyone know more
> Does anyone know more about the training that goes into these situations?
Yes, see the video "Patient Like the Chipmunks" (http://www.hsnp.com/behavior/page7.html):
PATIENT LIKE THE CHIPMUNKS-Version 1: The Story of Animal Behavior Enterprises. PLTC recounts the early days of operant conditioning. Beginning with the WW2 Project Pelican, PLTC traces the application of B. F. Skinner's new technology to solving practical problems.