Dog sleuths sniff out crop disease hitting citrus trees Scientists have trained dogs to sniff out a disease that's harming citrus trees in Florida, California and TexasWASHINGTON -- Dog detectives might be able to help save ailing citrus groves, research published Monday suggests. Scientists trained dogs to sniff out a crop disease called citrus greening that has hit orange, lemon and grapefruit orchards in Florida, California and Texas. Citrus greening — also called huanglongbing — is caused by a bacteria that is spread by a tiny insect that feeds on the leaves and stems of citrus trees. In one experiment in a Texas grapefruit orchard, trained dogs were accurate 95% of the time in distinguishing between newly infected trees and healthy ones. “The earlier you detect a disease, the better chance you have at stopping an epidemic” by culling infected trees, explained Gottwald.

Source: ABC News February 03, 2020 20:43 UTC