Bats in wind farms and beetles in caves are detected by two unique dogs in Greece, who have passed special training at a relevant center in Thessaloniki.

At the premises of Nose for a Cause, in Saint Basil of Thessaloniki, Sotiris Kountouras trains … dog noses for one purpose: the wildlife detection. Like Rush, Border Collie (Border Colei), who is dripping beetles living in caves and Yuri, Labrador (Labrador), who pours into Aeolian parks to find dead bats.

“The organization trains dogs to protect wildlife (Wildlife Conservation Detection Dog). We have trained dogs to detect wolves and jackals through feces, beetles and now last, bats, while two Malinois dogs are specializing in trace of poaching, ”explains Sotiris Kountouras.

Special trained animals are used for scientific purposes in the context of environmental studies, including monitoring in various areas or are trained on order for management bodies and other groups.

Why does a dog need to detect bats? According to Mr. Kountouras, the main application of this methodology is in wind farms. “That is, when wind turbines are placed in areas that are protected or are species that are important for the balance of the ecosystem, such as bats, they can disrupt their flight patterns or injure them deadly” Thus, the operator of specially trained dogs is hired by research companies, which have undertaken to control the impact of the installation of wind farms on the environment, which is a contractual obligation of construction companies.

“That is, I am called with a dog going to the parks and checking if there are dead bats. We use dogs because winds cover large areas, with vegetation in most, and because the bats are small, they are difficult to detect with the naked eye. If we work, then, without a dog, it is more likely to be losing samples“, Mr Kountouras says, adding that there are 35 recorded bats in Greece.

‘Hunting’ beetle in caves

Having been involved in dog training for years, Mr Kountouras took the initiative to create the organization as he found that there is a gap in Greece in terms of wildlife detection, a necessary tool for field researchers.

“Especially for the caves, the basic methodology for collecting and studying insects living in them is by placing traps, which should be removed after some time. However, if the cave is remote and a great deal of effort is needed, there is no possibility and there the dogs accelerate the processes. They find the beetles with smell, which is difficult with the eye, because they are tiny animals and live under the soil, without the need for digging to detect them, an energy that is a deterrent to researchers because it intervenes significantly in the cave. “

As Mr Kountouras clarifies, the detection of wildlife in a cave concerns tiny animals, such as beetles and not bats, which do not live in them, but use them as a piece of their shelter.

Cavers FEST 2025 -Trimer Festival of Nature, Caves and Man

With the aim of highlighting mountainous Greece and speleology, Nose for a Cause organizes, from May 16 to 18, 2025, in the Agrafa shelter, the Cavers Fest 2025.

For three days, nature speleologists and friends will meet at a big celebration, in Karamanolis shelter, to participate in a plethora of activities and actions.

As part of the festival, visits and explorations will be carried out in the caves of the area, technical descent activities, hiking and searches for new caves, presentations, area updates and documentaries and concerts. Participation is free for everyone.

  • The photos are by Sotiris Kountouras and gave them to RES-EIA