Record achievement: rat detects more than 100 mines in Cambodia
Kyiv • UNN
Giant African rat Ronin set a record by discovering 109 mines and 15 pieces of ammunition in Cambodia from 2021 to 2025. Rats are ideal for finding mines due to their intelligence, speed and sensitive sense of smell.
A giant African pouched rat named Ronin has set a new world record by discovering 109 mines and 15 other unexploded ordnance in Cambodia.
This was reported by CNN, writes UNN.
Details
According to the Guinness Book of World Records, between August 2021 and February 2025, a rat named Ronin discovered 109 mines and 15 other unexploded ordnance in an area near Siem Reap in Cambodia.
Ronin's achievements are a testament to the incredible potential of rats
Mines are a serious problem in former conflict zones. Explosive weapons hidden in the ground are designed to injure or kill anyone who walks over them. In Cambodia alone, they have caused more than 65,000 deaths and injuries since the fall of the brutal Khmer Rouge regime in 1979, according to the Landmine and Cluster Munition Monitor.
The use of mines is controversial because of their indiscriminate nature and the threat they pose for decades after the end of the conflict, killing and maiming people, as well as hindering land development in war-torn areas.
In addition, they are difficult and complex to detect. So rats are an ideal option for finding mines, thanks to their high intelligence, speed and keen sense of smell, which make them masters at detecting explosives. They are also too light to detonate mines.
It is estimated that there are still 110 million mines in more than 60 countries around the world, according to the non-profit mine detection organization APOPO. In 2023, mines caused 5,757 casualties worldwide, 37% of whom were children, according to the Landmine Monitor 2024.
Rats are very versatile and are also trained to detect tuberculosis in medical facilities, helping to prevent the spread of infectious diseases.
The team of rat engineers of the Belgian non-profit organization can search an area the size of a tennis court in 30 minutes - which would take a sapper with a metal detector up to four days.
