Animals with a Keen Sense of Smell

Humans are blessed with the sense of smell but when compared to other animals it pales in comparison. There are animals that have that extra keen sense of smell for detecting prey, predator as well as map out their surroundings. Their overdeveloped olfactory nerves are the key between life and death between these animals. Which animals are these? Here are some that made it to the top list of animals with the keenest sense of smell.

• Bear – The brain of the bear is just a third of ours but it has five times the capacity to smell. Bears are equipped with large noses that have thousands of receptors to capture all kinds of scent. Among all the animals in the world, the bear’s sense of smell is the best.
• Shark – Sharks are just second to the bear in terms of sense of smell. They are capable of smelling injured preys even from a mile away. The nose of the shark is located at the underside of its snout where water passes through where the scents are then processed by the shark to identify its surroundings. Even uninjured animals cannot escape the shark because of the chemicals they release in the waters that can be picked up the strong sense of smell of this giant fish of the sea.
• Snake – Although the snake has a nose it doesn’t use it to detect scent. What it uses instead is its forked tongue that collects particles of air when it’s flicked. The air particles are then transmitted to the Jacobson’s organ which then gives the snake a map of its environment as well as the origin of the scent it has picked up.
• Bloodhound – The Bloodhound’s ability to smell is far better than the rest of the canine kingdom. This type of breed is often used in finding missing persons because of their ability to trail a scent even when several days have already passed. Once an item is smelled, the Bloodhound will be able to create a map of its scent in its mind and use it to follow it even when it is miles away.
• Rat – Rats have the ability to scent not just the smell of food but changes in emotions and atmosphere. Their sense of smell allows them to differentiate different breeds of rats as well as detect sudden movements like humans approaching or other predators.

These are just a few examples of animals with a keen sense of smell. Their ability to detect smells even a few miles away is truly impressive.