# Crime-Fighting Birds The German Police Train Body-Finding Vultures to Assist Murder Cases By Michael Hines | Published 2011-06-03 | World Source: Trend Hunter, https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/body-finding-vultures References: [gizmodo](http://gizmodo.com/5807854/police-are-training-vultures-to-find-bodies) & [bbc](http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-13629772) German police are currently in the process of training body-finding vultures in order to assist them in missing persons and murder cases. The vultures are being trained due to their [acute senses of smell and sight](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/fahlo) in addition to their ability to cover large areas of space. The body-finding vultures have created a small outcry due to the fact that once a vulture finds a body, it prefers to eat it first and ask questions later. The German police are apparently willing to take this risk as they are currently training three birds to find bodies: Sherlock, Miss Marple and Colombo. While it is doubtful that this practice would ever make it to America, a few other countries have expressed interest in the new German police animals. ## Trend Insights (Trend Hunter) - Score: 0.4/10 - Popularity: 3% | Activity: 1% | Freshness: 8% - Audience gender: 70% men, 30% women - Primary generations: Millennial, Gen X - Top markets: North America, South America, Europe, Asia, Africa ## Categories [Trend Hunter](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends) > [World](https://www.trendhunter.com/world) > [Regional](https://www.trendhunter.com/regional) ## Key Themes ### What Makes This Trend Stand Out - **Animal-assisted Investigations:** Training of body-finding vultures to assist in murder cases signals a trend towards animal-assisted crime scene investigations. - **Sensory Technology:** The use of animals in investigations underscores a need for improved, cutting-edge sensory technology that can improve crime scene investigations. - **Innovative Forensics:** Innovative trends in forensics may include the use of new tools, such as trained animals, to provide valuable insights and locate evidence in investigations. ### Sectors Adopting This - **Law Enforcement:** The use of trained animals in law enforcement signals unexplored industry opportunities that can support improved investigations. - **Pet and Animal Training:** Animal training industry can explore lucrative business opportunities in the field of animal-assisted interventions to support forensic investigation. - **Forensics Services:** Forensics service providers can improve their products by incorporating innovative methods such as body-finding vultures to deliver better evidence in investigations. ## Related on Trend Hunter - [Crow-Shaped Drones](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/hooded-crow.md) - [Wildlife Trafficker-Thwarting Apps](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/wildlife-traffickerthwarting-app.md) - [Falcon-Inspired Aerial Robots](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/robot-falcon.md) - [Carrier Pigeon Campaigns](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/project-pigeon.md) - [Pet-Finding Billboards](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/scented-billboards.md) - [E-Scooter Parking Monitors](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/bird-vps.md) - [Cat-Themed Crime Podcasts](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/purry-duty.md) - [Safe Snacking Zones](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/birds-at-the-beach.md) - [Biomimicry Bird-Like Drones](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/bionic-bird-xfly.md)