> I had heard a
>rumor that dogs are used in Hawaii at the International Airport to sniff out
>plants in people's luggage. Not dope, but plants.
Dogs are, in fact, trained to sniff out plants at US ports of entry. At
Dulles airport in Washington DC, I asked one of the dog handlers what he
was looking for. He said: "Drugs, orchids & fruit". I guess they can
train them to sniff out a variety of different sorts of contraband. For
those of you in the US who are interested in importing non-CITES plants, it
is relatively easy to get a free permit through the USDA in Hyattsville,
MD. I don't have the address on hand, but perhaps someone on the list
could post it. Last time I tried, you can import up to 10 plants,
bareroot and free of pests, provided they are properly identified and are
not species prohibited for phytosanitary or CITES reasons. It is quick,
easy, and relatively painless. It would be great if there was a realistic
way to make import/export of propagated CITES plants easier... but I fear
there may be no quick easy solutions that can't be manipulated by the
unscrupulous.