Magawa: The Rat Who Detected 71 Landmines and Won a Gold Medal

Introduction

When people think about animals trained to help humans, dogs are often the first animals that come to mind. But in Cambodia, one unusually trained animal spent years doing work that could help make dangerous land safer: a rat named Magawa.

Magawa was an African giant pouched rat trained by APOPO to detect the chemical scents associated with explosives. Working in Cambodia, he became one of the organization's most successful mine-detection rats.

By the time he retired in 2021, APOPO reported that Magawa had detected 71 landmines and 38 items of unexploded ordnance and had helped clear more than 225,000 square meters of land.

His achievements also brought an unusual distinction. In September 2020, Magawa became the first rat to receive the PDSA Gold Medal, an award given to civilian animals for life-saving bravery and exceptional devotion to duty.

An illustrative depiction of Magawa, the African giant pouched rat who detected landmines and unexploded ordnance in Cambodia and received the PDSA Gold Medal in 2020. Illustration: The Pader.

Who Was Magawa?

Magawa was an African giant pouched rat trained by APOPO, a Belgian nonprofit organization known for training rats for humanitarian detection work.

He was born in Tanzania and trained at APOPO's facility at the Sokoine University of Agriculture. After completing his training, Magawa was deployed to Cambodia, where he began working in mine-clearance operations in 2016.

His small size was particularly useful for this kind of work. APOPO explains that HeroRATs are light enough that their weight does not trigger the pressure mechanisms of the landmines they search for.

Instead of walking directly over a suspected mine and setting it off, the rats are trained to detect the smell of explosive compounds. When a rat identifies a target scent, it gives a trained indication to its handler, allowing the location to be investigated and the explosive device safely dealt with by trained demining personnel.

How Magawa Detected Landmines

Magawa did not search for landmines because he understood what a landmine was. His ability came from specialized scent training.

APOPO trains rats to associate the smell of explosive chemicals with a reward. Over time, the animals learn to identify the target scent and indicate its presence to their human handlers.

This is an example of how an animal's natural sensory abilities can be incorporated into a carefully controlled humanitarian task.

For Magawa, his extremely sensitive sense of smell was the important biological tool. His handler could then interpret his trained behavior and mark areas requiring further investigation.

71 Landmines and 38 Pieces of Unexploded Ordnance

Magawa's final reported tally was remarkable.

APOPO reported that Magawa detected 71 landmines and 38 items of unexploded ordnance during his career. The organization also said his work helped clear more than 225,000 square meters of land.

The term unexploded ordnance, or UXO, is important. It refers to explosive military items that failed to detonate as intended and remain potentially dangerous. It is more precise than simply describing the 38 items as "38 bombs" or "38 explosives."

Why Landmines Remain a Serious Problem in Cambodia

Magawa's story is also part of a much larger humanitarian problem.

Cambodia has been heavily affected by landmines and other explosive remnants left by decades of conflict. These devices can remain dangerous long after the conflicts that produced them have ended.

For communities living near contaminated land, the danger is not limited to battlefields. Agricultural areas, paths and other places used by civilians can also require clearance before they can safely be used.

That is why mine-detection work is not simply about finding explosives. It is part of a broader effort to return contaminated land to communities.

Magawa Became the First Rat to Receive the PDSA Gold Medal

Magawa's work eventually earned international recognition.

On September 25, 2020, PDSA formally presented him with a miniature PDSA Gold Medal. The organization describes the medal as an award for civilian animals recognized for life-saving bravery and exceptional devotion to duty.

Magawa became the first rat in the PDSA's history to receive a medal. PDSA described the Gold Medal as the animal equivalent of the George Cross.

The award was based on his documented work detecting mines and other explosive remnants in Cambodia. It was not simply a recognition of how unusual it was to see a rat performing this kind of task.

He Was Once the Most Successful Landmine-Detection Rat

Magawa's final total made him APOPO's most successful HeroRAT at the time of his retirement.

But there is an important update that should be included when the story is shared today.

In 2025, another African giant pouched rat named Ronin surpassed Magawa's landmine-detection total. Guinness World Records records Ronin as having detected 109 landmines between August 2021 and February 2025, along with 15 additional items of UXO.

That does not diminish what Magawa accomplished. It simply means that viral posts describing him as the current world-record holder are now outdated.

Magawa Retired in 2021

After about five years of operational work, APOPO announced Magawa's retirement in June 2021.

The organization said he had begun slowing down and that it was time to respect his age and needs. Before leaving operational work, he spent several weeks helping new recruits adjust to their work.

His retirement marked the end of a career in which a small animal had played a role in making large areas of contaminated land safer for people.

Magawa Died in January 2022

Magawa died peacefully on January 8, 2022, at the age of eight, according to APOPO.

The organization said he had remained active and playful shortly before his final days, although he began slowing down and showing less interest in food near the end of his life.

APOPO remembered him as one of its most successful HeroRATs, while the organization continued its landmine-detection work with other trained rats.

Why Rats Can Be Useful in Humanitarian Detection Work

Magawa's story demonstrates something important about animal biology: a species does not have to resemble a traditional working animal to become useful in a carefully designed task.

Rats have an exceptionally strong sense of smell and can learn associations between specific odors and rewards. Their relatively small bodies also make them suitable for certain detection applications where a heavier animal could be problematic.

But the success of HeroRATs does not come from the animals alone. It depends on training, handlers, safety procedures, field teams and professional mine-clearance systems.

The rats identify suspected targets. Trained human personnel remain responsible for the dangerous work of confirming and removing explosive devices.

What Magawa's Story Really Shows

It is easy to describe Magawa simply as a "hero rat." That is the language used by APOPO and reflected in his PDSA recognition.

From a scientific perspective, however, the more useful lesson is how animal abilities can be incorporated into a carefully controlled system designed to solve a human problem.

Magawa's natural sense of smell was transformed through training into a detection skill. His handlers then used those trained signals as part of a much larger mine-clearance process.

The result was not a rat independently disposing of landmines. It was a partnership between trained animals and human demining professionals.

Conclusion

Magawa's story began with a small African giant pouched rat trained in Tanzania and ended with one of the most unusual animal awards in the world.

During his operational career in Cambodia, he detected 71 landmines and 38 items of unexploded ordnance and helped clear more than 225,000 square meters of land. In 2020, he became the first rat to receive the PDSA Gold Medal.

Magawa is no longer the record-holder for most landmines detected by a rat, after Ronin surpassed his total in 2025. But his documented career remains an extraordinary example of how animal biology, training and human expertise can work together to address a dangerous humanitarian problem.

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Sources and Further Reading