"Pigeon photographers, submarine-hunting dolphins, and an Acoustic Kitty: Spy Tails proves that the truth of the spy business is always stranger than spy fiction. Mohr and Sandel deliver a meticulously researched, genuinely surprising account of how spy agencies turned to the animal kingdom for capabilities no human could match. Anyone curious about spycraft or the remarkable abilities of animals will find it hard to put down. A delight from first page to last."

~David McCloskey, former CIA analyst and Sunday Times bestselling author of London Station

“The story of this incredible clandestine menagerie, documented in Spy Tails by Brandon Mohr and Mark Sandel, will astound seasoned intelligence officers and delight true-espionage readers. Spy Tails’ comprehensive survey reveals the remarkably diverse capabilities of animals to secretly collect information as well as conduct lethal operations…. A thoughtful, balanced perspective insisting on proper respect for animal life in all forms, especially when national security is at stake.”

~Robert Wallace, Retired CIA Director of Technical Service, author of Spycraft: The Secret History of the CIA’s Spytechs from Communism to al-Qaeda

"Despite the punny title, Spy Tails is a serious original work of intelligence history, current analysis, and futuristic scenarios that avoids sensationalism to present a detailed account of efforts to use animals for intelligence purposes and a probing assessment of the ethical and practical issues arising from fauna warfare in testing and deployment. Leveraging a wide variety of accessible sources with exemplary professionalism and an insider's acumen, intelligence analysts Mohr and Sandel get the scholarship, terminology, tradecraft, and technology right in creating what should be a standard history of this fascinating subject."

~Paul Hollingsworth, President of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers

"With ambitious scope and diligent fact finding, Spy Tails is a great read that ticks all the boxes – history, animal biology, and ethics, delivered with well-honed penmanship. In a world where birds, dogs, cats, and even insects are potential intelligence assets, only the truth can be this strange . . . or lessons for the future so compelling. Making room for the hard question of animal well-being and technological advances, the authors pave the way for doing spycraft better."

~Susan G. Friedman, Ph. D., Founder of Behavior Works Zoo School

"In Spy Tails, the authors have beautifully captured the creativity and audacity of the Intelligence Community as it expanded the boundaries of technical and operational tradecraft. This book is a celebration of American ingenuity and the surprising partners, human and animal, that have helped us keep our nation safe."

~Mary Flammang, former CIA Chief of Targeting (retired)

“Spy Tails is a fascinating, well-researched look at the remarkable creativity that has always been part of intelligence work. From dolphins to robotic dogs, the stories are engaging and surprising, and the authors' well-placed humor and puns make reading even more enjoyable. If this is what has now been revealed, just imagine what stories are still waiting to be told.”

~J.C. Lintzenich, Colonel, U.S. Army Military Intelligence (Retired), Former Senior Advisor to the Director of National Intelligence

"Mohr and Sandel have combed the archives to illuminate an underexplored dimension of the intelligence process. Situating these unconventional technological and zoological experiments within broader developments in surveillance, scientific innovation, and national security, Spy Tails reveals both their ingenuity and limitations. Compelling and highly entertaining, this study of the evolving relationship between biological agents, technological systems, and intelligence collection has much to offer readers of intelligence and military history, alike."

~Jennifer Siegel, Bruce R. Kuniholm Professor of History and Public Policy, Duke University

“This well-written and well-researched book is more than just a good read. Exposing the history of the use and abuse of animals by spy agencies that took off during the Cold War and continues to the present, Spy Tails is packed with incredible true stories, some sad, some funny, some infuriating, but all fascinating. Fair warning: after reading this book, you’ll never feel the same when you notice your pet staring with ears turned towards you!”

~Dave Lindorff, Izzy Award-winning author of Spy for No Country

"Highly recommend this volume for intelligence enthusiasts wanting more than just entertaining vignettes, though the pieces are indeed entertaining. Carefully placed within the context of the arts of espionage, and with due regard to animal behavior, we learn about birds, so-called combat dolphins and other sea creatures, various terrestrial mammals, even robots masquerading as animals. Training animals for war has a long history, and training animals for espionage is an integral part of that history. These thoroughly documented reviews cover well-known historical uses as well as more bizarre experiments with animals in espionage, counterespionage, and deception."

~Dr. Barry Zulauf, Georgetown University, President Emeritus of IAFIE

Positioning Statement

Spy Tails is the first book to comprehensively document the classified and declassified history of animals—real and robotic—deployed in covert intelligence operations by the CIA, US Navy, NASA, and allied agencies. Written by two active intelligence analysts with insider knowledge (from DIA and DOJ), this book takes readers inside extraordinary programs: pigeons outfitted with aerial cameras, dolphins trained to hunt enemy submarines, cats wired as living listening devices, and “F.R.A.N.K. the surveillance fly.” Drawing on declassified documents, archival photographs, and scientific research, this is the untold operational history of America’s most unlikely secret agents—and a glimpse at where animal-inspired technology is heading next.

Market

Market Opportunity and Audience

Comp title strength: Perfect for readers of Top Secret: A Handbook of Codes, Ciphers and Secret Writing, The Art of Invisibility (Kevin Mitnick), Spycraft (Robert Wallace & Keith Melton), The Spy’s Son, and Pale Rider. Strong crossover with readers of Are We Smart Enough to Know How Smart Animals Are? (Frans de Waal) and the popular National Geographic and Smithsonian readerships.

Intelligence & espionage nonfiction boom: Spy and intelligence titles are among the most reliably commercial nonfiction categories. The CIA’s own museum—open to vetted visitors—attracts consistent media attention, and declassified programs routinely generate viral coverage. The global intelligence market is a multi-billion-dollar conversation topic with a guaranteed news hook.

Viral declassified history: The CIA’s acoustic kitty program (1960s cat-surveillance project, reportedly costing $20 million) was widely covered when documents were declassified, generating millions of online impressions. Spy Tails systematically explores this and a dozen comparably astonishing programs for the first time in book form.

Animal behavior and cognition interest at all-time high: Frans de Waal’s Are We Smart Enough to Know How Smart Animals Are? sold 100,000+ copies. Other Minds by Peter Godfrey-Smith became a crossover bestseller. Public fascination with animal intelligence, communication, and capability is robust and growing.

Robotics and drone technology urgency: The global drone market was valued at $30.6 billion in 2023 and is projected to reach $55.8 billion by 2030 (Grand View Research). Coverage of insect-inspired micro-drones, bird-mimicking UAVs (like DARPA’s Hummingbird drone), and robotic fish reaches millions of readers annually. Spy Tails connects historical animal programs directly to today’s bioinspired robotics race.

Government transparency movement: Post-Snowden, public appetite for inside looks at classified government programs has never been stronger. FOIA requests hit record highs (900,000+ requests in FY2022 per the Department of Justice). Readers crave credible, insider-sourced accounts.

Military and veteran readership: 25 million US veterans and an estimated 40 million military family members represent a core audience. Military working dog programs (the US military employs ~2,500 working dogs) and Navy Marine Mammal Program stories resonate deeply with this community.

True crime and hidden-history readers: The “hidden history” subgenre—books revealing little-known government secrets and programs—has exploded thanks to podcasts like Radiolab, Stuff You Missed in History Class (35M+ downloads/year), and Throughline. These audiences actively seek out titles like Spy Tails.

Ethics and animal welfare conversation: Animal rights is a growing political and cultural concern—the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) has 5 million+ supporters. Spy Tails’ coverage of the ethics of using animals in covert operations taps directly into this national conversation.

STEM and science readers: Programs in the book—dolphin echolocation research, pigeon navigation studies, insect flight biomechanics—connect to a large popular-science audience. Popular Science reaches 20M+ readers monthly; Scientific American has 10M+.

Gift and specialty retail potential: Espionage, military history, and unusual-animals titles perform strongly in museum shops (Smithsonian, International Spy Museum), specialty gift stores, and airport retail. The International Spy Museum (Washington DC) draws 500,000+ visitors annually and has an active retail program.

Author Credentials

Active intelligence community insiders: Both authors are currently employed as intelligence analysts—one at the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), one at the Department of Justice (DOJ)—providing unmatched insider credibility and access to the lessons embedded in these programs.

Unique access and sourcing: Authors have drawn on declassified government documents, scientific research archives, and archival photographs unavailable or underutilized by prior publications.

Operational insight: As working intelligence professionals, authors bring analytical frameworks that transform fascinating anecdotes into substantive lessons for the intelligence community and general readers alike.

Publicity

Print, Broadcast & Major Media

Major trade reviewers: Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, Library Journal, Booklist, and Foreword Reviews among others

National newspapers: The New York Times (Science, Sunday Review, Book Review), The Denver Post, USA Today, The Los Angeles Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Boston Globe, The Chicago Tribune

Intelligence & national security media: The Cipher Brief, War on the Rocks, Lawfare, Just Security, Defense One, Breaking Defense, SpyTalk (Jeff Stein)

Science & technology: Popular Science, Scientific American, Wired, MIT Technology Review, IEEE Spectrum, New Scientist, Discover

General interest & culture: The Atlantic, The New Yorker, Smithsonian Magazine, Mental Floss, Lapham’s Quarterly, History Today

Animal & nature: National Geographic (print and digital), Audubon, BBC Wildlife, Natural History Magazine, Birding (for pigeon chapter angle)

Military & veteran: Military Times, Task & Purpose, The National Interest, We Are the Mighty, SOFREP, Military History Magazine, Proceedings (US Naval Institute)

Ethics & policy: Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, Ethics & International Affairs

NPR shows: Fresh Air, Radiolab, All Things Considered, Morning Edition, Throughline, To the Best of Our Knowledge, Hidden Brain, Short Wave

Broadcast: CBS 60 Minutes (declassified angle), PBS NewsHour, CBS Sunday Morning (quirky-smart history franchise), Amanpour and Company, C-SPAN Book TV

Cable: History Channel, Smithsonian Channel, National Geographic Channel, Discovery, Military History Channel

Op-ed strategy: Bylined pieces (attributed to “the authors of Spy Tails”) targeting The Washington Post Opinions, The New York Times Op-Ed, The Atlantic, and Wired. Suggested topics: “What the CIA’s $20 Million Cat Spy Teaches Us About Innovation Failure,” “The Dolphin Spies the Navy Doesn’t Talk About,” “Robots Are the New Pigeons.”

Podcasts

Intelligence & national security: SpyCast (International Spy Museum, 2M+ downloads), The Cipher Brief Threat Line, Spy Hards, TRADECRAFT, CounterIntelligence, The Report, Covert Contact

History & hidden history: Radiolab, Throughline (NPR), American History Tellers, Revisionist History (Malcolm Gladwell), You’re Wrong About, Stuff You Missed in History Class, American Scandal

Science & technology: Ologies with Alie Ward (7M+ downloads), Science Vs, Curiosity Daily, Daniel and Jorge Explain the Universe, Future of Everything (WSJ)

Military & defense: Jocko Podcast, The Angry Staff Officer, War Stories with Oliver North, Doctrine Man, Geopolitics Decanted

Animals & nature: Ologies (Alie Ward), Unexplainable (Vox), Our Hen House, The Dodo podcast

True crime & mystery: Casefile, Swindled, American Scandal, MysteryMan Podcast

General popular nonfiction: The Ezra Klein Show, Fresh Air, The Daily, Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard, SmartLess, Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend

Social Media & Digital Marketing

Platform Strategy & Built-in Demand

Publisher social channels: Content series leveraging declassified images, short video explainers (“Did you know the CIA spent $20M on a spy cat?”), and chapter-by-chapter reveals across Instagram, Facebook, X/Twitter, and YouTube Shorts. Espionage + animals content consistently outperforms average engagement benchmarks on social platforms.

TikTok / BookTok: The “weird history” and “wild nonfiction” communities on BookTok have driven massive sales for similar titles—The Poisoner’s Handbook, Stiff, The Indifferent Stars Above. Target top BookTok accounts in the history/nonfiction/dark academia niches. Estimated combined reach of top 50 nonfiction BookTok creators: 15M+ followers.

Bookstagram: Aesthetic spy-themed flat lays and animal imagery are highly shareable. Outreach to bookstagram accounts with 50K+ followers in nonfiction, history, and military genres.

Reddit communities: r/interestingasfuck (11M members), r/todayilearned (38M members), r/Intelligence (specialized community), r/history (17M members), r/espionage. Organic “TIL” posts from book content routinely go viral on these communities.

YouTube: Pitch to channels covering military history, declassified programs, and weird science: Real Engineering (4.3M subscribers), Wendover Productions (4.3M), Plainly Difficult, Dark Docs (1.5M), History Matters.

Newsletters: Outreach to popular nonfiction/history newsletters: The Browser, Bookmarks (Literary Hub), WBUR’s newsletter, Politico’s West Wing Playbook, Foreign Policy’s Security Brief for excerpt or feature placement.

Influencer outreach: Target creators at the intersection of history, military, science, and pop culture: Brandon Sanderson (BookTok adjacency), Hank Green (SciShow, 4.9M YouTube), CGP Grey (5.5M YouTube, known for quirky explainers), History Matters.

Marketing/Book Hooks

“The $20 Million Spy Cat”: Acoustic Kitty is arguably the most shareable single story in the book. A dedicated content piece or short video can drive significant organic traffic and social sharing, with direct calls to action to the book.

Declassified document reveals: Serialized social posts featuring actual declassified CIA and Navy documents build anticipation and give media outlets ready-made visual assets.

Animal spy “quiz” content: Interactive “Which animal spy are you?” or “Real or fake spy animal program?” content drives engagement and shares.

Robotics tie-in: News hooks around DARPA’s latest bioinspired drone or robot fish announcement create evergreen opportunities to reference the book across its entire on-sale window.

Summary Statement

Spy Tails is the first book ever devoted to the full history of animals—real and robotic—used in intelligence missions by the CIA, US Navy, NASA, and allied agencies

Written by two working intelligence analysts with insider knowledge, lending operational credibility unavailable to any outside author

Covers the most astonishing declassified programs in American intelligence history: the $20M acoustic kitty, Navy dolphin submarines, pigeon aerial photography, F.R.A.N.K. the surveillance fly, and more

Bridges the gap between espionage history, popular science, animal behavior, ethics, and the cutting edge of bioinspired robotics