If you’ve ever been on a fishing bo

如果您曾经去过渔船，则可能已经看到成群的鸟类跟随它，希望能吃点零食。现在，科学家利用这些鸟类的行为来追踪非法渔船。<br>研究人员将数据记录器附加到印度洋上169个信天翁的背上。这些设备仅重42克，配有GPS，可检测船上发射的雷达信号的存在和强度。然后，这些信息是通过卫星发送的，因此研究人员可以实时跟踪鸟类的位置，从而跟踪雷达发射船的位置。<br>然后，科学家根据船的已知位置对数据进行了交叉检查，这些数据是从用于声明自身的系统中收集的，该系统称为自动识别系统（AIS）。并经常出现明显的差异。<br>鸟类“记录器”检测到雷达信号的次数超过三分之一，因此，有一条船，但官方日志中没有出现这条船，这意味着车辆可能已经关闭了AIS，这可能是在非法捕鱼活动中发生的情况。<br>这项工作表明，只要非法捕鱼活动不针对鸟类，鸟类就可以成为有效的船只监视工具。<br>幸运的是，这样的任务将很困难。在渔船周围，您一次可以找到数百只飞来飞去的鸟。带有记录器的鸟没有任何标记。因此，渔民实际上不可能挑选出特定的鸟类。<br>但是研究人员担心的是信天翁经常被一些渔船捕获。尽管已经建立了规章制度以防止发生这种情况（但成功的话），但非法船只不一定要服从。因此，科学家可能低估了信天翁种群所带来的风险。

If you’ve ever been on a fishing boat, you’ve probably seen crowds of birds following it, hoping to catch a snack. Now scientists use those birds’ behavior to track illegal fishing boats. <br>Researchers attached data loggers to the backs of 169 albatrosses (信天翁) in Indian oceans. Weighing only 42 grams, the devices included a GPS, which enabled them to detect the presence and intensity of radar signals emitting from boats. That information was then sent by satellite, so the researchers could track the location of the birds—and thus the radar-emitting boats—in real time.<br>The scientists then cross-checked that data against the known locations of boats, collected from a system boats use to declare themselves, called the Automatic Identification System (AIS). And noticeable differences appeared frequently.<br>More than a third of the times the birds “loggers” detected radar signals, and therefore a boat, but no such boat appeared in the official log—meaning that the vehicles had likely switched off their AIS—something that probably happens in illegal fishing operations.<br>The work suggests birds could be an effective boat-monitoring tool as long as illegal fishing operations don’t target the birds. <br>Fortunately, such a task would be difficult. Around fishing boats, you can find hundreds of birds at any one time that are flying around. And the birds with loggers are not marked in any way. So it’s not really possible for fishermen to pick out a specific bird.<br>But what concerns researchers is that albatrosses often get caught by some fishing boats. Though regulations have been established to protect against that happening—with success—illegal boats don’t necessarily obey. So scientists might be underestimating the risk posed to albatross populations.

如果你曾经在一艘渔船上，你可能会看到成群结队的鸟儿跟着它，希望能钓到一点小吃。现在科学家利用这些鸟的行为来追踪非法渔船。<br>研究人员在印度洋169只信天翁的背上附上了数据记录器。这些设备只有42克重，其中包括一个全球定位系统，使它们能够探测到船只发出的雷达信号的存在和强度。这些信息随后由卫星发送，因此研究人员可以实时跟踪这些鸟的位置，从而跟踪雷达发射的船只。<br>然后，科学家们将这些数据与已知的船只位置进行了交叉核对，这些数据是从船只用来声明自己的系统（称为自动识别系统（AIS））中收集的。并且经常出现明显的差异。<br>超过三分之一的鸟类“伐木者”检测到雷达信号，因此发现了一艘船只，但官方日志中没有这艘船只，这意味着这些车辆可能关闭了它们的AIS，这可能是非法捕鱼作业中发生的事情。<br>这项工作表明，只要非法捕鱼活动不以鸟类为目标，鸟类可能是一种有效的船只监测工具。<br>幸运的是，这样的任务将是困难的。在渔船周围，你可以在任何一个时间发现数百只正在飞来飞去的鸟。那些有伐木工人的鸟没有任何标记。所以渔民不太可能挑出一只特定的鸟。<br>但研究人员担心的是信天翁经常被一些渔船捕获。尽管已经制定了一些法规来防止这种情况的发生，但非法船只并不一定遵守这些法规。所以科学家可能低估了信天翁种群所面临的风险。<br>