為什么選擇吃魚可能會殺死鯊魚

為什么選擇吃魚可能會殺死鯊魚

The ideal shark hotspot in the ocean is rich in appealing food -- and that's exactly where commercial fishing vessels are snagging sharks along with the fish they catch, according to a new study.

一項新的研究表明，海洋中理想的鯊魚聚集地富含誘人的食物，而這正是商業(yè)漁船捕獲鯊魚和魚的地方。

An international team of researchers spanning 26 countries tracked about 2.000 sharks using satellite tags to determine areas in the ocean where multiple shark species converged. They were found in ocean frontal zones, which act as the boundaries between different water masses. Nutrients and plankton flourish here, which encourages fish to flock to the zones.

一個由26個國家組成的國際研究小組使用衛(wèi)星標簽跟蹤了大約2000條鯊魚，以確定海洋中多種鯊魚聚集的區(qū)域。它們發(fā)現(xiàn)于海洋鋒面區(qū)域，作為不同水團之間的邊界。營養(yǎng)物質和浮游生物在這里繁衍生息，這促使魚類向這些區(qū)域聚集。

While this feeding ground draws sharks, it also draws commercial longline fishing vessels. This method include hundreds of baited hooks hanging from a single line used to catch swordfish, tuna and halibut. But they also catch dolphins, sea turtles, birds and sharks.

這片覓食地吸引鯊魚的同時，也吸引了商業(yè)長線釣漁船。這種方法包括數(shù)百個帶餌料的魚鉤掛在一條釣線上，用來釣旗魚、金槍魚和比目魚。但它們也捕捉海豚、海龜、鳥類和鯊魚。

The movement data of the sharks helped the researchers determine that one quarter of the sharks' habitats were also located in active fishing areas. The study published July 25 in the journal Nature.

這些鯊魚的移動數(shù)據幫助研究人員確定，四分之一的鯊魚棲息地也位于活躍的捕魚區(qū)。這項研究發(fā)表在7月25日的《自然》雜志上。

"Our results show major high seas fishing activities are currently centered on ecologically important shark hotspots worldwide" said David Sims, study author and team leader with the Global Shark Movement Project based at the Marine Biological Association Laboratory in Plymouth, UK.

“我們的研究結果表明，目前主要的公海捕魚活動都集中在世界范圍內具有重要生態(tài)意義的鯊魚聚集地區(qū)，”大衛(wèi)·西姆斯說，他是這項研究的作者，也是英國普利茅斯海洋生物協(xié)會實驗室全球鯊魚運動項目的負責人。

Oceanic sharks migrate across vast parts of the ocean, and they also account for about half of the sharks pulled in by fisheries. Some of the shark hotspots also overlap in areas where a higher than normal concentration of fishing occurs, which causes more sharks to be caught.

海洋鯊魚在海洋的大部分地區(qū)遷徙，它們也占了漁業(yè)捕撈的鯊魚的一半。一些鯊魚出沒的聚集地區(qū)也有重疊，那里的捕魚活動比正常情況下更為集中，這導致更多的鯊魚被捕獲。

"Some shark hotspots were exposed to higher than average fishing effort for as much as half the year," said Nuno Queiroz, study co-author and researcher at the University of Porto's Center in Biodiversity and Genetic Resources.

“一些鯊魚聚集地區(qū)在長達半年的時間里受到的捕撈量高于平均水平，”研究報告的合著者、波爾圖大學生物多樣性和遺傳資源中心的研究員努諾·奎羅斯說。

And although great white sharks are protected, their populations overlapped 50% with commercial fishing.

盡管大白鯊受到保護，但它們的數(shù)量與商業(yè)捕魚的數(shù)量重疊了50%。

"Currently, little to no protection exists for sharks in the high seas. It's clear from our study that immediate conservation action is needed to prevent further declines of open-ocean sharks," said Neil Hammerschlag, a study co-author and research associate professor at the University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science.

“目前，公海對鯊魚幾乎沒有保護。從我們的研究中可以清楚地看到，需要立即采取保護行動，以防止開放式海洋鯊魚數(shù)量進一步減少，”研究合著者、邁阿密大學羅森斯蒂爾海洋與大氣科學學院研究副教授尼爾·哈默施拉格說。

"These findings are concerning because as top predators, sharks help maintain healthy ocean ecosystems."

“這些發(fā)現(xiàn)令人擔憂，因為作為頂級捕食者，鯊魚有助于維持健康的海洋生態(tài)系統(tǒng)。”

The researchers believe a map of hotspots could help determine areas that should be declared as protected to help conservation efforts, as well as quotas to reduce catches.

研究人員認為，(鯊魚)聚集地區(qū)的地圖可以幫助確定哪些地區(qū)應該被宣布為保護區(qū)，以協(xié)助保護工作，以及減少捕撈量的配額。

"Some of the shark hotspots we studied may not be there in as little as a few years' time if management measures are not put in place now to conserve the sharks and the habitats on which they depend," Sims said.

西姆斯說:“如果現(xiàn)在不采取管理措施保護鯊魚和它們賴以生存的棲息地，我們研究的一些鯊魚聚集地區(qū)可能在幾年后就不復存在了。”