Seahorses and shark fins are illegally trafficked. An AI tool could help stop this crime

Marine wildlife samples used to create marine detection algorithms. Samples provided by the Australian Museum. Dr Vanessa Pirotta

Shark fins on a plane, seahorses in your bag and sea cucumbers in the post – these are just a few examples of illegal marine wildlife trafficking.

This crime can be hard to detect. But in a new study, published in the journal Frontiers in Ocean Sustainability, we show how artificial intelligence (AI) can be harnessed as a complimentary detection tool to help stop marine wildlife trafficking at international airports and mail facilities.