World News for Students of English

14-10-2020 07:00

Conservationists have developed a new method to track the trafficking of turtle eggs in Central America where eggs are smuggled from beaches and sold as delicacy.

The eggs are 3D printed egg decoys with hidden GPS tracking technology. Currently, conservationists are testing if it is possible to put an egg in a nest and to trace the entire trade chain. The eggs were made as realistic as possible, and in total 101 eggs were placed in nests throughout the project with 25 eggs taken by poachers. It revealed that the majority of eggs did not leave the local area; however, conservationists were able to track eggs that ended up in a supermarket about 85 miles away.

No legal action was taken as a result of the project, although the team is working towards making these decoy eggs a tool that police could use to combat illegal trade with turtle eggs.

Difficult words: conservationist (a person who works to protect the environment), delicacy (something pleasing to eat that is considered rare or luxury), decoy (something that is used to trick people).

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