Each year, millions of animals are captured, transported and sold – both legally and illegally. The overexploitation of commonly traded species is driving wild populations towards extinction, with consumer demand for rarer species resulting in a strengthening feedback loop between supply and demand (Tournan et al., 2012). The direct impact of the removal of traded species can also have indirect consequences on broader communities, such as when traded species also act as keystone species that underpin broader ecosystem functions (Broad, Mulliken & Roe, 2003; Marthy & Farine, 2018). Addressing the wildlife trade with conservation actions is extremely challenging. The trade of Red Siskin Spinus cucullatus exemplifies how many challenges are raised by the trade in even just a single species. However, by mapping the flow of this illegally traded endangered songbird, the study by Sanchez-Mercado et al. (2019) also reveals new opportunities to apply emerging techniques from the social network analysis toolbox that could help with directing novel conservation actions. Sanchez-Mercado et al. (2019) combine on-the-ground interviews with online monitoring to identify those who are involved in the trade of Red Siskin, and apply social network analysis to identify the key actors in this trade. Their study reveals a trade network involving many types of people – including hobbyists, sustenance harvesters and professional traders – that together form a global network of trade. However, the primary focus of the study by Sanchez-Mercado et al. (2019) – to test whether the illegal bird trade coming from Venezuela is linked to more general illegal trade or remains more specialized – also sheds light on some potentially novel solutions. Their evidence for a specialized trade network structure, and their ability to identify the contribution of different parts of the trade network by following the flow of birds, suggests that there might be opportunities to apply knowledge from other disciplines to help develop new types of targeted interventions. Recent developments in the study of human and animal social networks provide insights into possible conservation actions that could be directed at wildlife trade networks. For example, we now have a good understanding of how knowledge about novel information (Aplin et al., 2015) and imminent threats (Rosenthal et al., 2015) spread through animal social networks, and how social structure can lead to undemocratic outcomes in human social networks (Stewart et al., 2019). Such studies could provide the basis for identifying key points to infiltrate networks and establish targeted information campaigns. More direct conservation actions could involve the removal of a node, for example, via legal enforcement. Studies that have modelled the dynamics of social networks following the removal (Farine, 2019) and the introduction (Ilany & Akcay, 2016) of nodes in networks could help shed light on how wildlife trade networks might adapt to such interferences, and what factors make them resilient to the removal of key actors. The quantitative data on the structure of a wildlife trade network provided by the study by Sanchez-Mercado et al. (2019) could also form the basis for researchers to study the emergence and maintenance of wildlife trade networks. Applying generative network models, such as stochastic actor-based models (Snijders, van de Bunt & Steglich, 2010), could deepen our understanding of the processes involved in the formation of trade networks. From such models, different types of interventions could be simulated, in much the same way as targeted vaccinations or culling programmes are simulated in other social networks. SanchezMercado et al. (2019) identify one possible action – the engagement of Red Siskin breeders as a source of information for greater sustainable use of this endangered species. However, producing meaningful predictions of the efficacy of such an intervention and identifying the general applicability of different types of interventions across traded species require quantitative data from real wildlife trade networks. Sanchez-Mercado et al. (2019) showed that gaining the necessary information is possible by nurturing personal contacts in these networks, in their case through mutual contacts with harvesters of Red Siskin. The wildlife trade is a widely pervasive and pressing conservation problem, and it can also pose a major risk to our own lives. Such threats are exemplified by several coronavirus and other major disease outbreaks over the past

中文翻译：

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绘制非法野生动物贸易网络为保护行动提供了新的机会

每年，数以百万计的动物被合法和非法捕获、运输和出售。对常用交易物种的过度开发正在推动野生种群走向灭绝，消费者对稀有物种的需求导致供需之间的反馈循环不断加强（Tournan 等，2012）。移除交易物种的直接影响也可能对更广泛的社区产生间接影响，例如当交易物种也充当支撑更广泛生态系统功能的关键物种时（Broad、Mulliken & Roe，2003 年；Marthy & Farine，2018 年）。通过保护行动解决野生动物贸易问题极具挑战性。Red Siskin Spinus cucullatus 的贸易体现了即使是单一物种的贸易也带来了多少挑战。然而，通过绘制这种非法交易的濒危鸣禽的流动图，Sanchez-Mercado 等人的研究。（2019 年）还揭示了应用社交网络分析工具箱中的新兴技术的新机会，这些技术可能有助于指导新的保护行动。桑切斯-梅尔卡多等。(2019) 将实地采访与在线监控相结合，识别参与 Red Siskin 交易的人员，并应用社交网络分析来识别该交易的关键参与者。他们的研究揭示了一个贸易网络，涉及多种类型的人——包括业余爱好者、粮食收割者和专业贸易商——共同构成了一个全球贸易网络。然而，Sanchez-Mercado 等人研究的主要焦点。（2019 年）——测试来自委内瑞拉的非法鸟类贸易是否与更普遍的非法贸易有关或是否仍然更加专业——也揭示了一些潜在的新解决方案。他们关于专业贸易网络结构的证据，以及他们通过跟踪鸟类流动来确定贸易网络不同部分的贡献的能力，表明可能有机会应用其他学科的知识来帮助开发新型的有针对性的干预措施. 人类和动物社会网络研究的最新进展为可能针对野生动物贸易网络的保护行动提供了见解。例如，我们现在对新信息（Aplin et al.，2015）和迫在眉睫的威胁（Rosenthal et al.，2015）通过动物社交网络传播，以及社会结构如何导致人类社交网络中的不民主结果（斯图尔特等，2019）。此类研究可为确定渗透网络的关键点和建立有针对性的信息运动提供基础。更直接的保护行动可能涉及移除节点，例如通过执法。对网络中节点移除 (Farine, 2019) 和引入 (Ilany & Akcay, 2016) 后社交网络动态进行建模的研究有助于阐明野生动物贸易网络如何适应此类干扰，以及哪些因素会导致他们对移除关键角色具有弹性。Sanchez-Mercado 等人的研究提供的关于野生动物贸易网络结构的定量数据。(2019) 也可以为研究人员研究野生动物贸易网络的出现和维护奠定基础。应用生成网络模型，例如基于随机参与者的模型 (Snijders, van de Bunt & Steglich, 2010)，可以加深我们对贸易网络形成过程的理解。从这些模型中，可以模拟不同类型的干预措施，这与在其他社交网络中模拟有针对性的疫苗接种或剔除计划大致相同。桑切斯梅尔卡多等。（2019 年）确定了一项可能的行动——让 Red Siskin 育种者参与，作为信息来源，以更可持续地利用这一濒危物种。然而，对此类干预措施的有效性进行有意义的预测并确定不同类型干预措施对贸易物种的普遍适用性需要来自真实野生动物贸易网络的定量数据。桑切斯-梅尔卡多等。(2019) 表明，通过在这些网络中培养个人联系，可以通过与 Red Siskin 收割者的相互联系来获得必要的信息。野生动物贸易是一个普遍存在且紧迫的保护问题，它也可能对我们自己的生命构成重大风险。过去发生的几次冠状病毒和其他重大疾病的爆发就是这种威胁的例证 (2019) 表明，通过在这些网络中培养个人联系，可以通过与 Red Siskin 收割者的相互联系来获得必要的信息。野生动物贸易是一个普遍存在且紧迫的保护问题，它也可能对我们自己的生命构成重大风险。过去发生的几次冠状病毒和其他重大疾病的爆发就是这种威胁的例证 (2019) 表明，通过在这些网络中培养个人联系，可以通过与 Red Siskin 收割者的相互联系来获得必要的信息。野生动物贸易是一个普遍存在且紧迫的保护问题，它也可能对我们自己的生命构成重大风险。过去发生的几次冠状病毒和其他重大疾病的爆发就是这种威胁的例证