During the years of blockade duty in the Persian Gulf, there was a major problem with the many small fishing boats moving around the area. A few of these were smugglers trying to get something in, or out of, Iraq. But American officers soon discovered a way to make it easier to spot the smuggler. By regularly monitoring various national fisheries websites and scientific sites dealing with marine life, it was possible to see where the concentrations of fish were at any given moment. The local fishermen were getting the same information from their own governments, or access to the web, and going after the fish. By knowing where the fish were, the blockaders could figure out where the fishing boats were supposed to be. This made it easier know where the real fishing fleets were, while making it even easier to spot " fishing boats" that were nowhere near where the fish were. After several smugglers were caught this way, the smugglers figured out their mistake and began to take more roundabout routes (sticking with real fishing boats as much as possible) to avoid easy detection.
