亚洲（2024）

在印度西部的古吉拉特邦
In Gujarat, in the west of India,
一条蛇在滑动
snakes are on the move.
这些蛇是渔游蛇
These are checkered keelbacks
他们心目中有一个特定的目的地
and they have a particular destination in mind.
这条排水沟看上去可能食物寥寥
This drainage channel might not look like much,
但很快就会充满鱼
but it will soon be full of fish.
蛇似乎也知道这一点
And the snakes seem to know it.
鱼儿逆流而上抵达水库
Fish travelling upstream to reach reservoirs
必须穿过一个狭窄的排水洞
must pass through a narrow gap.
在那里，蛇坐等美餐送上门
There, the snakes await them.
但他们似乎唯一能真正抓住的是
But the only thing they seem to be actually catching
彼此
is each other.
他们很快就能看清形势
They don't have long to get their eye in.
当水位达到最高点前
The fish are only here for a few days each year,
每年鱼儿只路过这儿几天
when water levels are at their peak.
现在，竞争无处不在
And now, there is competition.
羡慕嫉妒恨啊！
That is just showing off.
终于中奖！
Jackpot!
最终，蛇们成功了
Finally, the snakes have caught on.
现在他们变得雄心勃勃
And now they're getting ambitious...
去捕获更大的鱼
going for even bigger fish.
有愿望是一回事，有实力又是一回事
But be careful what you wish for.
一处排水洞就能产生如此大的轰动
Such a stir from one simple structure.
人类的发展不可避免地影响着环境
Human developments inevitably affect the landscape.
在亚洲，这种影响力已经变得巨大而广泛
And here in Asia, that influence has become major and extensive.
整个大♥陆♥，人们正从四面八方进行建设
Across the continent, people are building in all directions,
比地球上任何其他地方都快
faster than anywhere else on Earth.
在短短几十年内，新加坡已完全成为大都市
In just a few decades, Singapore has become totally urban.
而且仍在扩大
And it's still expanding.
如今，世界上三分之二的大城市位于亚洲
Today, two-thirds of the world's mega-cities are in Asia.
有些甚至扩张太远，而两城合并
And some have spread so far that they've merged with one another.
并创造了地球上最大的建筑面♥积♥
and created the planet's largest built-up area.
这就是现在所说的特大都会
This is what is now known as a megalopolis.
3700万人在这里安家
37 million people have their homes here.
这样的城市无疑是地球上最不理想的栖息地
Such cities are surely the most un-natural of our planet's habitats.
台北，中国台♥湾♥省的省会
Taipei - the capital of Taiwan
这有一种通常在森林中发现的动物
Here, an animal normally found in forests
现在生活在被现代学校的玻璃和混凝土包围的环境
now lives surrounded by the glass and concrete of a modern school.
在五楼的图书馆内
On the fifth floor, inside the library,
他筑了一个巢
he's built a nest...
于窗户和百叶窗之间
between a window and its shutters.
这里安静、温暖并且远离掠食者
It's quiet, warm and far from predators.
这是松鼠能美美睡一整天的好地方
A great place for a squirrel to sleep through the day.
但当他醒来时，却遇到了难题
But when he wakes up, he has a problem.
在这里，食物稀少
Here, there is very little food.
去到一棵可能有树的地方，
To get to a tree where there might be some,
他必须从一栋建筑前往另一栋建筑
he must travel from one building to another...
那意味着存在危险
and that is dangerous.
但这不是只普通的松鼠
But this is no ordinary squirrel.
他拥有超能力
He has a super-power.
他会飞翔
He can fly.
他的四肢之间有皮肤伸展
He has skin stretching between his limbs
这使他能够滑翔150米之远
that enables him to glide for 150 metres or so.
但要到达目的地将是困难的
But to reach his destination will be difficult.
每次起飞必须从尽可能高的地方
Each take-off must be from as high as possible...
因为每次滑翔时，
..because with every glide,
他不可避免地会掉落地面
he inevitably loses height.
而且在地面上行走确实很危险
And travelling over the ground is very dangerous indeed.
终于，树木出现在眼前了
At last, the trees are in sight.
只要再穿过一条繁忙的道路，他就会到达目的地
Just one more busy road to cross and he'll be there.
又是一顿美餐
Finally, a meal.
另一位台北居民设法找到了所需的一切
Another Taipei resident manages to find all it needs
无需通勤奔波
without having to commute.
犀牛甲虫
A rhinoceros beetle
出现在城市花♥园♥中
emerging in a city garden.
雄性满脑只想着一件事
Males have only one thing on their mind...
在城里找伴交♥配♥
sex in the city.
这似乎不太可能是寻找伴侣的地方
This may seem an unlikely place to find a mate.
但这里有一种东西是所有犀牛甲虫都喜欢的
But there's something here that all rhinoceros beetles
难以抗拒的
find irresistible.
白蜡树
Ash trees.
许多雌性已经在这里，以甜美的汁液为食
Lots of females are already here, feeding on the sweet sap.
这只雄性小心翼翼地接近它们
This male approaches them cautiously.
但他并不是第一只到达的雄性
But he's not the first to arrive.
有些情敌有着更大的角
And some have much bigger horns.
跌落
Down
但还没出局
but not out.
犀牛甲虫不会轻易放弃
Rhinoceros beetles don't give up easily.
但这些白蜡树种植得更密集了
But these ash trees have been planted closer together
比它们通常在野外生长的要多
than they usually grow in the wild.
这就是为什么这里有这么多犀牛甲虫的缘故
Which is why there are so many rhinoceros beetles here.
更多的雄性意味着更多的战斗
And more males means more battles.
这么小的角，获胜的几率很低
With such a small horn, the odds of winning are low.
有时你必须另寻出路
Sometimes you have to rely on stealth.
等待其他雄性进行战斗时
Waiting for the other males to start fighting...
然后偷偷地溜过去
and then sneaking past.
最终，觅得佳偶
Finally, a female.
犀牛甲虫只是能够在亚洲城市
Rhinoceros beetles are one of a select group of animals
繁衍生息的动物之一
able to thrive in Asian cities.
曼谷，泰国的首都
Bangkok, the capital of Thailand,
拥有上千万人口
has a population of ten million people.
仅仅250年前，这里还是湿地
Only 250 years ago, this was all wetlands.
在摩天大楼之间，仍然残留着过去的痕迹
And between the skyscrapers, remnants of that past remain.
这是隆比尼公园
This is Lumpini Park
在这里，沼泽居民仍然生存期间
and here, swamp-dwellers still survive.
一头亚洲巨蜥
An Asian water monitor.
这只年轻的雌性是公园里最小的雌性之一
This young female is one of the smallest in the park.
所以她在这里的生活并不轻松
So her life here isn't easy.
雄性巨蜥占主导地位
Males dominate.
有的长达两米多
Some are over two metres long...
而且个个都是捕鱼能手
and all are expert at fishing.
这里住着约300巨蜥
There are 300 or so living here,
是你所都能找到的最密集的巨蜥种群
as dense a population of big lizards as you can find anywhere.
所以竞争很激烈
So competition is fierce.
如果这只小雌性想要获得公平份额，她需要大胆出击
This small female will need to be bold if she's to get her fair share.
这么大的渔获吸引了一大群巨蜥
A catch as big as this attracts a crowd.
他们的分叉舌头使他们能够闻到气味
Their forked tongues enable them to detect a scent
哪怕是半英里外
from half a mile away
很快许多巨大的雄性陆续抵达
and soon many huge males arrive.
小雌性巨蜥毫不畏惧
The female is undaunted.
尽管她个子很小，但她还是勇敢闯了进来
Despite her small size, she barges straight in.
但随着越来越多的雄性聚集在一起，它们就会发生争斗
But as more males gather, they squabble.
她的机遇看起来不太乐观
Her chances don't look good.
当你无法抢食成功时，只能另辟蹊径
When you can't get a look in, other tactics might work.
比如偷抢
Such as stealing.
这只雌性现在拥有了自己的鱼头
This female now has her very own fish head
她不会轻易放弃
and she's not giving it up.
这里的食物实在富足，这些巨蜥得以繁衍生息
There's so much food here that these lizards are thriving.
似乎，于人类共生共存
And seemingly, finding little difficulty
也不是太难之事
in living alongside humans.
这可不是一般的生存能力
That is not a common ability.
大多数动物需要一个更自然的世界
Most animals need a more natural world
随着我们的人数不断增加
and that is diminishing as a consequence of
这种自然环境正在减少
our ever-increasing numbers.
在婆罗洲，短短50年间
In Borneo, in just 50 years,
人口足足增加了两倍
the human population has tripled,
与此同时，森林面♥积♥减少了一半
whilst the size of its forest has halved.
岛上的一种居民，其生活有别于其他地方
And one of the island's inhabitants, which lives nowhere else,
有着非常特殊的要求
has very special requirements.
长鼻猴
Proboscis monkeys.