我们的海洋（2024）

But he still has a lot to learn.
在浅水区域 与其他幼崽一起练习一个月之后
After a month of practice in the shallows with other pups,
它已经准备好第一次进入海洋
he's ready to enter the ocean for the first time.
在之后的几年里
Over the next few years,
它将学会屏住呼吸超过两小时
he'll learn to hold his breath for more than two hours
并潜入超过1800米深的水中
and dive to a depth of over 6,000 feet.
有一天 它会回到这片海岸
And one day, he'll return to these shores
届时将是我们的海洋中 体型最大且最强悍的海豹
as the largest, toughest seal in our oceans.
从南乔治亚岛出发
From South Georgia,
洋流以每秒1.4亿立方米的速度 继续向前涌动
the great current surges on at five billion cubic feet per second.
在狂风和地球自转的推动下
Driven by ferocious winds and the turning of the earth,
成为地球上最强大的水流运动
it becomes the most powerful movement of water on the planet.
成为一道巨大的屏障 挡住其他海洋
A gigantic barrier to the other oceans.
在其中心是最与世隔绝的大♥陆♥
And at its center is the most isolated continent of all.
南极洲
Antarctica.
超过1300万平方公里的冰封荒野
Over five million square miles of frozen wilderness.
南极大♥陆♥上的许多巨型冰川
Many of the continent's vast glaciers extend out from land
从陆地延伸到海洋表面 成为漂浮的冰架
as floating ice shelves on the ocean's surface.
在海洋的最南端
At the ocean's southernmost point,
洋流在罗斯冰架下流动
the current pushes under the Ross Ice Shelf,
这片冰架的面♥积♥比加州还大
which is larger than the state of California.
这里的冰层厚度甚至超过240米
The ice here can be over 800 feet thick.
然而凡是洋流流经之处
And yet, where the current flows,
就有生命存在
there is life.
无脊椎动物在这里生存了数百万年 似乎没有改变
Invertebrates have existed down here, seemingly unchanged,
for millions of years.
它们都在为下一顿晚餐忙碌
All of them clamoring for their next meal.
其中包括一只南极海蜘蛛
Including an Antarctic sea spider.
它有餐盘那么大
He's the size of a dinner plate,
可能已经几个月没吃东西了
and may not have eaten for several months.
这里竞争如此激烈
With all the competition here,
局面短时间内不太可能改变
that's unlikely to change anytime soon.
它得找一个自己有优势的地方
He needs to find somewhere where he has the advantage.
一个水温极低 几乎就要结冻的地方
A place where the water is so cold, it's on the brink of freezing.
在这里 冰晶能在接触的任何表面聚集
Where ice crystals can grow on any surface they touch...
形成冰洞
...forming ice caverns.
但它们的美丽隐藏着危险
But their beauty hides their danger.
因为任何生物接触到这里的冰
Because any creature that touches the ice here
都可能被困住
can become trapped.
但所有这些危险
But all that danger presents a risky opportunity
对海蜘蛛则意味着冒险的机会
for the sea spider.
它用细长的腿
Using his long, spindly legs,
小心翼翼地穿过冰面
he tiptoes across the ice...
努力避免被冰面冻住
being careful not to trigger its grasp...
然后狼吞虎咽水母大餐
and slurps up his jelly dinner.
既然有冰洞 谁还需要蜘蛛网?
Who needs a web when you've got an ice cavern?
南极环流维持着这极寒的条件
These super-cold conditions are sustained by the Circumpolar Current,
就像冰箱一样 锁住寒冷
which acts as an icebox, holding in the cold.
随着冬天来临
And as winter descends,
南极洲周围的海洋表面 冻结成一大♥片♥坚实的冰层
the ocean's surface around Antarctica freezes into a vast sheet of solid ice.
覆盖面♥积♥达1800万平方公里
Covering up to seven million square miles,
这是南大洋最重要物种的完美庇护所
it's the perfect cover for the most important species
in the Southern Ocean.
这个物种对其他物种 有着不可估量的影响力
One with immeasurable power over others.
南极磷虾
Antarctic krill.
数以万亿计的虾状小甲壳类动物
Trillions of these tiny, shrimp-like crustaceans feed on the algae
以海冰下生长的藻类为食
that grows beneath the sea ice.
据信南极磷虾的总重量超过4亿吨♥
Their combined weight is thought to be over 400 million tons.
超过其他任何野生动物
The greatest mass of any wild animal.
夏季来临时 冰层融化
When summer arrives, the ice melts,
磷虾捕食者蜂拥而至
and krill hunters swoop in.
有常住于此的白眉企鹅
From resident gentoo penguins
也有数千公里外远道而来的巨鲸
to great whales who've traveled thousands of miles.
这是一年一度的盛宴
It's the great annual feast.
然后冬天来临 鲸鱼离去 大海再次冻结
Then, winter comes and the whales depart,
and the sea freezes over again.
只有最坚强的生物才会留下来
Only the hardiest remain behind.
谁说它们不能飞?
Who said they can't fly?
帝企鹅
Emperor penguins.
在海上度过漫长的两周之后
After two long weeks at sea,
这些帝企鹅爸爸妈妈们
these parents need to return to their chicks,
得回到 在几公里外海冰上等待的孩子们身边
who are waiting on thicker sea ice several miles away.
因此尽管刚刚完成超远距离游泳项目
So, despite just completing an epic swim,
它们迅速转换到“田径赛场”
they quickly transition to the track.
全副武装以应对极端天气
All fully equipped with the technical gear required to survive in extreme conditions.
厚厚的脂肪保护它们免受寒冷侵害
Thick blubber protects them from the cold.
防水羽毛保持干爽
Waterproof plumage keeps them dry.
连腿上都有羽毛覆盖
Even their legs are feathered.
每一种适应能力 都经过了进化的精细打磨
以便在最恶劣的海洋环境中生存
Every adaptation refined by evolution to endure our harshest ocean.
它们即将安全到家
They've almost made it home safely...
却被意外拦住了去路
...when the unexpected
...puts a stop to everything.
每一只帝企鹅的生命 都依赖海冰的存在
The life of every emperor penguin rests on the presence of this sea ice.
所以一个小裂缝 在我们看来也许人畜无害
So, while a small crack may seem harmless to us,
但对它们来说 则是可怕的变化信♥号♥♥
to them it signals a frightening change.
虽然它们可能不知道原因 它们的担忧是有道理的
And while they may not know why, they're right to be concerned.
气候危机已经蔓延到 我们的海洋中最与世隔绝的地区
The climate crisis has reached our oceans' most isolated region.
企鹅的世界正遭受破纪录的热浪袭击
The penguins' world is suffering from record-breaking heatwaves,
气温高出正常水平28摄氏度
up to 50 degrees Fahrenheit above normal.
如果海冰 在小企鹅长出防水羽毛前融化
If the sea ice melts before their chicks have developed waterproof coats,
它们就会淹死
they'll drown.
多个帝企鹅种群
已经因为冰层过早消失
Multiple colonies have already suffered premature ice loss,
而损失数以万计的小企鹅
causing the deaths of tens of thousands of chicks.
对于这自然界中强悍的耐力专家
For nature's toughest endurance specialists,
这可能是最困难的挑战
this may be the most difficult challenge of all.
科学家们担心 如果气候继续变暖
Scientists fear that if the warming continues,
到本世纪末 南大洋可能不再有帝企鹅存在
by the end of the century we may have a Southern Ocean without emperor penguins.
随着洋流继续前进
As the current continues its journey,
其路径被南极半岛收窄
its path is narrowed by the Antarctic peninsula,
这里的狂风和强流
where fierce winds and strong currents
迫使深层的水涌上水面
force deep water to well up to the surface.
这些水源自太平洋和大西洋
This water, which originated in the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans,
如今比以往任何时候更暖
is warmer today than ever before.
上升流如同一个秘密入口
The upwelling acts as a secret entrance,
令温暖渗入南极环流
allowing warmth to infiltrate the Circumpolar Current,
进一步加速冰融
further adding to the melt.
随着防御被攻破
With its defenses breached,
夏季变得如此极端
summers have become so extreme
以至于半岛周围的海冰…
that sea ice around the peninsula
变得越发稀少
has become increasingly scarce.
这是有记录以来最大的冰量减少
The greatest ice loss since records began.
没了冰层覆盖以供觅食
Without ice to feed beneath,
大部分的磷虾已经抛弃这片水域
most of the krill have abandoned these waters,
随之离开的 还有许多依赖磷虾生存的动物
along with many of the animals that depend on them.
最后剩下的海冰 其中有一些深藏在峡湾之中
Some of the last remaining sea ice is protected deep within the fjords,
一种依赖冰生存的生物
and clinging on is an ice-dependent creature
仍在顽强抵抗
who's not going down without a fight.
食蟹海豹
The crab-eater seal.
这只年轻的雄性海豹坚韧不拔
This rugged young male is as tough as they come.
它是一位斗士
He's a fighter.
伤疤可以证明
And he's got the scars to prove it.
它生于海冰之上 从未踏足陆地
Born on the sea ice, he's never set a flipper on land.
但是最近
But lately,
它的世界变得面目全非
his world has become unrecognizable.
它找到了为数不多的一块 还能爬上去的冰块
He's found one of the few remaining pieces of ice he can haul out on.
有一只其他种类的海豹和它一起
And he's joined by another species of seal,
韦德尔氏海豹
a Weddell,
它也在寻找避难所
who's also seeking refuge.
海湾异常安静
The bay is unusually quiet.
虎鲸
Orca.
南极杀人鲸
Antarctica's killer whales.
但这些不是普通的杀人鲸