求偶游戏（2021）

and quickly attracts the attention of a male.
抖动着鳍的是一条雄性版的钓线
Quivering his fins is a male's version of a pick-up line.
她现在有一个伴侣 但有更多的鱼
She has a mate for now, but with more fish
继续抵达,
continuing to arrive,
巢的空间快用完了
room for nests is running out.
雌性竞争对手试图偷走她的配偶 她的巢穴或两者兼而有之
Rival females try to steal her mate, her nest or both.
但她很快就送走了他们
But she quickly sees them off.
巢穴现在覆盖了河床
Nests now cover the stream bed.
她产卵
She releases her eggs...
…他受精
..he fertilises them...
…他们的工作完成了
..and their work is done.
但她并没有开始返程
But she doesn't start on a return journey.
这总是一次单程旅行
This was always a one-way trip.
没有一条鲑鱼，不管是雄的还是雌的
None of the salmon, male or female,
离开海洋后吃东西
has eaten since leaving the ocean...
…现在他们疲惫的身体开始崩溃
..and now their exhausted bodies begin to collapse.
太平洋鲑鱼只繁殖一次
Pacific salmon only breed once
在他们的生活中 并且已经这样做了
in their lives, and having done so,
他们死了
they die.
他们被繁衍驱使时似乎用之不竭
They seemed inexhaustible while being driven
繁衍后代的冲动
by the urge to reproduce.
它们赢得了交♥配♥游戏
These have won the mating game.
但他们为此付出了生命代价
But it cost them their lives to do so.
太平洋鲑鱼迁徙
Salmon from the Pacific migrate
他们在寻找一个安全的地方
in their search to find a safe place
产卵
to lay their eggs.
但当适合筑巢的地点特别稀少时 竞争就更加激烈了
But when suitable sites for nests are particularly rare, competition
可能会变得紧张
can get intense.
这些是美国东部的阿巴拉契亚山脉
These are the Appalachian Mountains in the eastern United States.
在这里 只有很少的几条河流 生活着怪物
Here, in just a very few rivers, live monsters
有着真正古老的祖先
with a truly ancient ancestry.
有人称之为鼻水獭
Some call them snot otters...
…也有人称泥鬼
..others mud devils.
然而 他们最常见的名字是大鲵
Their most common name, however, is hellbender.
但它们并不常见
But common they are not.
大鲵确实非常罕见
Hellbenders are very rare indeed.
这只雄性动物伪装得很好 很少移♥动♥
This male is very well camouflaged, and he rarely moves.
所以在实践中 他几乎是隐形的
So in practice, he's almost invisible.
大鲵是一种大的娃娃鱼
Hellbenders are a kind of giant salamander.
他可以长到60厘米长
He may grow up to 60 centimetres long.
他们通常很害羞
They're usually very shy,
但是在每年的几个星期里
but during the few weeks each year
当夏天转为秋天 河水开始更强烈流动
when summer turns to autumn and the river starts to flow more strongly,
大鲵开始四处移♥动♥
the hellbenders start to move around.
他在找个地方安家-
He's looking for somewhere to nest -
一块石头 但不仅仅是任何一块石头
a rock, but not just any rock.
他对这个特殊的板块很熟悉
This particular slab he knows well.
他以前选过
He's chosen it before.
这种罕见、较重的石头不容易被冲走
Such rare, heavier stones don't get easily washed away.
它下面的空间隐藏得很好 水流也在流动
The space underneath it is well hidden and the current flowing
迅速通过它将带来所需的氧气
swiftly through it will bring the oxygen needed
用于发育卵
for developing eggs.
雌性已经开始行动了
The females are already on the move,
他们奋力向上游冲去
battling their way upstream towards him.
他只需要坚持住他的巢穴，直到她们到达那里
He just needs to hold on to his den until they get there.
但每年都有其他雄性来挑战他
But every year other males arrive to challenge him.
他们从四面八方向他袭来
They come at him from all sides.
他们甚至排着队试图接管他的巢穴
They're even lining up to try and take over his den.
但当他战斗的时候 强大的水流把他带离了巢穴
But as he fights, the strong current carries him away from the den
另一个对手看到了机会
and another rival sees a chance.
在关键时刻回来
Back in the nick of time.
使人精疲力竭的
Exhausting.
但这是他必须找到配偶的时候
But this is the time when he has to secure a mate.
随着温度的下降 冬季湍急的水流变得越来越大
With temperatures dropping, the turbulent winter water becomes
富含卵子发育所需的氧气
rich in oxygen needed by developing eggs.
这些天来 土地的侵蚀越来越严重
These days, increasing erosion of the land
正在用沉积物堵塞大鲵的巢穴
is blocking hellbender dens with sediment.
因此 现在这一点比以往任何时候都更值得为之奋斗
So now this one, more than ever, is worth fighting for.
他被迫离开了家
He's been forced out of his home.
但在他经历了这么多之后 他不会让步的
But after all he's been through, he's not about to concede.
他的对手放弃了
His rival gives up.
他仍然是老板
He is still the boss.
现在 终于有了一位受欢迎的客人
And now, at last, a welcome visitor.
他用大鲵熟知的方式问候她
He greets her with what is known to hellbender watchers
作为求爱之吻
as a courtship kiss.
她的肚子里装满了卵
Her belly is full of eggs
她悄悄来到他身边
and she slips in beside him.
奇怪的是 经过几天的争吵
Then strangely, after days of brawling,
对手雄性也被允许进入
rival males are also allowed to enter.
也许他现在太累了 无法战斗
Perhaps he's now too exhausted to fight
或者有一些我们不知道的策略
or has some strategy we don't know about.
其他的雌性随后会去巢穴并产卵
Other females then visit the den and add their eggs
一起成团，由他保护
to the communal clutch, which he will protect.
他成了整个大鲵社区的保姆
He has become a baby-sitter for the whole hellbender community.
在淡水世界里 通常是雄性照顾幼仔
In the freshwater world, it's often the males who look after the young.
但即使这些责任留给了一位家长
But even when these duties are left to one parent,
交♥配♥游戏可能仍然需要谨慎的时间协调
the mating game may still demand carefully timed coordination.
在南美洲 亚马逊河流域的水位上升
In South America, water levels across the Amazon basin rise
随着季节性降雨而下降
and fall with the seasonal rains.
如果这只雄性溅水脂鲤能够成功交♥配♥
If this male splash tetra is going to mate successfully,
他需要水位上升
he needs the water level to rise.
现在很低
It's low at the moment,
但每一滴雨都使它更接近他的要求
but every drop of rain brings it closer to his requirements.
雨开始缓了 他想看看自己是否够高了
As the rain begins to ease, he tries to find out if he's high enough yet.
几次瞄准良好的水花帮助他估计距离
A few well-aimed splashes help him to estimate the distance.
他在找一个地方
He's looking for a place
雌性可以在远离捕食者的地方产卵
where a female can lay her eggs away from predators.
但要正确评估形势,
But to assess the situation properly,
他做了一件非常了不起的事
he does something truly extraordinary.
他溅到叶子上的水
The water he splashes on to the leaf
一时间 他又回到了河里
momentarily delays his fall back into the river.
现在他把注意力转向一位雌性
Now he turns his attention to a female.
因为接下来的事情需要他们两个
Because what comes next needs the two of them.
如果它们要成功交♥配♥
If they're to mate successfully,
它们必须同时击中树叶
they must hit the leaf simultaneously.
她产卵后 他张开下巴和鳍
After she's laid her eggs, he spreads his jaw and fins
帮助他坚持足够长的时间让它们受精
to help him cling on just long enough to fertilise them.
这种特殊的产卵方式保证了卵的安全
This extraordinary way of laying keeps the eggs safe
来自水下捕食者
from underwater predators.
但对他来说 这带来了最后一个挑战
But for him, it creates one final challenge.
离开水 卵有干涸的危险
Out of the water, the eggs are in danger of drying out.
问题解决了
Problem solved.
随着雌性的离去 他独自承担责任
With the female gone, he alone takes the responsibility
确保他们的卵保持湿润
for ensuring their eggs will stay wet
直到它们在几天后孵化
until they hatch in a few days' time.
溅水脂鲤双人必须同步动作
The splash tetra pair had to synchronise their moves,
但在其他情况下 交♥配♥游戏需要成千上万的个体
but in other cases, the mating game requires thousands of individuals
和谐地工作
to work in harmony.
在东非大裂谷
In the Great Rift Valley of East Africa,
地壳的裂缝中充满了淡水
fractures in the Earth's crust have been filled with fresh water
数百万年来每年的降雨
over millions of years by the annual rains.
但在许多湖泊中
But in many of these lakes,
水不能长时间保持新鲜
the water doesn't stay fresh for long.
地下深处滚烫的火山水
Scalding volcanic waters from deep below ground
把从岩石中溶解的盐带上来
carry up salts dissolved from the rocks.
在这些腐蚀性的湖泊中 没有多少生物能够生存
Not much is able to live in these caustic lakes.
但有一种鸟成群结队地向它们飞去
But one kind of bird flocks to them.
较小体型的火烈鸟以百万计聚集在这里
Lesser flamingos gather here in millions
以发育的微藻为食
to feed on the microscopic algae that develop
在这些超咸的水里
in these super salty waters.
雄火烈鸟在交♥配♥前必须吃饱