安第斯山脉（2018）

安第斯山脉中部
The Central Andes mountains.
海拔13000英尺
Thirteen thousand feet above sea level.
在这片贫瘠的土地上
In this barren land
生活着地球上最顽强的动物
live some of the hardiest animals on the planet
周围是腐蚀性的泻湖
surrounded by caustic lagoons.
水在这里是珍贵的，它能给予生命
Up here water is precious.It gives life
但也带走生命
but also takes it away.
这是一片毫不容情的土地
This is a land without mercy.
一块被太阳灼烧而缺氧的土地
A land burned by the sun and starved of oxygen.
然而，尽管有极大困难，这里还是有生命的
And yet,despite the odds,there is life here.
极端生存
A life of extremes.
穿越整个南美洲，
Running the full length of South America,
安第斯山脉是世界上最长的山脉
the Andes are the world's longest mountain chain.
半山腰，高耸的山峰墙
Halfway down,high peaks wall
高原
the Altiplano.
它是喜马拉雅山以外最高的高原
It is the highest plateau outside of the Himalayas.
一年中的大部分时间河流都是干涸的
For most of the year the rivers run dry.
缺水和稀薄的冷空气
This lack of water and the cold thin air
使它成为一个非常难以生存的地方
make it an incredibly difficult place to live.
羊驼进行了良好的适应，
Vicuña have just the right adaptations,
包括一个非常大的心脏和肺
including an unusually large heart and lungs
来应对氧气的不足
to cope with the scant oxygen.
雌性生活在由一个雄性主导的群体中
Females live in groups dominated by a single male.
随着天气转暖，
As the day warms up,
其中一只雌性寻找一个僻静的地方分娩
one of the females looks for a secluded spot to give birth.
成年雄性在守望
The adult male keeps watch.
小羊驼甚至在它完全出生之前就开始叫了
The fawn calls out,even before it is completely born
能加强与母亲的联♥系♥
cementing the bond with its mother.
当新生儿与地心引力搏斗时，
As the newborn wrestles with gravity,
妈妈给了它一些温柔的鼓励
Mom gives it some gentle encouragement.
小羊驼的湿毛和刺骨的风
The fawn's wet fur and the biting wind
不是一个好的相遇
are not a good combination.
为了避免太冷，
To avoid getting too cold,
它必须站起来开始移♥动♥
it must get on its feet and start moving
尽可能的快
as soon as possible.
小羊驼只有九磅重
The fawn weighs just nine pounds
每条腿要适应
and has a lot of leg to control.
最终它会变得稳定
Eventually it grows more stable.
20分钟左右，它已经足够稳定了
At 20 minutes old it's just about steady enough
第一次喝奶
for its first drink of milk.
羊驼是非常社会性的动物
Vicuña are extremely social animals.
是时候和其他羊驼见面了
It's time to meet the rest of the herd
只要它能控制好腿
just as soon as it can manage those legs.
羊驼通过嗅觉相互识别，
Vicuña identify each other by sense of smell,
所以到处都是嗅探
so there's sniffing all round.
整个羊驼群都来迎接新的到来
The whole herd comes to greet the new arrival.
虽然小羊驼遇到了第一个挑战
Although the fawn has met its first challenge
只是站起来能动，还是很脆弱的，
of simply getting up and moving,it's still very vulnerable,
在接下来的几个小时里
and will be for the next few hours
尤其是当它的脚还那么不稳的时候
especially while it's still so unsteady on its feet.
早上生孩子，
By giving birth in the morning,
羊驼能确保他们的孩子
vicuña ensure that their young
有机会能在夜幕降临前毛发变干
have a chance to dry out before night closes in
安第斯山脉的高峰带来了刺骨的寒冷
bringing with it the bitterest cold of these high Andean peaks.
安第斯山脉绵延4000英里
The Andes run 4,000 miles down
南美洲的整个西部边缘
the entire western edge of South America.
山脉链最宽的部分
The widest part of the chain
是高地或高原所在的地方
is where the high plateau or Altiplano lies
四面环山
surrounded by tall mountains.
在这里，高海拔的湖泊是由冰川融化和雨水形成的，
Here,high-altitude lakes are formed by glacier melt and rain,
无法排出
unable to drain away.
但也有白色的盐湖，
But there are also white salt lakes,
就像乌尤尼盐湖
like the Salar de Uyuni
在玻利维亚最南端，
and at the southernmost tip of Bolivia,
红湖
the Laguna Colorada.
地球上没有其他地方有一样的湖
A lake like nowhere else on earth.
强烈的太阳辐射使水蒸发，
As the intense solar radiation evaporates the water,
矿物盐被留下了
mineral salts are left behind.
湖水鲜艳的颜色是由微小的藻类引起的
The lake's vivid color is caused by microscopic algae
在腐蚀性的水中茁壮成长
that thrive in its caustic waters.
藻类能吸引成千上万的火烈鸟
The algae lure thousands of flamingos.
三种不同种类
Three different species
詹姆斯火烈鸟
the James's flamingo
安第斯火烈鸟
the Andean flamingo
智利火烈鸟
and the Chilean flamingo.
每个物种的策略稍有不同--
Each species has a slightly different strategy
在找到食物方面
for finding food.
但它们都用喙来筛留藻类
But they all use their beaks to sieve algae
以及其他水中的微生物
and other microorganisms from the water.
其中一种藻类产生一种微红色的色素
One of the algae produces a reddish pigment
这不仅使水变成粉红色
that not only turns the water pink
还有吃藻类的动物
but also anything that eats the algae
包括盐水虾
including the brine shrimp
和火烈鸟本身
and the flamingos themselves.
在旱季开始时，雄性和雌性
At the beginning of the dry season,male and female
詹姆斯火烈鸟开始求爱之舞
James's flamingos begin their courtship dance.
表演通常在中午前后进行
The display normally takes place around noon
可能会持续几个小时
and may last for a couple of hours.
越是有经验的鸟，
The more experienced the birds,
舞蹈越是精致和同步
the more elaborate and synchronized the dance.
盛夏时，红湖
In high summer,the Laguna Colorada
蒸发比填充快
evaporates quicker than it fills
留下晶态盐的毛边缘
leaving a fringe of crystalline salt.
但就在这里的东北方向
But just northeast of here
位于一个完全干涸的湖上
lies a lake that has dried up completely.
玻利维亚的乌尤尼盐湖沼，是一个以前的湖床，
The Salar de Uyuni,in Bolivia,is a former lakebed,
现在被富含锂的盐深深地包裹
now deeply encrusted with lithium-rich salts.
这是迄今为止世界上最大的盐滩
It's the largest expanse of salt flats in the world by far.
它的岛屿位于雪白的盐海中
Its islands lie in a sea of snow-white salt.
然而，在这片干旱的土地上，生命依然盛行
And yet,within this dry arid landscape,life still prevails.
一只大蜂鸟，同类中最大的
A giant hummingbird the largest of its kind,
但重量还是不到一盎司
but still not quite an ounce in weight.
它生活在仙人掌上，这种植物可能有几百年的历史
It lives on cacti that may be centuries old
并生长出作为高级飞行燃料的花蜜
and produce nectar that acts as high-grade aviation fuel.
蜂鸟住在11500英尺的地方，
Living at eleven and a half thousand feet,
这只大蜂鸟已经适应了稀薄的空气
the giant hummingbird has adapted to the thinner air.
与其他蜂鸟相比，
In contrast to other hummingbirds,
它的翅膀更宽，
its wings are broader,
它不在花丛中悬停
and,instead of hovering at flowers
它降落
it comes in to land.
仙人掌开花的时候，
While the cacti are flowering,
大蜂鸟拥有生存所需的一切
the giant hummingbird has all it needs to survive.
在旱季，
In the dry season,
很少有云层进入这些中部高地
few clouds make it into these central highlands.
夜晚格外晴朗，寒冷刺骨
The nights are remarkably clear and bitterly cold.
远离炎热的天气
A far cry from the heat of the day.
每天极端的温度变化
This extreme daily temperature shift
这是另一个挑战
is yet another challenge
对在这里生存的动物而言
for the animals trying to survive here.
几周之内，幼羊驼
Within a couple of weeks,the infant vicuña
已经足够应付这些寒冷的夜晚了
has fluffed up enough to weather these bitterly cold nights.
小羊驼背上布满了冰晶
Ice crystals dust the vicuñas' backs
但是他们的羊绒比山羊绒更有效
but their fleece is more effective than cashmere
在御寒方面
at keeping out the cold.
它还能保护它们免受极限等级的伤害--
It also protects them from the extreme levels
在这个高度出现的紫外线
of ultraviolet light found at this altitude.
这些因素并不是对小羊驼的唯一威胁
The elements aren't the only threats to youngsters.
当羊驼群离开它的睡觉地，
When the herd moves from its sleeping grounds,
下到下面长满草的河谷
down to the grassier river valleys below
有双眼睛在盯着
eyes are watching.