黄石公园（2009）

But they are not top dog here.
但是他们在这里不是最高等级的犬类
Yellowstone's top predator, the wolf,
黄石公园的最高捕食者 狼
dominated during the winter but is far less visible in summer.
统治了一个冬天 到了夏天却行踪难觅
They prefer to stay close to well-hidden dens
他们更愿意守在非常隐秘的兽穴周围
to protect their pups from rival packs.
防止与它们竞争的族群伤害其幼崽
This pack seem prepared to allow their young a brief foray
这一个狼群似乎准备好要让新手们进行简短的尝试
to experience the world beyond their den.
以体验他们兽穴之外的世界
Even in Yellowstone
就算在黄石公园
it is extremely rare to see wolf pups like this.
能象这样看到狼的幼崽也是极其难得的
Before long they are summoned back into the forest by the pack.
没多久 他们就被召回到本家族的森林里
It will be winter before they are regularly seen again.
冬天之前不会再经常见到他们
As May turns to June,
五月过去 六月来了
Yellowstone sees its nursery season.
黄石公园迎来它的托儿所季节
By early June summer is finally here.
六月初 夏天终于到来
In the flower meadows
花草地上的植物
plants turn sunlight into the sugar of nectar,
把阳光转化成为花蜜
and that's what Yellowstone's smallest migrating bird has been waiting for.
黄石公园的小候鸟们一直等候的季节到来了
The Calliope hummingbird has made the journey all the way from Mexico.
卡利奥普蜂鸟不辞艰辛从墨西哥一直飞到这里
He'll make this flower patch his own
他要让这花期只属于他自己
and he'll fight to defend it.
并将为保护它而战斗
He'll even take on a far larger Rufous hummingbird.
他甚至不惜跟一只比他大几倍的棕煌蜂鸟开战
But his high-octane lifestyle critically depends on the summer sun,
但他的高能耗的生活方式极端受限于夏天的太阳
and in Yellowstone that's never guaranteed.
而在黄石公园这从来都是说不准的
In the mountains surrounding the plateau summer has not yet arrived.
在群山环绕的高地夏天仍未到达
At this altitude it is still bitterly cold.
在这样的海拔高度仍然寒冷刺骨
These mountains barricade Yellowstone in a ring of ice.
这些山将黄石公园阻塞在一个冰环中
And if the sun is swallowed by cloud,
而且如果太阳被云遮挡
the cold can drive down from the mountains
寒冷会沿山势而下
bringing with it a punishing echo of winter.
带来冬天惩罚性的回响
It can snow in any month in Yellowstone.
黄石公园的每个月都可能下雪
The warm nursery meadows of a few days before
数天以前还是温暖的草地托儿所
are now buried by a June blizzard.
现在被一场六月的暴风雪所掩埋
A curtain of snow dulls senses.
漫天大雪使人知觉迟钝
This mother grizzly bear must now be especially careful.
这头母灰熊现在必须十分小心
A male grizzly will often kill cubs if he finds them.
如果幼熊被公熊找到 他通常会杀掉他们
And though she would rather sit out the storm, she must move.
虽然她宁愿坐等暴风雪结束 但她还是得换个地方
Panicky cubs could easily be lost in a blizzard.
恐慌的幼熊容易在大风雪中遗失
As soon as she feels it is safe,
一旦她感觉安全了
she settles to suckle and reassure them.
她就会安顿下来哺乳并安慰他们
Bison can shrug off this sudden change in the weather.
天气的突变对野牛无关痛痒
They are, after all, built to survive a Yellowstone winter.
毕竟 他们天生就能在黄石公园冬天里存活
But this tiny hummingbird is more vulnerable.
但这只小小的蜂鸟更易受到伤害
Flowers damaged by snow will die
雪蹂躏过后花会谢掉
and the nectar the hummingbird needs goes with them.
蜂鸟所需的花蜜也随之而去
Hummingbirds must be resourceful to survive.
足智多谋的蜂鸟才得以幸存
Bark wells dug by a sapsucker, a type of woodpecker,
只要天气一回暖 被吸汁啄木鸟 啄木鸟的一种
quickly fill with sugar-rich sap as soon as the warm weather returns.
凿出的树洞里很快充满富含糖分的树汁
A little pilfering provides this hummingbird with the energy it needs
在新的花蕾绽放前蜂鸟只好靠小偷小摸
until the new flower buds open.
来获得所需要的能量
Summer moves quickly.
夏天步履匆忙
By late June the blizzards of a few weeks before seem a distant memory.
六月下旬几周前的暴风雪似乎成为遥远的记忆
At last the summer is well-enough established
夏天终于站稳了脚跟
for this hummingbird to take the plunge and raise a brood.
蜂鸟得以冒险尝试并成功筑起一个窝
The living is easy.
日子好过了
But it won't last long.
但好日子总是不长久
At this altitude the air is so dry
在这样的海拔高度 空气干燥到
that rain evaporates before it even hits the ground.
雨在落到地面之前就已经蒸发
The water that flows off the plateau is no longer being replaced.
流出高地的水得不到补充
Already there is drought in forests beyond the meadows.
森林中的干旱程度早已经超过草地
Yellowstone has vast ancient lava fields.
黄石公园有巨大的古老熔岩地带
This porous volcanic rock holds onto very little water.
这块多孔的火山岩石保水性能极差
It is dominated by lodgepole pine,
黑松
a tree that can cope with the arid conditions.
一种耐旱的树支配着这里
The forest may be parched,
森林干透了
but there is still water here in lakes formed by ancient glaciers.
但在远古冰河形成的湖里仍然有水
A visiting male otter woos a female on the lake's shore.
一只来访的公水獭在湖岸上向母水獭求爱
But she seems a little distracted.
但是她有点心不在焉
Her two pups are nearby.
她的两个小孩就在附近
They're about 10 weeks old
他们大约10个星期大
and the time is right to lead them from the holt.
现在正是将他们带离杂木林的时候
Males are not above stealing food from cubs,
公水獭会偷幼崽的食物
so she makes it very clear that he is not going to be joining them.
因此她得确认他不会跟着他们
This female grew up on the lake,
她在湖里长大
so she knows where to take the cubs for a very special trip.
因此她知道该带幼崽到哪里进行一次非凡之旅
Yellowstone cutthroat trout,
黄石公园切喉鳟鱼
amassing in the mouth of a stream that feeds the lake.
聚集在流向湖里的一条溪流溪口
They're preparing for their annual spawning.
他们正准备一年一度的产卵
But the trout must wait.
但鳟鱼还要耐心等着
The stream is still running fast,
现在水流还太急
too turbulent to lay their eggs.
湍急的水流不适宜产卵
It's a nervous time for them, and for good reason.
对他们来说 紧张是有理由的
This osprey has a brood to feed and will be back.
这只鱼鹰有一窝幼鸟要喂养它还会回来
Now the otters are here, too.
现在水獭们也来到这里
She chooses her moment to lead the pups upstream.
她择机将幼崽带到上游
Then leaves them to watch
然后让他们看着
and gives them a lesson in hunting.
给他们上一堂狩猎课
A large trout like this full of eggs is a trophy catch.
这么大一条肚子里全是卵的鳟鱼是她抓到的辉煌战利品
She chews its tail first to make sure the fish can't get away.
她先嚼烂它的尾巴确保鱼不能逃掉
While the pups are still demanding milk,
当幼崽还要吃奶时候
the mother otter will often keep the whole fish for herself.
母水獭会把整条鱼留给自己
Her pups are happy enough with caviar.
幼崽很高兴吃到鱼子酱
As the flow becomes slow enough for the trout to lay eggs,
在河水变得太浅游不到上游之前
there is a brief window of opportunity to spawn
有一个短暂的机会
before the river gets too shallow to swim upstream.
此时水的流速会变慢 鳟鱼可以产下卵
The female digs a trough with sinuous flicks of her body
母鱼扭动身体弄出一个坑
and the attending male fertilises the eggs as they are laid.
公鱼则给产下的卵进行授精
Millions of new lives.
数以百万计的新生命
It's now early July,
现在是七月初
and what looks like more snow
看起来像雪一样的
is actually a blizzard of seeds and insects.
实际上是种子和昆虫
There is more life in the park now than at any other time of the year.
现在公园里的生物比一年中的任何时候都多
It's a turning point in the summer.
这是夏天的一个转折点
Through the coming month the days will get hotter and drier.
接下来的一整个月天气将变得更热和更干燥
The plants will grow less vigorously
植物将不再蓬勃生长
and the pace of summer will slow.
夏天脚步也会放慢
The meadows are not so welcoming now.
草地现在不那么受欢迎了
The grass becomes less nourishing
草的营养成分减少
as it puts its energy into seeds and roots.
它把精华贮存到种子和根里
Bison lose the last of their winter coats.
野牛把冬天的毛褪尽
In the heat, tempers fray.
在热天 他们变得脾气焦躁
To escape soaring ground temperatures,
为逃避上升的地表温度
cowbirds choose a bison's back as a cool place to feed
牛鹂选择野牛的背
and catch the breeze.
作为他们进食和乘凉的地方
Biting insects now become a draining nuisance.
蚊虫叮咬成为非常令人讨厌的事情
A grizzly bear escapes the heat and bugs
一只灰熊到凉爽的湖水中
in the cool waters of a lake.
躲避酷热和虫子叮咬
As the ground dries,
当大地干涸
bears find little food to eat out on the Yellowstone plateau.
在黄石公园高地上熊几乎找不到吃的
There is less to graze and digging roots is hard work,
没什么可吃挖草根又太过辛苦
so they start to head to the cooler mountains beyond.
因此他们启程前往比较凉爽的山脉
In the mountains,
山里面
glacier lilies that finished flowering a month before on the plateau
比高地上早一个月结束花期的冰河百合
are only just coming into bloom.
现在刚刚绽放
Up here, where spring has only just arrived,
上到这里春天才刚到达的地方
bears can find food again.
熊又找到了食物
As the thaw reaches up into the mountains,
当山里的雪不断融化
a part of Yellowstone that few ever see is briefly revealed.
黄石公园极少为人所看到的一部分短暂地展现出来
From its first day above the snow,
从雪中探出头来的第一天
this pika is obsessed by food.
这只鼠兔就被食物迷住
It's in a frantic race to restock its winter larder
这是一个在大雪封山之前为冬天储存食物的