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Scientists Work to Help Brown Pelicans² on Shrinking Islands

As seabird biologist Bonnie Slaton slides off a small boat and walks through waist-high water, the brown pelicans spread their wings overhead until she reaches Raccoon Island.

当海鸟生物学家邦妮·斯莱顿从一艘小船上滑下来，穿过齐腰深的水域时，褐色鹈鹕在头顶上展开翅膀，直到她到达浣熊岛。

The narrow island is a small piece of land separating the American state of Louisiana from the Gulf³ of Mexico.

这个狭窄的岛屿是将美国路易斯安那州和墨西哥湾隔开的一小块土地。

During seabird breeding season, the place is full of noise and motion — one of the few remaining places of safety for the pelicans.

在海鸟的繁殖季节，这个地方充满了噪音和运动——对于鹈鹕来说，这里是仅存的为几个安全的地方之一。

Twelve years ago, there were 15 low-lying islands with breeding areas for Louisiana's state bird.

12年前，有15个低洼岛屿是路易斯安那州鸟类的繁殖区。

But today, only about six islands in southeastern Louisiana have brown pelican¹ nests — the rest have disappeared underwater.

但如今，路易斯安那州东南部只有大约6个岛屿有褐色鹈鹕的巢穴——其余的都消失在水下了。

Slaton and others set up automatic cameras to observe pelican nests on the island.

斯莱顿和其他人安装了自动摄像机来观察岛上的鹈鹕巢穴。

The cameras show that in recent years the main threat against pelicans is flooding — which can wash away entire nests, as happened in April 2021.

摄像机显示，近年来，鹈鹕面临的主要威胁是洪水——洪水可以冲走整个巢穴，就像2021年4月发生的那样。

Louisiana's saltwater marshes⁴, or wetlands, are also disappearing faster than anywhere else in the country.

路易斯安那州的咸水沼泽（即湿地）消失的速度也比美国其他任何地方都快。

Scientists estimate Louisiana loses around 90 meters of wetlands every 60 to 90 minutes.

科学家估计，路易斯安那州每60到90分钟就会失去大约90米的湿地。

Slaton is a researcher at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.

斯莱顿是路易斯安那大学拉菲特分校的一名研究员。

She said, "Louisiana is rapidly losing land," partly because it is sinking but also because sea levels are rising.

她说，“路易斯安那州正在迅速失去土地，”部分原因是它在下沉，但也是因为海平面在上升。

The disappearing islands are the location of a conservation success story.

正在消失的岛屿是一个保护成功故事的地点。

For many years, scientists have worked to bring the pelicans back from totally dying off.

多年来，科学家一直在努力使鹈鹕免于灭绝。

Mike Carloss is a state wildlife biologist in Louisiana.

迈克·卡洛斯是路易斯安那州的一名野生生物学家。

He said he never saw brown pelicans as a child in the 1960s.

他说，他在20世纪60年代（即他小时候）从未见过褐色鹈鹕。

Like bald eagles, their populations had been killed by widespread DDT pesticide⁵ use.

与秃鹰一样，它们的种群也因滴滴涕杀虫剂的广泛使用而死亡。

It thinned eggshells and prevented pelicans from hatching.

它使蛋壳变薄，阻止鹈鹕孵化。

The beloved birds were completely gone from Louisiana, only images on the state flag.

这些受人喜爱的鸟完全离开了路易斯安那州，只剩下国旗上的图像。

But a long-running effort to save them led to the birds' return.

但拯救它们的长期努力导致了这些鸟的回归。

After DDT was banned in the U.S. in 1972, biologists brought young pelicans from nearby Florida to repopulate empty islands across the Gulf of Mexico.

1972年，滴滴涕在美国被禁止后，生物学家从附近的佛罗里达州带来了年幼的鹈鹕，让它们在墨西哥湾的空岛上重新定居。

More than 1,200 were released in southeastern Louisiana over 13 years.

13年来，超过1200只鹈鹕在路易斯安那州东南部被释放。

One location was Raccoon Island, where Carloss, then an assistant at the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, helped feed the young pelicans on one island.

其中一个地点是浣熊岛，时任路易斯安那州野生动物和渔业部助理的卡洛斯在一个岛屿上帮助喂养小鹈鹕。

"Somebody had to hand-feed them," he said.

他说：“必须有人用手喂它们”。

As a state wildlife biologist, Carloss later oversaw⁶ restoration projects on the island.

作为一名州立野生生物学家，卡洛斯后来监督了该岛的修复项目。

But now he fears that if islands keep disappearing, "we would be back to the days of the sixties, and not because of poisoning."

但现在他担心，如果岛屿继续消失，“我们将回到60年代，而不是因为中毒。”

Erosion is a natural process leading to the rise and fall of barrier islands like Raccoon Island.

侵蚀是一个自然过程，其导致了诸如浣熊岛这样的屏障岛的兴衰。

Over the course of thousands of years, layers of soil washed down the Mississippi River to build up the islands.

在数千年的时间里，一层层的土壤顺着密西西比河流下来，形成了这些岛屿。

But it no longer comes down because people have built walls to control the flow of the Mississippi River.

但它不再流下来了，因为人们修建了控制密西西比河水流的墙。

Today, stone barriers are used to protect Raccoon Island from the currents of water.

如今，石头屏障被用来保护浣熊岛免受水流的侵袭。

And government agencies work to protect other barrier islands.

政府机构也在努力保护其他屏障岛。

The money comes from payments after the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

这笔资金来自2010年深水地平线漏油事件后的赔偿款。

But it will not last forever — and many sinking islands are not rebuilt at all.

但它不会永远持续下去——许多正在下沉的岛屿根本没有被重建。

The brown pelicans can live more than 20 years.

褐色鹈鹕可以活20多年。

So, the effect of disappearing breeding areas will take time to become clear.

因此，繁殖区消失的影响需要时间才能变得清晰。

But the future for pelicans is uncertain in the barrier islands.

但鹈鹕在屏障岛的未来是不确定的。

I'm Jill Robbins.

吉尔·罗宾斯为您播报。