Her den is on a high slope, |
她的窝建在一片高坡上 |
well away from hungry male bears |
那些饥肠辘辘 |
who would kill her cubs, |
想打幼崽主意的公熊无法靠近 |
but close enough to the sea ice where she can find food |
同时也离海面够近让她能找到食物 |
for her extraordinary new family... |
喂养新家庭成员 |
...three young cubs. |
三只小熊 |
If she can raise them all to independence, |
如果能将它们抚养到独立生活 |
it'll be a rare achievement. |
就已经十分难得了 |
One of the cubs is underweight, |
有一头小熊体重过轻 |
and will be fortunate to survive these early weeks. |
能活过最冷的这几周就很幸运了 |
If the family reaches the sea ice, |
如果他们一家抵达海冰区域 |
where the female can catch seals, |
母熊就能抓到海豹 |
her milk will be enriched, |
她的奶水也会得以富足 |
and the smaller cub will quickly gain size and strength. |
小熊就能很快茁壮成长 |
The sea ice, though, is a dangerous place. |
然而海冰区域非常危险 |
The male polar bear has been out on the frozen ocean all winter. |
公北极熊整个冬天都待在冰封的海面上 |
Times have been lean, |
这个季节食物非常匮乏 |
and a bear cub would certainly make a welcome snack. |
几头小熊仔绝对是上好的零食 |
However, the mainstay of his diet is seals, |
但是他主要还得靠海豹充饥 |
and now is the time when they have their pups. |
而现在正是海豹生育的季节 |
The surface of the frozen sea is marked with pressure ridges, |
冻结的洋面上遍布着因潮汐而形成的 |
and cracks created by the fluctuating tides. |
冰脊和裂纹 |
Both are good places to look for seals. |
这些都是猎食海豹的好去处 |
He has detected a seal den beneath the ice. |
他发现了一处藏在冰下的海豹窝 |
Now he must pin-point it, |
现在他必须借助异常灵敏的嗅觉 |
using only his extraordinary sense of smell. |
来进行精确定位 |
By treading lightly, he can avoid scaring his prey. |
他小心翼翼以免打草惊蛇 |
He will need to punch through a metre of snow to reach the den, |
他得打穿一米厚的雪才够得到海豹窝 |
and if his aim is not exactly on target, |
如果他定位不够精准 |
the seal will certainly escape. |
海豹就会逃走 |
In fact, the ringed seal abandoned her den |
事实上被围剿的海豹早在几个钟头前 |
just a few hours ago |
就弃窝而逃 |
and her pup has climbed up onto the surface. |
她的幼崽也已经爬到冰面上 |
It's more exposed up here, |
虽然在上面更容易暴露目标 |
but it's easier to see an approaching bear. |
但也更容易发现熊的影踪 |
The pup is well camouflaged, |
当母亲离开去捕鱼时 |
difficult to see when its mother has left it to go fishing. |
她把幼崽隐蔽得很好很难被发现 |
But he can still smell it. |
但北极熊还是能闻到海豹的气味 |
Nine out of ten polar bear hunts end in failure. |
北极熊的捕食行动十有八九都以失败告终 |
The sun's warming effect on the Arctic is increasing |
在北极阳光的增温效应不断加速 |
and the sea ice is showing the first signs of weakening. |
海冰首度出现了融化的迹象 |
Inland, the northern rivers are still locked in ice. |
在内陆地区北部的河流仍处于冰封期 |
The frozen waterfalls are like dams |
冻结的瀑布如同大坝一般 |
holding back billions of tonnes of fresh water |
储备着数十亿吨 |
that has not moved for almost six months. |
冻结已近半年的淡水资源 |
完整版请点击 |
|
The vast water shed lies motionless, |
如此巨大的分水岭一直静卧在那里 |
but as spring advances, it beings to stir. |
但随着春天的临近它开始骚动起来 |
The frozen waterfalls start to weaken. |
冻结的瀑布逐渐消融 |
Above them, the pressure is mounting. |
上游处的压力与日俱增 |
Now, from high above, |
现在从高空俯视 |
whole sections can be seen to be on the move. |
可以看见大片的浮冰开始漂流 |
The waterfalls are straining to hold back the force |
瀑布一直在顽强地抵抗 |
that is building up above them. |
这股来自上游的压力 |
The dam bursts... |
大坝瞬间崩塌... |
and the river is unleashed. |
大河滔滔如万马奔腾 |
Millions of tonnes of ice grind their way downstream, |
在融冰产生的势不可挡力量推动下 |
driven by the unstoppable force of the meltwater. |
数百万吨浮冰以摧枯拉朽之势倾泻而下 |
Boulders and trees |
岸边的山石被冲走 |
are plucked from the bank side. |
林木被连根拔起 |
Within just a few days, the rivers of the north are all running. |
短短几天北极的江河便又恢复了奔流 |
The Arctic's fresh water is flowing again. |
北极的淡水再次涌流而出 |
These vast floods contain 10% of the world's fresh water |
这些洪流包含了地球10%的淡水资源 |
and as they enter the ocean, they accelerate the break-up. |
汇流入海时便会加速浮冰解体 |
Soon, |
不久之后 |
an area of sea ice the size of Australia |
相当于澳洲这么大区域的海冰 |
will vanish from the Arctic Ocean. |
便从北冰洋消失不见 |
As the huge ice-sheet breaks up, wildlife returns to the North. |
随着大冰原的解体野生动物开始回归 |
The polar bear mother has made it to the edge of the sea-ice, |
北极熊妈妈成功回归海冰的边缘地带 |
but the smallest cub is nowhere to be seen. |
但最瘦弱的那头小北极熊则无处可寻 |
It's a sad outcome, |
这是个悲伤的结局 |
but the disappearance improves |
可对于剩下来的两头小熊而言 |
the chances of the remaining two, |
则能提高其存活率 |
who now have more milk to share. |
因为他们能够分享到更多的母乳 |
Having led her cubs to the edge of the ice, |
熊妈妈带着小熊来到海冰边缘地带 |
the mother's next challenge is to catch a seal. |
接下来的挑战便是捕食海豹 |
Not easy with these two in tow! |
带着这么两个孩子可不容易 |
Her prey beneath the ice |
藏在冰下的海豹 |
can detect the slightest vibration, |
能察觉到哪怕是最轻微的震动 |
especially from bears. |
对熊发出的声音更是敏感 |
And this is not the stealthiest of hunting parties. |
带着小熊想隐秘猎食也是不可能的 |
Leaving her cubs behind, however, is not an option-- |
然而留下小熊又是万万不行的 |
a male bear would eat one in a moment. |
小熊可能被公熊吞食 |
This is not going to be easy. |
带着孩子捕食并不容易 |
It seems that the cubs |
看起来小熊 |
already see themselves as fearsome hunters, |
已经把自己视作是神武的捕手 |
but they're still young enough |
但他们还很小 |
to accept their mother's discipline. |
仍然听得进母亲的管教 |
It's the naughty corner for you! |
你在这好好反省一下 |
This is not going to be their lucky morning. |
今天上午他们的运气不太好 |
They saw no sign of a seal |
没见到任何海豹的踪迹 |
and the cubs are hungry again. |
熊崽们又饿了 |
The mother has been nursing for four months |
熊妈妈已经哺育四个月了 |
without once eating herself, |
而自己却没有吃过任何东西 |
and now her milk is drying up. |
现在她的乳汁正逐渐耗尽 |
She must catch a seal soon, |
她必须尽快抓到海豹 |
or the whole family will starve. |
不然全家都得挨饿 |
The challenge of finding food is getting harder. |
寻觅食物如今愈发艰难 |
She needs the sea-ice as a platform from which to hunt |
她需要海冰作为捕猎的平台 |
and it's breaking up faster with each passing day. |
而海冰破裂的速度却与日俱增 |
Even the ice around the coast is starting to break. |
甚至连沿海地区的冰也开始破裂了 |
The first cracks here are eagerly awaited by some... |
而有一些动物正迫切地期待第一道裂缝 |