加拉帕戈斯群岛（2006）（2）

【 加拉帕戈斯群岛 】
诞生在海底火山喷发的烈焰之中
Born of fire from the depths of the earth
遭受着太阳无情的烘烤
baked by an infernal sun
他是地球上最奇特的动植物的乐园
home to the strangest creatures imaginable
当人类第一次踏足这里
When people first came here
以为自己来到了地狱
they thought that they had found a hell on earth
但这里不是地狱
But this is no hell
这里是充满着活力的“生命熔炉”
it is a vibrant crucible of life
终于，有一个人发现了真♥相♥
In time, one man saw the truth
他彻底改变了我们对这些岛屿的看法
and changed much more than just our view of these islands
他的名字就叫查尔斯·达尔文
His name was Charles Darwin
这个故事将要讲述加拉帕戈斯群岛
This is the story of how the lonely Galapagos islands
如何由默默无闻的荒岛 最后永远地改变这个世界
came from obscurity to change the world for ever
『 改 变 世 界 的 荒 岛 』
公元前1535年3月10日
尊敬的陛下，我们度过了风平浪静的六天
Your sacred Majesty we had this 6 day calm
现在遇到了强大的海流，我们的船开始随波逐流
the currents were so strong and engulfed us in such a way
在三月十日那天，我们被冲到了岛上
that on the 10, March, we were brought to some islands
托马斯·德贝尔·兰加，巴拿马的主教
Thomas de Berlanga, the bishop of Panama
当时正坐在从本国驶向秘鲁的航船上
was sailing from Panama to Peru
当风势减弱的时候
But when winds failed him,
汹涌的巨浪却使船失去了控制，船完全偏离了航向
strong currents took hold and he was carried wildly off course
最后，主教和他的随从发现了陆地
Eventually, the bishop and his men found land
然而，这又是怎样的陆地啊
But what a land!
仿佛不知在什么时候
It seems as though at some time
上帝曾下过一场猛烈的石头雨
God had showered stones
地上满是岩浆的灰渣，寸草不生
and the earth is like slag – worthless
这里的土地和生物有如来自地狱
Both the land and its creatures seemed infernal
他们挖了一口水井，却发现井水居然比海水还要咸
They dug a well, but found water saltier than the sea
其中两个人死了
Two men died
他们祈求上帝保佑
They prayed for deliverance
当风再起时，主教和他的随从终于离开了这里
The winds returned and the bishop and his men got away
记录了在这个俨如地狱的地方的遭遇
to record their tale of a hell on earth
他们发现了加拉帕戈斯
They had discovered the Galapagos
离南美海岸600英里，正处在赤道上
600 miles off the coast of South America right on the equator
加拉帕戈斯，是由大约12座岛组成的群岛
the Galapagos are a small group of a dozen or so islands
孤零零地耸立在浩瀚的太平洋中
alone in the vast Pacific Ocean
千百年来，那里的火山岩浆形成的海岸和巨大的火山
For millennia, their lava-clad shores and great volcanic mountains
一直无人注意，无人绘制过地图，也一直保持着原有风貌
remained unnoticed, uncharted, untainted
知道大约500年前，命运把巴拿马主教带到了这里
until fate brought the bishop of Panama here nearly 500 years ago
只要看一眼，我们就能明白，为什么这个地方会让主教如此惊恐
At first sight it’s easy to see why the bishop was horrified by this place
从大海里冒出巨大的蜥蜴 海鬣蜥
From the sea come dragons marine iguanas
连走带跑地上岸
slithering onto the land
黑的如同熔岩，它们仿佛要把诅咒吐出来
As black as the lava itself they seemed to spit a curse
在它们清除因吸收海水而积累的盐分的时候
as they purge themselves of salt from drinking sea water
在后面的沙漠，有更大的蜥蜴
In the deserts behind larger dragons
连续五天，主教不得不靠吃仙人掌肉活命
For 5 days the bishop was forced to survive on cactus pads
这些陆鬣蜥也吃
these land iguanas eat little else
它们是直接从针♥刺♥上咬下去后，连肉带汁的享受
They bite right through the needle sharp spines to reach the surprisingly juicy flesh
在这里，浓烟滚滚的内陆地带
And in the smoldering interior,
有巨大的生灵
there are giants
这些乌龟体重与4个成年男子相当
Tortoises, as heavy as 4 grown men
在巨大的躯体里面，这些乌龟能够储存足够的脂肪
In their huge bodies they can store enough fat
维持整年不吃不喝任何东西
to go for a year without eating or drinking anything
为了在这里生存，便好像需要化身成怪物
To survive here it seems you need to be a monster
抑或只要与众不同，就意味着有用？
Or is it just that you need to be different?
一只鸟，像凤♥凰♥一样，从荒芜海岸的灰烬里冒了出来
A bird, phoenix-like, emerges from the ashes of this barren coast
这是一只鸬鹚
A cormorant
但它的翅膀太小了，羽毛又太乱了
But its wings are scruffy and small
看起来不像会飞
It looks like it could never fly
它不会飞
It can’t
然而，在波涛之下还有一个世界
But there is another world beneath the waves
海洋是一块宝地
The ocean is rich
而正是在海洋里，不会飞的鸬鹚找到了它的生存方法
And this is where the flightless cormorant has found its way of surviving
将飞行变成游泳的能力
by trading flight for streamlining
剩下退化了的羽毛，紧紧贴伏身体上
With what’s left of its wings tucked flat against its body
脚非常发达
enlarged feet take over
这样才适合在海底灵活地捕食八爪鱼、鳗鱼以及小鱼
propelling it on in search of octopus, eels and small fish
一直雌鸟正蹲在巢穴里
A female is on the nest
巢是它用海草精心编制的舒适的床
She makes it from seaweed, expertly weaved into a comfortably bed
保护它自己和它下的蛋不受到锋利的岩石的伤害
protection for her and her eggs from the razor-sharp lava
这只雄鸟给它的配偶带来了一份礼物
The male brings a gift for his mate
用来加固巢，也为了巩固它们的关系
for the nest and also to bond their relationship
没有飞行的能力，它们犹如流放于此地的囚犯
Without the power of flight these birds are marooned here
但是它们没有天敌，在自己的家门口就找得到全部所需的食物
but they have no predators and on their doorstep is all the food they need
对于这些把加拉帕戈斯当作家的怪鸟
For the strange creatures that have made the Galapagos home
生活有点苦，但未到苦不堪言的地步
life is harsh but not hell
如果巴拿马主教当时幸运的话，他可能会看到不同的景象
If the bishop of Panama had been luckier he might have seen things differently
每年一月
In January each year
造成加拉帕戈斯群岛气候干燥的罪魁祸首，寒冷的洪堡洋流
the cold Humboldt current that makes Galapagos so dry,
开始减退
loosens its grip
取而代之的力量是从北方而来的一股暖流
and gives way to warm water from the north
在美好的年份里，它会给这里的岛屿带来惊人的变化
In good years it brings a remarkable change to the islands
突然呈现出一派完全不同的景象
Suddenly, a very different Galapagos appears
藏在灰烬中的种子发芽了
From the ash hidden seeds come to life
帕罗桑塔，这种很久以前就被人们认为灭绝了的树，在这里复活了
Palo Santo trees that seem long dead are resurrected
黑白的世界变得五彩斑斓
from black and white to color
加拉帕戈斯的春天
A Galapagos spring
然而，这里的春天也与众不同
but even spring here is different
陆蜥蜴在金黄色的草地里吃草
The golden meadows are grazed by land iguanas
由滋味的仙人掌肉换成了另一种美食
relishing a pleasant change from cactus pads
这一只雌木蜂也被吸引，沉醉于花丛当中
And this female carpenter bee also drawn to the new flush of flowers
它在百花丛中飞舞
visits many different kinds
但奇怪的是，几乎所有的花都是黄色的
But strangely, almost all of them are yellow
木蜂是加拉帕戈斯唯一的蜂
She is the only kind of bee in Galapagos
假如木蜂喜欢黄色，这里的花不是黄色就没有意义了
If she likes yellow there’s little point in a flower being anything else
雨水也带来了小鸟，它们开始吱吱喳喳唱起歌♥来
The rain has also brought out little birds and all around they start to sing
这只雄雀想要吸引雌雀来参观它筑的巢
This male finch tries to entice the female to inspect his nest
巢被精心地筑在仙人掌刺保护得到的空间内
Carefully built in the protection of a spiny cactus pad
雌鸟喜欢，住进去了
She likes it and settles in
然而，这些看起来很不凡的鸟，也有着很不普通的一面
But even these ordinary-looking birds are extraordinary
在地上和树上
On the ground, in the trees
你以为会看到很多不同种类的鸟
where you would expect to find many different birds
但在这里，就只有一个种类
Here one kind rules
全部都是雀科的鸟
These are all finches
在加拉帕戈斯有13种不同的雀科鸟 而其他科的鸟一种也没有
In Galapagos there are 13 different species of finch taking the place of the other birds
关键原因是，每一只雀都有不同用途的喙
The key is that each has a different beak
厚而实的用来咬碎种子
Thicker, stronger for cracking seeds
长而利的用来吮吸花蜜
Long and sharp for flowers
细而尖的用来从岩峰利挖出小虫子
Delicate and pointed for winkling tiny creatures from cracks in rocks
甚至还有一种啄木鸟雀
There’s even a woodpecker finch
但是没有啄木鸟的舌头，是不能直接吃到树洞里的虫子的
But without a woodpeckers tongue it can’t reach grubs that deep inside burrows
因而它必须施展浑身解数才能如其所愿
so it has to use all its canny to get what it wants
它这段一条小树枝
It breaks off a twig,
做探测工具
a tool for probing
不是很合适
Not quite right
太好了，刚刚好
Yes, just right
再叼一条树枝区探另一个树洞
Another tool for another burrow
又一条肥美的虫子
another fat grub
这里的世界，人们最初看到的只是其中的一面
There’s a lot more to this world than at first meets the eye
多年来，却一直没人知道加拉帕戈斯这么美的风景
For many years, this brighter side of Galapagos remained completely hidden
遭巴拿马主教诅咒、没有名字，没人靠近过这里
Cursed by the bishop of Panama given no name Nobody came near
事实上，也没有人相信这些岛屿也真的存在
But then nobody was even sure the islands existed
它们如幽灵般在虚无缥缈的烟雾之中
shifting currents, mists, like ghosts
忽隐忽现
Now you see them, now you don’t
在水手的心里，加拉帕戈斯是“Las Encantadas（被施了魔法的陆地）”
In the minds of mariners the Galapagos were Las Encantadas, enchanted
后来，在16世纪末，有人把这些岛屿标在地图上
Then, in the late 1500s somebody put them on a map
就12个粗略的记号♥和一个名称
Just 12 crude marks and a name
乌龟之岛
Isla de Galapagos – islands of the tortoises
一标在地图上就变得真实了
Put it on a map and it becomes real
第一批来的是海盗
The first to come were pirates
加拉帕戈斯是绝好的基地