本集內容

Seal pup accommodation crisis 英國冬季出現大量無處安置的海豹幼崽

學習要點

有關“recovery 康復”的詞匯

邊看邊答

Why is the situation so bad for the seal pups this winter?

文字稿

On a suburban estate… a pop-up seal sanctuary.

With the local rescue centres full, these orphaned pups are having to be housed in a garage near St Ives (UK). Father and son, David and Dan, are fully trained and caring for the seals 24-7.

Dan Jarvis, British Divers Marine Life Rescue
“We are at the point where we really are (struggling). I mean, this sort of speaks for itself really having all of these guys here. The rehab centres just don't have the space to handle this many pups in such a short amount of time.”

Every day, volunteers from the group are racing to the Cornish coast to rescue unprecedented numbers of sick and starving pups, orphaned and injured in the winter storms.

Providing emergency food is the easy bit. Finding them somewhere to recuperate is much more difficult. They've had nearly 300 call-outs already this winter.

So why are things so bad this winter?

Sue Sayer, researcher, Cornwall Seal Group
“Because we've had a succession of storms over really high tides; (it’s) flooded all the beaches, washed all those seal pups out without enough food inside them to survive.”

Rescue teams all around the UK are reporting record numbers of seals needing help.  

Once these pups have recovered, they'll be sent back into the sea.

Conservationists say if we're going to avoid an accommodation crisis next winter, we need to start planning now.

在英國一個郊外的住宅區里，有一個給海豹提供的臨時避難所。

在當地各處救助中心均已滿員的情況下，這些無依無靠的海豹幼崽如今只能被安置在英格蘭圣艾夫斯附近的一間車庫里。這對名為大衛和丹的父子接受過充分的訓練，他們正在全天候地照顧這些海豹。

丹·賈維斯 英國潛水員海生救援隊
“目前我們的處境（很糟糕）。我的意思是，這些小海豹們的情況是不言自明的。當地的康復中心真沒辦法在這么短的時間內提供用來安置這些幼崽的地方。”

該機構的志愿者們每天都會趕到康沃爾海岸去救助數量空前的海豹幼崽，它們病餓交加，因冬季風暴而淪為孤兒且負傷。

給海豹提供救急食品還不算是最難的。相比之下，更難的是給它們找到休養的場所。在今年冬天，工作人員們已經應招了近300次救護行動。

那么，今年冬天的情況為什么如此糟糕？

蘇·塞爾 康沃爾海豹保護中心研究者
“這是因為，近來洶涌的海潮常伴隨著接連不斷的風暴；海水淹沒了所有沙灘，小海豹們都被沖上了岸，但它們的體內并沒有足以維持生存的食物。”

英國各地的救援團隊表示，目前需要救助的海豹數量創下歷史新高。

等這些海豹幼崽康復后，它們將會被送回海洋。

環境保護工作者們說，要想在下個冬天避免海豹“住宿”危機，我們從現在就要開始計劃。

詞匯

sanctuary
避難所、庇護所

rescue centre
（動物）救助站，收容中心

rehab
康復，“rehabilitation”的縮略形式

recuperate
（傷病后）恢復健康、休養

你知道嗎？

Like humans, grey seals take approximately nine months to gestate inside the womb. Once born, pups take up to six years to reach sexual maturity. Seals have an average lifespan of 25-30 years.

和人類一樣，小灰海豹要在媽媽的子宮內孕育約九個月后才能出生。出生后的幼崽要成長接近六年時間才能達到性成熟。海豹的平均壽命是25到30年。

問題答案

A succession of storms over really high tides has flooded all the beaches and washed out all the seal pups without enough food inside them to survive.