鯨魚擱淺在海灘上的新聞雖然在全球並不少見，卻也令人心痛惋惜。鯨魚為何擱淺，擱淺後又會發生什麼呢？人類如何幫助擱淺的鯨魚，維護海洋生態環境的平衡和多樣？本文介紹瞭關於目前有關鯨魚擱淺現象的研究和認識。
詞匯： whales 鯨魚
In July 2024, a pod of 77 pilot whales washed up on a beach in Orkney, Scotland. It was the largest mass stranding of whales in Scotland for decades. Scientists don’t know exactly why whales beach themselves. One theory is that climate change is driving whales’ food closer to the shoreline, where they then get stuck as the tide goes out. If a single animal is found, it is usually because it is sick or has been injured.
In the Orkney stranding, 12 of the whales were still alive when they became beached. When this happens, marine organisations assess whether a whale can be safely refloated. Professionals and members of the community often come together, cover the animal in wet sheets and pour buckets of water over it, though not the blowhole, until the animal drifts back out to the ocean. Though it’s not always a happy ending.
For those that don’t survive, a post-mortem examination is often carried out. Dr Brownlow of the Scottish Marine Animal Stranding Scheme told the AYYBLOG that these can reveal a lot about the whale’s life and the reasons why it was beached. In 2024, a very rare species of whale turned up on a beach in New Zealand – a spade-toothed whale. While this is sad, the carcass was dissected in order to help researchers acquire new information about the species. “From a scientific and conservation point of view, this is huge”, Gabe Davies, a Department of Conservation official, said.
Some beached whales who don’t survive have their skeletons sent to museums, while many others are returned to the water. This ensures the marine environment benefits because whale carcasses give off many nutrients. “When they fall and die and sink to the bottom of the ocean, they form these little nutrient–rich islands that can support a huge diversity of life”, says Dr Brownlow.
The more research that can be done, the better. For now, we can only do what we can to keep our oceans clean and safe.
詞匯表
pod （海洋動物或鳥類的）一小群
pilot whale 巨頭鯨
wash up 被海浪沖上岸
mass stranding 集體擱淺
beach 使……被困在海灘上
shoreline 海岸線
tide 潮水
marine 與海洋相關的，海洋的
refloat （擱淺後）再度浮起
blowhole （鯨類動物的）噴氣孔
drift out 漂走
post-mortem examination 屍檢
spade-toothed whale 鏟齒中喙鯨
carcass 屍體
dissect 解剖
conservation （對動植物或自然環境的）保護
skeleton 骨架
nutrient-rich 營養豐富的
diversity 多樣性
測驗與練習
1. 閱讀課文並回答問題。
1. What was surprising about the Orkney whale stranding?
2. True or False? Scientists are certain that climate change is causing more whales to be beached.
3. What do professionals avoid doing when refloating a whale?
4. What happened to the spade-toothed whale carcass?
5. Why can returning whales to the water be good for other ocean life?
2. 選擇意思恰當的單詞或詞組來完成下列句子。
1. Wow! There are more than 30 whales in this _______.
pod blow hole carcass skeleton
2. They carried out a _______ examination to find out the cause of death.
conservation diversity stranding post-mortem
3. They tried to push the animal back out to sea after it _______ itself.
dissected drifted out beached washed up
4. I work for a _______ organisation that helps keep oceans safe for wildlife.
nutrient-rich spade-toothed marine beached
5. I love walking my dog along the _______ at sunset.
shoreline climate change whale tide
答案
1. 閱讀課文並回答問題。
1. What was surprising about the Orkney whale stranding?
It was the largest mass stranding of whales in Scotland for decades.
2. True or False? Scientists are certain that climate change is causing more whales to be beached.
False. It’s a theory, but scientists don’t know exactly why whales beach themselves.
3. What do professionals avoid doing when refloating a whale?
They do not pour water into the blow hole.
4. What happened to the spade-toothed whale carcass?
The carcass was dissected in order to help researchers acquire new information about the species.
5. Why can returning whales to the water be good for other ocean life?
Because “they form these little nutrient-rich islands that can support a huge diversity of life”, says Dr Brownlow.
2. 選擇意思恰當的單詞或詞組來完成下列句子。
1. Wow! There are more than 30 whales in this pod.
2. They carried out a post-mortem examination to find out the cause of death.
3. They tried to push the animal back out to sea after it beached itself.
4. I work for a marine organisation that helps keep oceans safe for wildlife.
5. I love walking my dog along the shoreline at sunset.
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