說起滅絕的動物，我們都能說上一兩種，但說起已經滅絕的植物呢？最近一項科學研究發現，過去的兩個世紀裡，接近有600餘種植物滅絕...
The Earth is entering what scientists have described as the "sixth mass extinction crisis," with some estimates indicating that current extinction rates are hundreds of times above what is considered "normal."
地球正在進入科學家們所說的「第六次大滅絕危機」時代，一些預估數據表明，目前的滅絕率是「正常」水平的數百倍。
While threatened animal species, such as gorillas and the white rhino, tend to receive the most attention, plants are also dying out at an alarming rate. This is significant because plant extinctions endanger other organisms, ecosystems and the ability of humans to survive on our planet.
大猩猩和白犀牛等瀕危動物的情況往往最受關注，但植物也正以驚人的速度滅絕。這一點意義重大，因為植物滅絕會危及其他生物、生態系統和人類在地球上的生存。
Now a team of scientists from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, in the U.K., and Stockholm University have put together the first global analysis of plant extinction data, covering around 90,000 species—and the results are sobering.
現在，英國皇家植物園和斯德哥爾摩大學的科學家團隊首次對全球範圍內約9萬種植物在內的植物滅絕數據進行了分析，結果發人深省。
According to the study, published in the journal Nature Ecology and Evolution, 571 plant species have completely disappeared from the wild in the past 250 years—more than twice the number of bird, mammal and amphibian species combined to have gone extinct in the same period combined.
根據發表在《自然生態與進化》雜誌上的一項研究，在過去的250年裡，有571種植物從野外徹底消失，是同期鳥類、哺乳動物和兩棲動物滅絕總數的兩倍多。
Furthermore, the researchers say that plants are going extinct at rates up to 500 times higher than the rate of loss before human intervention. In fact, around a third of the 90,000 species the team analyzed could be considered threatened in some way.
此外，研究人員表示，植物滅絕的速度比人類幹預前的滅絕速度高出500倍。事實上，在研究小組分析的9萬種物種中，可以認定約有三分之一的物種在某種程度上已經受到了威脅。
"Most people can name a mammal or bird that has become extinct in recent centuries, but few can name an extinct plant," Aelys Humphreys, an author of the study from Stockholm University, said in a statement.
斯德哥爾摩大學的Aelys Humphreys是這項研究的作者之一，她在一份聲明中說:「大多數人都能說出近幾個世紀滅絕的哺乳動物或鳥類的名字，但很少有人能說出一種已經滅絕的植物的名字。」
"This study is the first time we have an overview of what plants have already become extinct, where they have disappeared from and how quickly this is happening," she said. "We hear a lot about the number of species facing extinction, but these figures are for plants that we've already lost, so provide an unprecedented window into plant extinction in modern times."
「通過這項研究，我們第一次全面了解了哪些植物已經滅絕，它們是從哪裡消失的，以及這種情況發生的速度有多快。」她說道，「我們聽到很多關於瀕臨滅絕物種的數字，但這些數字都是關於已經滅絕的植物的，所以這為了解現代植物滅絕提供了一個前所未有的窗口。」
According to the team, plant extinctions are occurring at the highest rates in islands, tropical regions and areas with a Mediterranean climate. In addition, the situation looks to be worse for shrubs, trees or plant species with narrow geographical ranges. The scientists say that understanding more about which plants have gone extinct and from where will play a key role in aiding future conservation efforts.
研究小組稱，在島嶼、熱帶地區和地中海氣候地區，植物滅絕的速度最快。此外，對於地理範圍狹窄的灌木、樹木或植物物種來說，情況似乎更糟。科學家們表示，更多地了解哪些植物已經滅絕，從哪裡滅絕，將在未來的保護工作中發揮關鍵作用。
"Plants underpin all life on earth, they provide the oxygen we breathe and the food we eat, as well as making up the backbone of the world's ecosystems—so plant extinction is bad news for all species," Eimear Nic Lughadha, a co-author of the study from the Royal Botanic Gardens, said in a statement.
「植物支撐著地球上的所有生命,為我們提供氧氣和食物，它們是生態系統的支柱，所以植物滅絕對所有物種來說都是個壞消息。」植物名錄的編纂人之一、皇家植物園成員、該研究的作者之一Eimear Nic Lughadha在一份聲明中這樣說道。
"This new understanding of plant extinction will help us predict—and try to prevent—future extinctions of plants, as well as other organisms. Millions of other species depend on plants for their survival, humans included, so knowing which plants we are losing and from where, will feed back into conservation programmes targeting other organisms as well."
「對植物滅絕的這項新發現將幫助我們預測並阻止植物以及其他生物走向滅絕。數以百萬計的其他物種依靠植物生存，包括人類，所以知道哪些植物從哪裡滅絕，將反饋到針對其他生物的保護計劃中。」
Despite the gloomy outlook for planet Earth, the study does provide some glimmers of hope. The team found that 430 plant species which were thought to have gone extinct were rediscovered in the period they investigated. However, it should be noted that 90 percent of these rediscovered plants have a high extinction risk.
儘管地球上的前景黯淡，但這項研究確實帶來了一線希望。研究小組發現，在他們調查的這段時間裡，重新發現了430種被認為已經滅絕的植物。然而，值得注意的是，這些被重新發現的植物中有90%存在很高的滅絕風險。
The endangered Brodiaea plant blooms in the hills above Glendora, California on May 12, 2017 in the midst of its largest bloom in modern times. The Brodiaea is one of the most endangered plants in Southern California and still exists in only a few locations, described as a shy and tiny flower.
2017年5月12日，瀕臨滅絕的布洛地亞植物在加州格倫多達的山上盛開，這是現代以來規模最大的一次。布洛地亞植物是南加州最瀕危的植物之一，目前只存在於少數幾個地方，是一種「害羞的小花」。
很長時間裡我們只關心動物滅絕，忽視了植物。其實植物滅絕速度更快，且影響更加嚴重。地球家園需要我們每一個人的守護！