聽耶魯大學的Anthony Leiserowitz博士
為你講述那些關於「氣候變化」的小故事
密西西比河的淡水與墨西哥灣的海水交界處
LaDon Swann of the Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium says the shellfish require water that’s salty, but not too salty.密西西比-阿拉巴馬海洋基金會(Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium)的LaDon Swann說,貝類需要鹹水,但不能太鹹。「So it’s kind of like Goldilocks. … You know, an oyster’s really looking for that perfect location,」 he says. 「When they find that water that’s just right, that’s where they make their home.」「所以有點像 金髮姑娘* ……你知道,牡蠣是在尋找一個完美的位置,」 他說。「當它們找到稱心如意的環境,那就是他們安家的地方。」
(*編者註:適居帶(Goldilocks Zone):源於童話《金髮姑娘和三隻熊》,童話中的金髮姑娘喜歡「既不太冷又不太熱」的粥,引申為天文術語,指適合生物生存、溫度適中的區域)
But climate change is throwing off that balance. When heavy rain falls, too much freshwater may flow from the Mississippi River into the oyster reefs.但氣候變化正在打破這種平衡。當大雨來臨時,過量的淡水可能從密西西比河流入牡蠣礁。「Oysters can survive that for a short period of time, but if it goes beyond just a few days, then it affects their health, and ultimately you see mass mortalities of oysters because of the freshwater inflow,」 Swann says.Swann解釋說:「牡蠣可以在短時間內存活,但如果超過幾天,就會影響它們的健康,最終牡蠣會因淡水流入而大量死亡。」On the other hand, when there’s not enough rain, the water around oyster beds gets too salty. That allows saltwater predators – such as a snail called the oyster drill – to enter oyster habitat.另一方面,當沒有足夠的雨水時,牡蠣床周圍的水就變得太鹹了。這使得鹹水掠食者,比如一種叫做牡蠣鑽的海蝸牛進入牡蠣棲息地。This snail can make a hole in the oyster’s shell, suck it out, and digest it.這種蝸牛能在牡蠣殼上鑽個洞,把它吸出來,然後消化掉。So Swann says as climate change causes precipitation extremes at both ends of the spectrum, wild Gulf Coast oysters may lose the 「just right」 Goldilocks zone they need to thrive.Reporting credit: Sarah Kennedy/ChavoBart Digital Media.
Yale Program on Climate Change
Communication (YPCCC)
官方網站:climatecommunication.yale.edu
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