拯救美丽的鹤鸟

Jacki Lyden （Host）： Of all the worlds birds， perhaps

none are more mystical than 1）cranes.

（Soundbite of Cranes）

Lyden： Thats the 2）unison call of the red-crowned crane，

a mated pair calling out to each other.

（Soundbite of Cranes）

Lyden： From Asia to North America， these tall birds with their haunting cries have been woven into paintings， literature， folk tales. But today， 10 of the worlds 15 crane species are threatened， some on the brink of extinction.

Their grass and wetland habitats are being devastated all the world over. The International Crane Foundation is working to change that. Based in Wisconsin， the ICF turns 40 this year. George Archibald founded it with another young 3）ornithologist on a family farm near Baraboo.

George Archibald is still caring for cranes around the world， and he joins us from a field 4）expedition outside Ulan Bator， Mongolia. George， tell us a little bit about the species. What are these birds like？

George Archibald： Cranes are man-sized birds. Most of them are four to five feet tall. Theyre 5）monogamous. Nothing they do is without grace. The 6）common denominator in cranes is that they are long-legged， long-necked birds with very big voices. Their voice can be heard for several miles on a still morning.

The Wisconsin environmentalist philosopher Aldo Leopold writing back in 1935 wrote so 7）eloquently about cranes. And one of the sentences he wrote is： The silence 8）discernible in some wetlands perhaps arises from their once having harbored cranes. Now they stand humbled 9）adrift in history.

When you see a 10）marsh without cranes， its very silent. When a crane is in a marsh， and they call， theres this great spirit that lifts up in that area and brings life and meaning to the whole place. Lyden： What is the sound of the 11）whopping crane？

Archibald： Its woopdoop-doop， woopdoop-doop， woopdoop-doop. And the doop-doop is the female， and the woop is the male. Thats their 12）duet.

Lyden： Ah. And they also do this incredible mating dance， right？

Archibald： Yes. They throw sticks in the air， they jump high in the air， they run in circles， and theyll run side by side. Then theyll actually jump into the air， go for a distance， land and continue to circle and bow. And it must be quite exhausting.

Lyden： I have visited the International Crane Foundation， and what you say about the stately graceful way these creatures walk really resonates. They all have this incredible， beautiful waltz of a walk. George， at the International Crane Foundation， you have， I believe its an African grey-crowned crane with a big 13）pouf on its head named Slidel. I believe this bird is from Kenya， a place where youve had some success at their restoration.

Archibald： Yes. Theyre from East Africa. Were very concerned about the beautiful cranes of Africa， particularly the crowned cranes. Theyre being captured illegally and sent to the estates of the wealthy in the Middle East and to 14）safari parks in China and to animal dealers in Europe. Weve had an 80% decline of the birds in East Africa， but we have had some successes too. Lyden： Tell me about the cranes that live in the 15）demilitarized zone between North and South Korea.

Archibald： The demilitarized zone between North and South Korea is about four kilometers wide and has several valleys where about one-third of the worlds red-crowned cranes spend the winter， and where about one-half of the worlds whitenaped cranes—thats about 3，000 birds—spend the months of October， November and February， March. Its a wildlife paradise because its a no-mans land. But unfortunately， there are plans 16）afoot to develop the lowland areas into factory zones to provide jobs for North Koreans through South Korean-built factories.

As long as tensions remain high between North and South Korea， the cranes are fine. But should things soften， the South Koreans have all these development plans on the table.

Lyden： In a sense， is it possible to talk about the health of the planet， the biodiversity that remains through the lives of creatures like the cranes？

Archibald： Oh， sure. Large 17）vertebrates are very good indicators of the health of our environment， and cranes， particularly， because they require wide expanses of wetlands and grasslands. And if the cranes disappear， we know that something i s w r o n g i n t h a t environment.

Lyden： Why do you think that cranes are so 18）revered culturally？ Im thinking of the 19）Kimonos of Japan—youre on your way to Japan—Im thinking of the thousand paper cranes， the symbol of peace at Hiroshima. What is it？

Archibald： Well， theyre simply beautiful creatures， and they live a long time. They live 20 to 30 years in the wild. And in 20）captivity， they can live into the ripe old age of 60 or so. They breed very slowly. They 21）lavish care on their young， which is a value embraced by many people. And theyre about our size， in many cases， so we can identify with them. And when you have beautiful things in your environment， you want to paint them， you want to make stories about them， you want to dance like them. Cranes are one of the few birds that really know how to dance.

杰姬·利登（主持人）：世界上的所有鸟

类中，或许没有比鹤类更神秘的鸟了。

（鹤的叫声）

利登：这是丹顶鹤的齐鸣，是配偶之间的互相呼唤。

（鹤的叫声）

利登：从亚洲到北美洲，这些高大的鸟儿带着他们那萦绕心头的呼唤被编织进了画作上、文学作品中和民间故事里。但是今天，全球15种鹤类中就有10种受到了威胁，有些还濒临灭绝的边缘。

全世界的草地和它们居住的湿地正遭受到破坏。国际鹤类基金会正致力于改善这一状况。基地位于威斯康星州的国际鹤类基金会今年已经成立40周年，由乔治·阿其博和另一位鸟类学者在巴拉布市附近的一个家庭牧场建立。

乔治·阿其博现在仍然关心着全世界的鹤类，他从蒙古乌兰巴托外的野外考察地加入到我们的讨论。乔治，告诉我们一些有关这种鸟类的事情，这些鸟的样子是怎样的？

乔治·阿其博：鹤是像人一样高大的鸟，它们绝大多数有四到五英尺高。它们终身一夫一妻制，它们所有的举止都离不开优雅。鹤类的共同点是它们都有长长的腿、长长的脖子，并且有非常响亮的嗓音。在宁静的清晨，它们的声音在几英里以外都能听到。

威斯康星州的环境哲学家奥尔多·利奥波德在1935年意味深长地写过关于鹤类的作品，其中有个句子是这样写的：有些湿地的寂静清晰可辨，可能是因为那里曾经居住过鹤鸟。如今它们只能孑然成为这些地方过去的一部分。

当你看到一块湿地没有鹤，那里会很寂静。当鹤鸟在湿地上，它们的叫声会让那个区域充满生气，并为整个地方带来生机和意义。

利登：这种大型鹤的叫声是怎样的？

阿其博：就是呜啪——嘟啪——嘟啪，呜啪——嘟啪——嘟啪，呜啪——嘟啪——嘟啪（音译），嘟啪——嘟啪是雌鹤的叫声，呜啪是雄鹤的叫声，这是它们的齐鸣。利登：啊，它们还跳不可思议的求偶舞蹈，对吗？

阿其博：没错。它们向空中抛树枝、在空中跳跃、转着圈跑，而且是肩并肩地跑。接着它们会跃进空中，飞过一段距离、着陆、继续转圈和屈伸脖子，那一定是很耗体能的活动。

利登：我参观过国际鹤类基金会的基地，对你所说的这些动物高贵优雅的行走方式真的很有共鸣。他们全部都有这些不可思议的、华丽的华尔兹舞步。乔治，在国际鹤类基金会的基地，你有一只，我相信是一只名叫斯莱得尔的非洲灰冠鹤，它的头顶有一块大肉髻。我相信这种鸟来自肯尼亚，在那里你们成功地修复了它们的生态环境。

阿其博：是的，它们来自东非。我们非常关注非洲那些美丽的鹤，特别是冠冕鹤。它们遭到非法捕猎，被送到中东富豪人家的庄园里，中国的野生动物园

里和欧洲的动物商贩那里。东非的鹤类已经减少了80%，不过我们也有一些成功的案例。

利登：告诉我有关鹤类生活在朝鲜和韩国之间的非军事区的情况。

阿其博：朝鲜和韩国之间的非军事区大约有四公里宽，有几处山谷，世界上大概1/3的丹顶鹤都在那里过冬，世界上大概一半的白枕鹤，也就是大概3000只，会在那里度过10月、11月、2月和3月。那里是野生动植物的天堂，因为那是人迹罕至的地方。但是很不幸，有计划准备由韩国建造工厂，把低地区域发展成工厂区以为朝鲜人提供就业机会。

只要朝鲜和韩国维持高度紧张局势，鹤类仍是安全的。但是如果局势有所缓和，韩国就会把这些发展计划提上议程。

利登：在某种意义上，是否能通过生物如鹤类的生存来谈及地球的健康和生物的多样性？阿其博：哦，当然能。大型脊椎动物对我们的环境是否健康有很好的暗示作用，特别是鹤类，因为它们需要广阔的大片湿地和草地。如果鹤类消失了，我们就知道那个环境出问题了。

利登：为什么你认为从文化上鹤类是很神圣的？我想到了日本的和服——你在前往日本的路上——我想到了千纸鹤，在日本广岛那是和平的象征。具体是怎样的？

阿其博：嗯，鹤类是美丽的生物，寿命很长。它们在野外能活20到30年。在圈养环境下，它们能活得很长寿，大概60岁。它们繁殖很缓慢，无私地关爱着自己的幼鹤，这也是很多人信奉的价值观。在很多情况下，它们跟人一样高大，所以我们跟它们有一些共同点。当你所处的环境有这么美丽的东西，你就想描画它们，撰写有关它们的故事，还想象它们一样翩翩起舞。鹤类是真正懂跳舞的少数鸟类中的一种。