The truth about bats - Amy Wray

翻译人员: Yolanda Zhang 校对人员: Shawnee Huang

Flying through the night, I watch over this world,

在黑夜中飞翔，我俯视脚下的世界，

a silent guardian, a watchful protector, a dark knight, I'm...

仿佛一个沉默的守护者，一个警惕的保护者， 一个黑夜骑士，我就是....

Okay, fine. So, I'm not Batman. I'm just a bat.

好吧，我不是蝙蝠侠，我就是只蝙蝠。

But like Batman, I'm often misunderstood.

但是像蝙蝠侠一样，我常常被误解。

People think I'm scary, strange and dangerous.

人们认为我可怕，怪异甚至危险。

If they only knew my story, though, I'd be cheered as a hero.

但是如果他们知道我的故事的话， 他们会觉得我是个英雄的。

When people think of bats,

当人们想到蝙蝠，

many think of vampires who want to suck their blood.

会联想到渴望吸他们血的吸血鬼。

But the truth is that out of over 1200 bat species,

但是实际上，在1200多种蝙蝠中，

only three are vampire bats.

只有3种蝙蝠靠吸血维生。

Out of these three, only one prefers the blood of mammals,

而这3种吸血蝙蝠 也更偏好哺乳动物的血，

and even these bats mostly feed on cattle.

甚至大都也仅仅靠牛等牲口的鲜血维生。

Maybe that still doesn't seem so great,

可能他们看起来还是不太友好，

but vampire bats can be a great help to humans.

但是吸血蝙蝠可以在很大程度上帮助人类。

A chemical known as desmoteplase found in vampire bat saliva

我们在吸血蝙蝠的唾液里 找到的一种化学物质，去氨普酶，

helps break down blood clots,

能够促进凝血的疏通。

and is being tested by recovering stroke victims.

康复的中风病人已经证明了这确实有效。

Of the remaining 1000+ species of bats, about 70% feed on insects.

其余剩下的1000多种蝙蝠中， 70%都以捕食昆虫为生。

These bats help control the real vampires:

这些蝙蝠帮忙遏制了真正的吸血鬼，

例如在你身上留下烦人的叮伤，

mosquitos, whose nasty bites are not just annoying

but spread diseases, like West Nile virus.

同时又传播了西尼罗河病菌的蚊子。

A single little brown bat can eat 1000 insects every hour,

一只棕色小蝙蝠每小时能吃1000多只昆虫，

and a colony of Mexican free-tailed bats can eat several tons of moths

而一群墨西哥无尾蝙蝠一晚上就可以

in just one night.

吃掉几吨的蛾子。

In the United States alone,

仅在美国，

bats provide an estimated 3.7 billion dollars worth

蝙蝠就为农民们省下了

of free pest control for farmers,

将近37亿美元的除虫预算。

这让每个食用农作物的人都受益。

which benefits everyone who eats the foods that they grow.

Fruit bats, also called megabats because of their large size,

果蝠, 因其体型之大又被称为狐蝠，

are important for the role they play in plant pollination.

对植物授粉过程有着很大的贡献。

By traveling between flowers while feeding on nectar and fruits,

在穿梭于花丛中吃蜜和果实的同时，

these bats transport the pollen and seeds that help plants reproduce.

这些蝙蝠传播的花粉和种子 能够帮助植物繁殖。

In Southeast Asia, for example,

比如在东南亚，

the cave nectar bat is the only pollinator of the durian fruit.

长舌果蝠是榴莲树唯一的授粉者。

Other bats pollinate peaches, bananas,

其他蝙蝠也为桃子，香蕉等植物授粉，

and the agave plants that tequila is made from.

用来酿造龙舌兰酒的龙舌兰属植物 也依靠蝙蝠的帮助。

如果没有它们，

Without them,

many of our food plants would be unable to produce the tasty fruits we enjoy.

很多植物就不能生长出美味的果实。

As heroes of the ecosystem, bats have their own unique utility belts.

蝙蝠用它们自己的方式守护着自然界。

Bats have been a source of inspiration for the design of flying robots

蝙蝠不仅是设计飞行机器人的模本，

and even an energy-efficient spy plane,

也启发了人们设计出了节能间谍机。

as they are the only mammal capable of true powered flight.

因为它们是唯一真正利用动力来 推动飞翔的哺乳动物。

回声定位法，一种声纳系统， 也被蝙蝠用来导航

Echolocation, a type of biological sonar, is also used by bats as a way to navigate

and find prey in the dark.

和在黑暗中寻找猎物。

Although there's a common misconception that bats are blind,

虽然蝙蝠常被误解为瞎子，

in truth, all species of bats have sight.

但是实际上，蝙蝠都有视力。

And some have even adapted large eyes to see better in dim lighting.

有些蝙蝠甚至长着很大的眼睛， 用于捕捉夜晚暗淡的光线。

Many people worry about getting infected by bats,

很多人担心被蝙蝠传染疾病，

and like any other animals, bats can carry diseases, like rabies.

认为它们像其他动物一样 也携带很多病毒，例如狂犬病。

In reality, though, less than .5% of all bats carry this virus.

实际上，只有小于0.5%的 蝙蝠携带这种病毒。

That's about the same odds as getting the same result on a coin flip

这几乎与抛8次硬币 都得到相同结果的

eight times in a row.

概率一样小。

蝙蝠传染疾病的这种想法

The perception that bats are often diseased

may come from the fact that sick bats,

也许来源于患病的蝙蝠，

who may show unusual behavior, emerge during the daytime,

病蝙蝠一般行动异常，多在白天活动，

or be unable to fly,

或不能飞行，

are more likely to be encountered by people.

通常更容易被人们发现。

So a good way to protect yourself is to protect bats as well,

所以保护自己最好的方式是保护蝙蝠。

keeping them healthy, protecting their habitats,

让它们健康，保护它们的家，

and reducing their risk of transmitting disease.

并降低它们传播疾病的危险性。

In North America, bats are threatened by a devastating sickness

在北美，蝙蝠的生命被一种致命的疾病，

called white-nose syndrome.

白鼻症所威胁。

This fungal infection causes bats to wake up

这种真菌感染会让蝙蝠

while hibernating during a winter.

在冬眠的时候醒来。

Unable to find food, they expend large amounts of energy,

由于无法找到食物， 它们会消耗大量的能量，

and eventually starve to death.

最终饿死。

白鼻症曾经导致了 一整个山洞的蝙蝠死亡，

White-nose syndrome has wiped out entire caves full of bats,

with a mortality rate that can exceed 90%.

并且致命率高达90%以上。

Climate change and habitat destruction

气候的变化和家园遭受破坏

also pose serious threats to bat populations.

也同样威胁着蝙蝠的数量。

For example, in January 2014, a record heat wave in Australia

例如，在2014年1月， 热流袭击了澳大利亚，

caused over 100,000 bats to die from heat exhaustion.

超过十万只蝙蝠 都死于中暑导致的衰竭。

有些人就想看着世界被热浪席卷，

Some people just want to watch the world burn,

and bats all over the world are threatened by damage to the places that we call home,

而世界各地蝙蝠的生命会因 家园的破坏而受到威胁，

包括红树沼泽，

including mangrove swamps,

old-growth forests,

原始森林，

and, of course, bat caves.

当然，还有蝙蝠山洞。

So even though I'm the hero of the story, I do need to be saved.

所以即使我是故事中的英雄， 我也需要被拯救。

And now that you know the true story about us bats,

所以现在你知道我们蝙蝠真正的故事，

希望你能学会如何保护我们。

you can learn how to protect such heroic animals.

Install a properly designed bat box,

可以设计一个巧妙的蝙蝠盒子，

one of the easiest ways to provide shelter for bats.

一个最简单的蝙蝠避难所。

Discourage the use of pesticides, which can harm bats

当试图将蝙蝠赖以为生的昆虫杀死时，

when we try to feed on the insects you want to get rid of in the first place.

减少杀虫剂的使用也能保护蝙蝠。

Avoid going into caves where you might disturb hibernating bats,

避免进入有蝙蝠生存的山洞，

and always decontaminate your gear after visiting a cave.

并且尽量不破坏你所参观的山洞。

如果我们成为了你仓库里的不速之客，

If you have unwanted bats living in an attic or barn,

contact your local government to safely and humanely relocate us.

请联系地方政府并安全地迁移我们。

And if you come across a bat, do not attempt to handle it,

当你发现一只蝙蝠时，不要尝试去打扰它，

but instead, call Animal Control.

请叫动物保护协会的人来处理。

Batman might want to keep his identity secret,

蝙蝠侠也许可以将他的身份隐藏起来，

but a great way to help real bats is by continuing to learn about them

但是真正让蝙蝠安全的 一个方式是去认识它们，

and spreading the truth that they are real heroes,

并且让人们知道它们是真正的英雄，

even if their good deeds are often unseen.

即使它们正义的本质常常被隐藏起来。