Asha de Vos: Why you should care about whale poo

Prevodilac: Mile Živković Lektor: Anja Saric

In the 1600s, there were so many right whales in Cape Cod Bay

1600-tih, u zalivu Kejp Kod bilo je toliko južnih kitova

off the east coast of the U.S.

sa istočne obale SAD-a

that apparently you could walk across their backs

da ste navodno mogli da hodate preko njihovih leđa

from one end of the bay to the other.

s jednog na drugi kraj zaliva.

Today, they number in the hundreds, and they're endangered.

Danas je ova brojka u stotinama i oni su ugroženi.

Like them, many species of whales saw their numbers drastically reduced

Poput njih, mnoge vrste kitova su se drastično smanjile u broju

by 200 years of whaling,

zbog 200 godina lova na kitove

where they were hunted and killed for their whale meat, oil and whale bone.

gde su ih lovili i ubijali zbog mesa, ulja i kosti.

We only have whales in our waters today

Danas u svojim vodama imamo kitove

because of the Save the Whales movement of the '70s.

samo zbog pokreta "Spasimo kitove" iz 70-tih godina prošlog veka.

It was instrumental in stopping commercial whaling,

On je bio krucijalan za zaustavljanje komercijalnog lova na kitove

and was built on the idea that if we couldn't save whales,

i zasnovan je na ideji da ako ne možemo da spasimo kitove,

what could we save?

šta onda možemo da spasimo?

It was ultimately a test of our political ability

To je na kraju bio test naše političke sposobnosti

to halt environmental destruction.

da zaustavimo uništavanje okoline.

So in the early '80s, there was a ban on commercial whaling

Početkom 80-ih, stavljena je zabrana na komercijalni lov kitova

that came into force as a result of this campaign.

koja je stupila na snagu kao posledica ove kampanje.

Whales in our waters are still low in numbers, however,

Ipak, u našim vodama je još uvek bilo malo kitova,

because they do face a range of other human-induced threats.

jer se oni susreću sa nizom drugih pretnji koje prouzrokuje čovek.

Unfortunately, many people still think that whale conservationists like myself

Nažalost, mnogi još misle da aktivisti za spasavanje kitova poput mene

do what we do only because these creatures are charismatic and beautiful.

rade ono što mi radimo samo zato što su ova stvorenja harizmatična i prelepa.

This is actually a disservice,

Ovo je zapravo medveđa usluga

because whales are ecosystem engineers.

jer su kitovi inženjeri ekosistema.

They help maintain the stability and health of the oceans,

Oni pomažu da se održi stabilnost i zdravlje okeana

and even provide services to human society.

i čak pružaju usluge ljudskom društvu.

So let's talk about why saving whales is critical

Popričajmo o tome zašto je spasavanje kitova ključno

to the resiliency of the oceans.

za otpornost okeana.

It boils down to two main things:

Svodi se na dve glavne stvari:

whale poop and rotting carcasses.

izmet kitova i leševe koji trunu.

As whales dive to the depths to feed and come up to the surface to breathe,

Kako kitovi rone u dubine da se hrane i penju se na površinu da dišu,

they actually release these enormous fecal plumes.

oni zapravo ispuštaju ogromne oblake fekalija.

This whale pump, as it's called,

Ova pumpa za kitove, tako se zove,

actually brings essential limiting nutrients from the depths

zapravo donosi bitne ograničavajuće hranljive sastojke iz dubina

to the surface waters where they stimulate the growth of phytoplankton,

na površinu, gde oni stimulišu rast fitoplanktona,

which forms the base of all marine food chains.

koji stvara osnovu za sve lance ishrane u morskoj vodi.

So really, having more whales in the oceans pooping

Zapravo, kada imate više kitova koji kake u okeanima,

is really beneficial to the entire ecosystem.

to je veoma korisno za ceo ekosistem.

Whales are also known to undertake some of the longest migrations of all mammals.

Kitovi su takođe poznati po tome što vrše neke od najdužih migracija od svih sisara.

Gray whales off America migrate 16,000 kilometers

Sivi kitovi iz Amerike se sele 16 000 kilometara

between productive feeding areas and less productive calving, or birthing, areas

između plodnih područja za hranjenje i manje plodnih za porađanje,

and back every year.

do tamo i nazad, svake godine.

As they do so, they transport fertilizer in the form of their feces

Dok to rade, oni prenose đubrivo u obliku svojih fekalija

from places that have it to places that need it.

od mesta koje ga imaju do mesta kojima je potrebno.

So clearly, whales are really important in nutrient cycling,

Jasno je da su kitovi veoma bitni za ciklus hranljivih materija

both horizontally and vertically, through the oceans.

kroz okeane, i horizontalno i vertikalno.

But what's really cool is that they're also really important after they're dead.

Ali zapravo je kul to što su takođe veoma bitni i kada su mrtvi.

Whale carcasses are some of the largest form of detritus

Leševi kitova su jedan od najvećih oblika otpada koji pada

to fall from the ocean's surface, and they're called whale fall.

sa površine okeana, i nazivaju se kitovim otpadom.

As these carcasses sink,

Dok ovi leševi tonu,

they provide a feast to some 400-odd species,

oni pružaju gozbu za oko 400 vrsta,

including the eel-shaped, slime-producing hagfish.

uključujući slepulju, ribu u obliku jegulje koja proizvodi sluz.

So over the 200 years of whaling,

Tokom preko 200 godina lova na kitove,

when we were busy killing and removing these carcasses from the oceans,

dok smo bili zauzeti ubijanjem i uklanjanjem ovih leševa iz okeana,

we likely altered the rate and geographic distribution of these whale falls

verovatno smo izmenili stepen i geografsku raspodelu kitovog otpada

that would descend into deep oceans,

koji bi pao u dubinu okeana

and as a result, probably led to a number of extinctions

i za posledicu smo verovatno doveli do niza izumrlih vrsta

of species that were most specialized

koje su bile usavršene

and dependent on these carcasses for their survival.

i zavisile su od ovih leševa kako bi preživele.

Whale carcasses are also known to transport about 190,000 tons of carbon,

Leševi kitova takođe prenose oko 190 000 tona ugljenika

which is the equivalent of that produced

iz atmosfere u dubinu okeana,

by 80,000 cars per year

što je jednako količini koju proizvede

from the atmosphere to the deep oceans,

80 000 automobila godišnje.

and the deep oceans are what we call "carbon sinks,"

Dubine okeana su ono što nazivamo "sudoperama za ugljenik",

because they trap and hold excess carbon from the atmosphere,

jer zadržavaju višak ugljenika iz atmosfere

and therefore help to delay global warming.

i tako pomažu odlaganje globalnog zagrevanja.

Sometimes these carcasses also wash up on beaches

Ovi leševi takođe ponekad isplivaju na plaže

and provide a meal to a number of predatory species on land.

i pružaju obrok jednom broju grabljivica na kopnu.

The 200 years of whaling was clearly detrimental

200 godina lova na kitove očigledno je bilo štetno

and caused a reduction in the populations of whales

i izazvalo je smanjenje u populaciji kitova

between 60 to 90 percent.

između 60 i 90 procenata.

Clearly, the Save the Whales movement

Pokret "Spasimo kitove" je očigledno

was instrumental in preventing commercial whaling from going on,

bio bitan da se spreči nastavak komercijalnog lova na kitove,

but we need to revise this.

ali moramo da obnovimo ovo.

We need to address the more modern, pressing problems that these whales face

Moramo da rešimo modernije i hitnije probleme sa kojim se suočavaju

in our waters today.

ovi kitovi danas u našim vodama.

Amongst other things, we need to stop them

Između ostalog, moramo da sprečimo

from getting plowed down by container ships when they're in their feeding areas,

da ih udaraju brodovi s kontejnerima kada su u područjima za hranjenje

and stop them from getting entangled in fishing nets

i da sprečimo da se upliću u ribarske mreže

as they float around in the ocean.

dok plutaju u okeanima.

We also need to learn to contextualize our conservation messages,

Takođe moramo da naučimo da svoje poruke o sačuvanju stavimo u kontekst

so people really understand the true ecosystem value of these creatures.

kako bi ljudi zaista razumeli pravu vrednost ovih stvorenja za ekosistem.

So, let's save the whales again,

Zato hajde da ponovo spasimo kitove,

but this time, let's not just do it for their sake.

ali ovog puta, ne samo zbog njih samih.

Let's also do it for ours.

Uradimo to i zbog nas.

Thank you.

Hvala vam.

(Applause)

(Aplauz)