Rachel Sussman: The world's oldest living things

譯者: Sunshine Wang 審譯者: Wang-Ju Tsai

This strange-looking plant is called the Llareta.

這種外形奇怪的植物叫做緊密小鷹芹。

What looks like moss covering rocks

看起來像是岩石上長滿了苔蘚

is actually a shrub

其實是由成千上萬的

comprised of thousands of branches,

灌木叢的樹枝所組成的，

each containing clusters of tiny green leaves at the end

每個樹枝末端都有一簇小綠葉

and so densely packed together

非常緊密扎實的包覆在一起

that you could actually stand on top of it.

你甚至可以站在上面。

This individual lives in the Atacama Desert in Chile,

這種植物生長在智利的阿塔卡馬沙漠，

and it happens to be 3,000 years old.

已經有3000歲了。

It also happens to be a relative of parsley.

它是歐芹的近親。

For the past five years, I've been researching,

過去五年來，我一直在做研究，

working with biologists

和生物學家一起工作

and traveling all over the world

到世界各地

to find continuously living organisms

尋找存活至今2000年

that are 2,000 years old and older.

或更老的古老生物。

The project is part art and part science.

這項研究既是藝術也是科學。

There's an environmental component.

這其中也包括了環境因素。

And I'm also trying to create a means

同時我也試著創造一種方式

in which to step outside our quotidian experience of time

試著跳脫出我們慣性的時間觀

and to start to consider a deeper timescale.

以一種更深刻的時間觀來思考。

I selected 2,000 years as my minimum age

之所以選擇2000年為底限

because I wanted to start at what we consider to be year zero

是因為我想從西元零年開始

and work backward from there.

往回追朔。

What you're looking at now is a tree called Jomon Sugi,

您現在看到的這棵樹是繩文杉，

living on the remote island of Yakushima.

生長在人跡罕至的日本屋九島。

The tree was in part a catalyst for the project.

這項研究之所以開始有一部分就是因為這棵樹

I'd been traveling in Japan

當時我到日本去

without an agenda other than to photograph,

除了拍照外沒有其它的計畫，

and then I heard about this tree

我聽說了這棵

that is 2,180 years old

2180歲的樹

and knew that I had to go visit it.

心想我一定得去看一看。

It wasn't until later, when I was actually back home in New York

後來，我回到紐約之後

that I got the idea for the project.

這個研究計畫的想法才浮現腦海。

So it was the slow churn, if you will.

它在我的心裡慢慢持續的攪動。

I think it was my longstanding desire

我想這可以說是我多年以來的渴望

to bring together my interest

把我在藝術，科學及哲學上的

in art, science and philosophy

興趣結合在一起

that allowed me to be ready

讓我準備就緒

when the proverbial light bulb went on.

在靈光乍現時可以把握住機會。

So I started researching, and to my surprise,

我開始了研究工作，出乎我意料的是，

this project had never been done before

不論是藝術或科學領域

in the arts or the sciences.

都沒有人做過相關的研究。

And -- perhaps naively --

或許我很天真，

I was surprised to find that there isn't even an area in the sciences

我很訝異的發現在任何的科學領域裡

that deals with this idea

竟然都沒有地球物種壽命

of global species longevity.

的相關研究。

So what you're looking at here

您現在看到的是

is the rhizocarpon geographicum, or map lichen,

地圖衣屬地衣，

and this is around 3,000 years old

它已經有3000多歲了

and lives in Greenland,

生長在格陵蘭，

which is a long way to go for some lichens.

這真是一趟遙遠的旅程。

Visiting Greenland was more like

去格陵蘭好像是

traveling back in time

回到古代的時空之旅

than just traveling very far north.

而不僅僅是旅行到北方極地而已。

It was very primal and more remote

這比起任何我曾去過的地方

than anything I'd ever experienced before.

都要來的原始，遙遠。

And this is heightened by a couple of particular experiences.

一些特别的經驗也為此行增色不少。

One was when I had been dropped off by boat

有一次我在一個

on a remote fjord,

偏僻的峽灣下了船，

only to find that the archeologists I was supposed to meet

結果原本約好要碰頭的考古學家

were nowhere to be found.

卻不見人影。

And it's not like you could send them a text or shoot them an e-mail,

又不能傳簡訊，還是發email，

so I was literally left to my own devices.

我完全只能靠我带的裝備。

But luckily, it worked out obviously,

很幸運，我安然無恙。

but it was a humbling experience

覺得完全與世隔絕的經驗

to feel so disconnected.

讓我感到謙卑、渺小。

And then a few days later,

幾天後，

we had the opportunity to go fishing in a glacial stream

我們有機會去紮營附近

near our campsite,

的冰川釣魚，

where the fish were so abundant

那裡魚好多好多

that you could literally reach into the stream

多到你只要把手伸進河裡

and grab out a foot-long trout with your bare hands.

就可以徒手抓起一條一尺長的鱒魚。

It was like visiting

這就好像回到

a more innocent time on the planet.

地球純真美好的年代。

And then, of course, there's the lichens.

當然，那時也有地衣。

These lichens grow only one centimeter

這些地衣一百年

every hundred years.

只長一公分。

I think that really puts human lifespans

我認為這真的賦予人類的生命周期

into a different perspective.

一個不同的觀點。

And what you're looking at here

您現在看到的是

is an aerial photo take over eastern Oregon.

俄勒岡州東部的空拍照片。

And if the title "Searching for Armillaria Death Rings,"

「尋找蜜環菌死亡圈」

sounds ominous, it is.

聽起來很不吉利，而事實就是如此。

The Armillaria is actually a predatory fungus,

蜜環菌是一種掠食性真菌，

killing certain species of trees in the forest.

在森林裡掠殺某些樹種。

It's also more benignly known

我們給了它一個好聽的名字

as the honey mushroom or the "humongous fungus"

叫蜜環菌，或巨大菇

because it happens to be

因為它是

one of the world's largest organisms as well.

全世界最大的生物之一。

So with the help of some biologists studying the fungus,

在幾位研究蜜環菌的生物學家的幫助下，

I got some maps and some GPS coordinates

我帶了幾張地圖，幾台全球衛星定位系統

and chartered a plane

租了一架飛機

and started looking for the death rings,

開始尋找死亡圈，

the circular patterns

一種因為菌類啃食

in which the fungus kills the trees.

樹木而形成的圓形區域。

So I'm not sure if there are any in this photo,

我不確定這張照片中是否有任何我所要找的死亡圈，

but I do know the fungus is down there.

但是我知道蜜環菌就在這裡。

And then this back down on the ground

就在這片土地底下，

and you can see that the fungus is actually invading this tree.

你可以看到蜜環菌正在侵蝕這棵樹。

So that white material that you see

您所看到在樹皮與樹

in between the bark and the wood

之間的白色的東西

is the mycelial felt of the fungus,

就是蜜環菌的菌絲叢，

and what it's doing -- it's actually

事實上它正在做的是

slowly strangling the tree to death

阻斷水和養分的運輸

by preventing the flow of water and nutrients.

慢慢的讓這棵樹窒息而死。

So this strategy has served it pretty well --

這種策略相當的成功。

it's 2,400 years old.

蜜環菌已經存活了2400年了。

And then from underground to underwater.

好，看完地底，再來看看水底。

This is a Brain Coral living in Tobago

這是生存於多巴哥海岸的腦珊瑚

that's around 2,000 years old.

約有2000多歲了。

And I had to overcome my fear of deep water to find this one.

我必須克服對於深水的恐懼去尋找它。

This is at about 60 feet

它位於水深約60英呎，

or 18 meters, depth.

18公尺的深度。

And you'll see, there's some damage to the surface of the coral.

各位可以看見腦珊瑚表面有些損傷。

That was actually caused by a school of parrot fish

這因為一群鸚鵡魚

that had started eating it,

吃了它一段時間，

though luckily, they lost interest before killing it.

幸好，鸚鵡魚在殺死腦珊瑚之前就對它沒興趣了。

Luckily still, it seems to be out of harm's way

更幸運的是，最近的原油外漏汙染

of the recent oil spill.

好像没有沒有影響到它。

But that being said, we just as easily could have lost

雖說如此，我們很可能失去

one of the oldest living things on the planet,

地球上任何古老的生物，

and the full impact of that disaster

而此一災難的全面性影響為何

is still yet to be seen.

我們仍無法預料。

Now this is something that I think

這是我認為

is one of the most quietly resilient things on the planet.

在這個星球上擁有最佳適應力物種之一。

This is clonal colony

它是無性繁殖菌落

of Quaking Aspen trees, living in Utah,

寄生在美國猶他州的白楊樹上，

that is literally 80,000 years old.

事實上它已經存活了八萬年之久。

What looks like a forest

看起來像是一片森林

is actually only one tree.

其實是同一棵樹。

Imagine that it's one giant root system

可以把它想像成是一個龐大的根系統

and each tree is a stem

而每一棵樹都是

coming up from that system.

從這個系統長出來的莖。

So what you have is one giant,

所以這一整片樹林是一個巨大無比，

interconnected,

彼此連結，

genetically identical individual

基因相同的一棵

that's been living for 80,000 years.

已經有八萬歲的樹。

It also happens to be male

而且這棵樹是雄性植株，

and, in theory immortal.

從理論來說它可以長生不老。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

This is a clonal tree as well.

這棵樹也是無性繁殖的。

This is the spruce Gran Picea,

它是雲杉，

which at 9,550 years

已經有9550歲了，

is a mere babe in the woods.

但是在樹林裡它只是個小baby。

The location of this tree

為了保護這棵樹

is actually kept secret for its own protection.

它的位置我們不對外透露。

I spoke to the biologist who discovered this tree,

我和發現它的生物學家談過，

and he told me that that spindly growth you see there in the center

他說位於中間的細長的植株

is most likely a product of climate change.

極有可能是氣候變遷的產物。

As it's gotten warmer on the top of the mountain,

隨著山頂氣溫升高，

the vegetation zone is actually changing.

植被帶也隨之改變。

So we don't even necessarily have to have

我們不需和這些植物

direct contact with these organisms

有直接的接觸

to have a very real impact on them.

就可以對它們產生實際的衝擊。

This is the Fortingall Yew --

這是福廷加爾紫杉。

no, I'm just kidding --

不是啦，開個玩笑。

this is the Fortingall Yew.

這才是福廷加爾紫杉。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

But I put that slide in there

我放那張幻灯片是因為

because I'm often asked if there are any animals in the project.

常常有人問我這個研究裡有沒有動物。

And aside from coral,

答案是：除了珊瑚之外，

the answer is no.

沒有。

Does anybody know how old the oldest tortoise is --

有人知道最老的烏龜幾歲？

any guesses?

猜猜看？

(Audience: 300.)

（聽眾：300歲。）

Rachel Sussman: 300? No, 175

300歲？其實現存

is the oldest living tortoise,

最老的陸龜是175歲，

so nowhere near 2,000.

離兩千歲還差得很遠。

And then, you might have heard

各位可能聽說

of this giant clam that was discovered

在冰島北部外海

off the coast of northern Iceland

發現了

that reached 405 years old.

405歲的巨蛤。

However, it died in the lab

但是它在科學家在實驗室裡

as they were determining its age.

鑑定它的年紀時死掉了。

The most interesting discovery of late, I think

我想，最有意思的新發現，

is the so-called immortal jellyfish,

是被稱之為燈塔水母的動物，

which has actually been observed in the lab

在實驗室裡觀察到

to be able to be able to revert back to the polyp state

它在達到完全成熟階段後

after reaching full maturity.

能够回復到水螅蟲的狀態。

So that being said,

雖然這麼說，

it's highly unlikely that any jellyfish would survive that long in the wild.

任何一種水母不太可能在自然環境下生存那麼久。

And back to the yew here.

再回來看紫杉。

So as you can see, it's in a churchyard;

如您所見，它生長在一個教堂的院子裡。

it's in Scotland. It's behind a protective wall.

在蘇格蘭。有圍牆保護著。

And there are actually a number or ancient yews

其實有許多古老的紫杉生長在

in churchyards around the U.K.,

全英國各地的教堂的院子裡，

but if you do the math, you'll remember

如果你推算一下，不難明白

it's actually the yew trees that were there first, then the churches.

這些古老的紫杉早在教堂建立之前，就已經生長在那裏了。

And now down to another part of the world.

現在來看看世界上另一個地方。

I had the opportunity to travel around the Limpopo Province in South Africa

我有幸跟隨一位猴麵包樹的專家

with an expert in Baobab trees.

去了南非的林波波省。

And we saw a number of them,

我們看到了很多猴麵包樹，

and this is most likely the oldest.

這一顆很有可能是最老的。

It's around 2,000,

大約有2000歲了，

and it's called the Sagole Baobab.

叫做Sagole猴麵包樹。（Sagole：南非北省）

And you know, I think of all of these organisms

我認為這所有的生物

as palimpsests.

具有多重的意義。

They contain thousands of years

它們的內在蘊含了

of their own histories within themselves,

千萬年的生命軌跡，

and they also contain records of natural and human events.

它們也記錄著大自然和人類的歷史事件。

And the Baobabs in particular

尤其是猴麵包樹

are a great example of this.

更是極佳的例子。

You can see that this one

這一顆樹的樹幹上

has names carved into its trunk,

刻著許多名字在上面，

but it also records some natural events.

它同時也記錄著一些自然事件。

So the Baobabs, as they get older,

當猴麵包樹年歲漸長時，

tend to get pulpy in their centers and hollow out.

樹幹中心會變成漿狀的汁液而最後變成空心的。

And this can create

這麼一來它就成為

great natural shelters for animals,

動物們極佳的天然棲身所了，

but they've also been appropriated

但是它們也被人類

for some rather dubious human uses,

拿來用在一些不太好的用途，

including a bar, a prison

空心的樹幹被當作酒吧，監獄

and even a toilet inside of a tree.

甚至是廁所。

And this brings me to another favorite of mine --

現在來看一個我最喜愛的—

I think, because it is just so unusual.

因為它實在是太與眾不同了。

This plant is called the Welwitschia,

這個植物叫百歲蘭，

and it lives only in parts of coastal Namibia and Angola,

它只生長在納米比亞和安哥拉部分海岸地區，

where it's uniquely adapted

它發展出獨特的功能

to collect moisture from mist coming off the sea.

能夠從海上漂來的霧氣收集水分。

And what's more, it's actually a tree.

而且，它其實是一顆樹。

It's a primitive conifer.

是一種原始的針葉樹。

You'll notice that it's bearing cones down the center.

你可以在底下中間看到它結了球果。

And what looks like two big heaps of leaves,

看起來像堆積成兩大落的葉子呢，

is actually two single leaves

其實是兩片樹葉

that get shredded up

因為沙漠嚴峻的氣候

by the harsh desert conditions over time.

經年累月把葉子切割成現在的樣子。

And it actually never sheds those leaves,

這些葉子從未脱落過，

so it also bears the distinction

所以百歲蘭的特徵就是

of having the longest leaves

它的樹葉是

in the plant kingdom.

植物界中最長的。

I spoke to a biologist

我請教過開普敦的

at the Kirstenbosch Botanical Garden in Capetown

康斯坦博西國家植物園

to ask him

的生物學家

where he thought this remarkable plant came from,

問他這令人驚艷的百歲蘭是從哪裡來的，

and his thought was that

他的看法是，

if you travel around Namibia,

如果你周遊納米比亞，

you see that there are a number of petrified forests,

你會發現有一些石化林，

and the logs are all --

石化林的樹木—

the logs are all giant coniferous trees,

全都是巨大的針葉樹，

and yet there's no sign of where they might have come from.

但是没有任何跡象顯示它們的原生地是哪裡。

So his thought was that

因此他認為

flooding in the north of Africa

千萬年前

actually brought those coniferous trees down

非洲北部的洪水帶著這些

tens of thousands of years ago,

針葉樹的種子流向南方，

and what resulted was this remarkable adaptation

造就了了不起的適應力

to this unique desert environment.

以存活在獨特的沙漠環境中。

This is what I think is the most poetic of the oldest living things.

我認為這是這些最古老的生物最具詩意的部分。

This is something called an underground forest.

這是被稱之為地下森林的植物。

So, I spoke to a botanist at the Pretoria Botanical Garden,

我問過普利托里亞植物園的植物學家，

who explained that certain species of trees

他告訴我一些樹種

have adapted to this region.

已經適應了這個地區。

It's bushfelt region,

這裡是低矮灌木區，

which is dry and prone to a lot of fires,

很乾燥而且很容易發生火災，

as so what these trees have done

所以這些樹演化出一些方法

is, if you can imagine that this is the crown of the tree,

就是，把這個想像成樹冠，

and that this is ground level,

長在地面上，

imagine that the whole thing,

再想像整棵樹，

that whole bulk of the tree,

一整棵樹，

migrated underground,

都長在地面下，

and you just have those leaves peeping up above the surface.

您所看到的只是冒出地面的葉子。

That way, when a fire roars through,

這麼一來，當大火肆虐時，

it's the equivalent of getting your eyebrows singed.

就不過像是燒焦眉毛罷了。

The tree can easily recover.

樹本身可以很容易復原。

These also tend to grow clonally,

它們也是無性繁殖的，

the oldest of which is 13,000 years old.

最老的已經有13,000歲了。

Back in the U.S., there's a couple plants of similar age.

看看美國，有些植物也有一樣悠久的歷史。

This is the clonal Creosote bush,

這是無性繁殖的木餾叢，

which is around 12,000 years old.

大約有12,000歲了。

If you've been in the American West,

如果您去過美國西部，

you know the Creosote bush is pretty ubiquitous,

您會知道在木餾叢西部十分普遍，

but that being said, you see that this has

雖然如此，您可以看到它形成了

this unique, circular form.

獨特的圓形的外觀。

And what's happening is it's expanding slowly outwards

其實木餾叢從原本的樣貌

from that original shape.

慢慢的向外擴展。

And it's one -- again, that interconnected root system,

又是一個彼此連結的根系統，

making it one genetically identical individual.

全部都是基因相同的一棵樹。

It also has a friend nearby --

它有朋友住附近喔—

well, I think they're friends.

嗯，我認為它們是朋友。

This is the clonal Mojave yucca, it's about a mile away,

這是無性繁殖的莫哈韋絲蘭，離木餾叢大概一英里遠，

and it's a little bit older than 12,000 years.

它的年齡超過12,000歲。

And you see it has that similar circular form.

您可以看到它也有類似的圓形的外觀。

And there's some younger clones

還有一些年紀較輕的無性繁殖植物

dotting the landscape behind it.

稀稀落落的散布在這個區域。

And both of these, the yucca and the Creosote bush,

這兩種植物，莫哈韋絲蘭和木餾叢，

live on Bureau of Land Management land,

都生長在國土管理局的土地上，

and that's very different from being protected in a national park.

這和生長在受保護的國家公園中可是截然不同。

In fact, this land is designated

事實上，這片土地是規劃給

for recreational all-terrain vehicle use.

休閒的四輪驅動越野車使用。

So, now I want to show what very well might be

好，我現在要介紹的很有可能是

the oldest living thing on the planet.

地球上現存最古老的生物。

This is Siberian Actinobacteria,

就是西伯利亞放射菌，

which is between 400,000

它大約有40萬歲

and 600,000 years old.

到 60萬歲之間。

This bacteria was discovered several years ago

這種細菌幾年前才被

by a team of planetary biologists

一群行星生物學家發現

hoping to find clues to life on other planets

他們研究地球上最嚴苛惡劣的環境中的生物

by looking at one of the harshest conditions on ours.

希望藉此發現其他行星生物的蹤跡。

And what they found, by doing research into the permafrost,

他們針對永凍土進行研究，發現了

was this bacteria.

西伯利亞放射菌。

But what's unique about it is that

它的獨特之處就在於

it's doing DNA repair below freezing.

在零度以下仍可以修復DNA。

And what that means is that it's not dormant --

這意味這它並非處於休眠狀態。

it's actually been living and growing

而是50萬年來一直存活著

for half a million years.

並持續生長。

It's also probably one the most vulnerable

同時它也可能是現存古老生物

of the oldest living things,

中最脆弱的，

because if the permafrost melts,

因為，一旦永凍土融化了，

it won't survive.

它將無法存活。

This is a map that I've put together of the oldest living things,

在這張地圖上我標示出所有現存最古老的生物，

so you can get a sense of where they are; you see they're all over the world.

這樣各位能看到它們的分布；它們遍布世界各地。

The blue flags represent things that I've already photographed,

藍色的旗子代表我已經拍過照片了，

and the reds are places that I'm still trying to get to.

紅色的旗子代表我要去的地方。

You'll see also, there's a flag on Antarctica.

您可以看到，在南極洲也有旗子。

I'm trying to travel there

我計畫要去南極洲

to find 5,000 year-old moss,

找5,000歲的苔蘚，

which lives on the Antarctic Peninsula.

它生長於南極半島。

So, I probably have about two more years left

我還有大約兩年半的時間

on this project --

來完成我的研究計畫—

on this phase of the project,

以現階段而言，

but after five years,

五年過去了

I really feel like I know what's at the heart of this work.

我真的感受到這項任務的核心價值所在。

The oldest living things in the world

世界上現存最古老的生物

are a record and celebration of our past,

是對我們的過去的紀錄和歌頌，

a call to action in the present

是對於現況採取行動的召喚

and a barometer of our future.

也是我們未來的指標。

They've survived for millennia

它們存活了上千年之久，

in desert, in the permafrost,

在沙漠裡，永凍土層中，

at the tops of mountains and at the bottom of the ocean.

在群山之巔，在海洋深處。

They've withstood

它們無言的承受著

untold natural perils and human encroachments,

天災和人類的侵犯，

but now some of them are in jeopardy,

但此刻有一些正處於危機之中，

and they can't just get up and get out of the way.

可是他們又不能站起來走開。

It's my hope that, by going to find these organisms,

我的心願是，藉由尋找這些生物，

that I can help draw attention

能幫助喚起大家的注意

to their remarkable resilience

去關注他們驚人的適應力

and help play a part in insuring

並擔起責任保護它們

their continued longevity into the foreseeable future.

在可見的未來繼續長命百歲。

Thank you.

謝謝。

(Applause)

（掌聲）