The Luminous Mystery of Fireflies | Wan Faridah Akmal Jusoh | TED

譯者: 麗玲 辛

I was born in Terengganu,

我出生在登嘉樓，

a beautiful coastal state in Peninsular Malaysia.

這是馬來西亞半島的 一個美麗的沿海州。

Growing up in a superstitious, conservative community,

在一個迷信、保守的社區中長大，

my siblings and I always had to follow the strangest rules

我和兄弟姐妹們總是

必須遵守一些我覺得很奇怪的規矩。

that usually didn't make sense to me.

Things like: don't whistle in the house,

比如：不要在家裡吹口哨，

no nail clipping at night.

晚上不能剪指甲。

And whenever we went out to play,

每當我們出去玩時，

we had to return home before sunset

必須在日落前或天黑前回家。

or before it got dark.

This particular rule made the night seem mysterious to me.

這條特別的規定讓夜晚 對我來說顯得非常神祕。

I spent my school year admiring the dark,

我在就學時經常讚歎黑夜，

but never got around to really exploring it.

但從來沒有真正探索過它。

As I got older, I was really drawn to beautiful nature.

隨著年齡的增長， 我被大自然的美景深深吸引。

While in mangrove forests,

在紅樹林時，

a forestry officer told me about kelip-kelip.

一位林務員跟我提到 “kelip-kelip” 。

A group of insects that can produce light

這是一種能在夜晚發光的昆蟲，

that are easiest to see at night.

很容易看到的。

Given my limited experience with darkness --

由於我對夜晚的體驗有限——

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

I decided to take a boat ride across the mangrove estuary one night

我決定某天晚上乘船穿過紅樹林河口，

just to see what they look like.

只為看看它們長什麼樣。

Well, the first 15 minutes of the journey was frightening.

旅程的前 15 分鐘非常嚇人。

It was pitch-black out there, and the river was choppy.

外面漆黑一片，河水波濤洶湧。

All I could hear was a faint breeze.

我能聽到的只有微弱的風聲。

As the river began to narrow,

當河道開始變窄時，

it was then that I noticed a mesmerizing sight.

我才注意到了一個迷人的景象。

Countless tiny flashes of light started to flicker on the trees,

無數微小的光點開始在樹上閃爍，

all flashing in almost perfect unison.

幾乎是完美的同步閃爍。

It was as if they were dancing to their own beat.

就像它們在跳屬於自己的舞步。

That is the moment I will never forget.

那是我永遠不會忘記的時刻。

The moment I officially fell in love with kelip-kelip,

我正式愛上了“kelip-kelip”，

known as fireflies in English.

英文叫做螢火蟲。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

The rest is history.

後來的事是你們都知道了。

Now, I have been researching fireflies for more than 17 years,

現在，我已經研究 螢火蟲超過 17 年，

and I plan to spend my life

並計畫用我的一生

uncovering and supporting the worlds of these creatures.

來揭示和支持這些生物的世界。

(Applause)

（掌聲）

There are more than 2,000 firefly species that we know of,

我們已知有超過二千種螢火蟲，

and they live all over the world.

它們分佈在世界各地。

They are found in every continent except for Antarctica.

除了南極洲，它們在每個大陸都有。

Most of them have wings, and most species can emit light.

大多數螢火蟲都有翅膀， 而且大多數物種可以發光。

The light is produced by special organs under their abdomens,

這種光是由腹部下方的特殊器官產生的，

and each species has its own unique light pattern.

每種螢火蟲都有自己獨特的光模式。

Some glow continuously,

有些是持續發光的，

while others emit discreet flashing patterns,

而有些則發出離散的閃光模式，

almost like a secret code.

幾乎像一種秘密代碼。

Fireflies are so much more than just pretty lights.

螢火蟲不僅僅是美麗的光點。

They are an essential part of a healthy ecosystem.

它們是健康生態系統的核心部分。

The life cycle of fireflies

螢火蟲的生命週期

keeps the ecosystem balanced.

維持著生態系統的平衡。

Each firefly species in its [respective] life stage

每種螢火蟲在其各自的生命階段

has specific needs for a habitat to thrive.

對棲息地有特定的需求，才能成長。

They act as bioindicator

它們作為生物指標，

to ascertain whether a particular habitat is healthy or not.

可用來確定某個棲息地是否健康。

For example, in a mangrove forest,

例如，在紅樹林中，

when you see a population of fireflies decreasing,

當你看到螢火蟲數量減少時，

that could be due to water quality degradation,

可能是由於水質惡化，

which can be a sign of a collapsing food chain.

這是食物鏈崩潰的跡象。

Why? Because firefly larvae eat snails,

為什麼？因為螢火蟲的幼蟲吃蝸牛，

and snails need good water quality to thrive.

而蝸牛需要良好的水質才能生存。

In terrestrial habitats,

在陸地棲息地中，

firefly population declines can be attributed to light pollution.

螢火蟲數量減少可以歸因於光害。

They are extremely sensitive to artificial light

它們對人造光非常敏感，

because this type of light

因為這種光

can disorient, repel

會它們迷失方向、避開或致盲。

or blind them.

So most of the time when you see a decline in firefly population,

所以，大多數時候， 當你看到螢火蟲數量減少時，

you can bet other species that live in the same habitat

你可以肯定，在同一個棲息地，

in which fireflies are found are also declining.

與螢火蟲共存的其他物種也在減少。

This is indicative of an unhealthy ecosystem.

這表示生態系統不健康。

This is bad for us, humans, too.

這對我們人類來說也是壞事。

It is a sign of overdevelopment

這是過度開發的跡象，

that can induce climate effects such as flood and drought.

可能引發氣候效應，如洪水和乾旱。

As I delve deeper into the world of fireflies,

當我深入研究螢火蟲的世界時，

I can't help but wonder

我不禁對展現在我面前的 迷人奧祕感到驚奇。

the fascinating mysteries that unfolded before me.

It amazed me to learn that some firefly species

我驚訝地了解到，

有些螢火蟲喜歡在森林中獨自飛行，

prefer to fly solo in forests,

searching for light signals from their nonwinged mates,

尋找沒有翅膀的配偶發出的光信號，

while others choose to gather amongst trees

而另一些則選擇聚集

在海洋與陸地交界處的樹木上。

where the ocean meets the land.

Equally intriguing is the fact that some firefly species have larvae

同樣令人著迷的是，

有些螢火蟲的幼蟲 生活在緩慢流動的河流和池塘中，

that dwell in slow-moving rivers and ponds,

while others have larvae that stay on land.

而另一些的幼蟲則生活在陸地上。

I find it inspiring.

我感到很受啟發。

I find it inspiring to know

我覺得真是令人振奮，

that there are so many undiscovered species hiding within them.

還有那麼多未被發現的物種隱藏其中。

Imagine how many more remarkable firefly species

想像一下，還有多少驚人的螢火蟲物種

are waiting to be found.

等待被發現。

And I have always wanted to find them.

我一直想找到它們。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

But it can be hard.

但這很難。

There are other dangerous animals, too, at night.

晚上還有其他危險的動物。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

On one occasion, when I was in a place called Linggi,

有一次，我在一個 叫 Linggi 的地方，

I stopped at a tree with firefly colonies to collect a few specimens.

停在一棵有螢火蟲群的樹旁，收集一些樣本。

When we turned on our headlamps,

當我們打開頭燈時，

we saw a row of red eyes.

看到了一排紅色的眼睛。

And soon we realized

很快我們意識到，

that we were surrounded by crocodiles.

我們被鱷魚包圍了。

Audience: Oh!

觀眾：哇！

Sometimes the discovery of new species

有時，透過研究 自然歷史博物館的收藏品

can be prompted by examining collections

也能促使新物種的發現。

in the Natural History Museum.

In 2016, I went to Singapore

2016 年，我去了新加坡，

and studied a firefly collection from Southeast Asia

在李光前自然歷史博物館

at Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum.

研究東南亞的螢火蟲收藏。

I saw a firefly specimen lying in the collection

我看到其中一個收藏的螢火蟲標本，

that did not match any of the descriptions that I knew of.

與我所知道的任何描述都不匹配。

There’s no name attached to it, and nobody knew what it was.

上面沒有名字， 也沒有人知道它是什麼。

In fact, the first specimen of this unknown species

事實上，這個未知物種的第一個標本

was collected in 1989.

是在 1989 年採集的。

That is akin to a human adult living up to 30 years

這就像一個成年人活了 30 年

without a name

卻沒有名字，

and without a proper description of this person.

也沒有正確的描述。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

So my colleagues and I in 2018 went on a mission.

所以，2018 年我和同事們 展開了一次任務。

We coordinated the first night survey to the habitat of this unknown firefly,

我們協調了首次夜間調查， 前往這種未知螢火蟲的棲息地，

which happens to be the last remaining freshwater swamp in Singapore.

這正是新加坡最後留存的 一個淡水沼澤。

We spent three hours exploring

我們花了三個小時尋找，

only to be greeted by the empty darkness.

卻只看到空蕩蕩的黑暗。

We went home disappointed and tired.

我們失望而疲憊地回家了。

Not to mention dirty and smelly from the mud.

更不用說，還因為泥濘變得又髒又臭。

We went in again three months later.

三個月後我們又去了一次，

Still nothing.

仍然一無所獲。

At this point we thought, this is it.

這時我們想，就這樣囉。

The species is gone for good.

這個物種永遠消失了。

However,

然而，

the third time's the charm.

第三次是幸運的。

During the third time visit to this swamp,

第三次拜訪這個沼澤時，

we saw a few tiny flashes

我們看到了一些微小的閃光

start to show up and perch on ferns.

開始出現，並停在蕨類植物上。

It was such an amazing feeling

儘管要在泥濘的沼澤水中跋涉，

despite having to wade through the muddy, swampy waters

還被蚊子叮咬，

and being feasted on by mosquitoes.

這種感覺依然很棒。

The itchiness was still worth it.

癢得也值得。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

After two years of additional data collection and analysis,

經過兩年的額外數據收集和分析，

we confirmed that this unknown firefly species was new to science.

我們確認這種未知的螢火蟲物種 是新發現的科學物種。

(Applause)

（掌聲）

It was also the first time since over a century

這也是一個世紀以來

that a new species of firefly,

首次發現的新物種，

a luminous firefly from Singapore, was found.

是在新加坡發現的發光螢火蟲。

And so we named it Luciola singapura.

所以我們將它命名為 Luciola singapura。

There is a Malay saying.

有句馬來諺語。

(Speaks Malay)

（說馬來語）

"If you are going to reach into the pickle jar,

「如果你要伸手進泡菜罐，

might as well put your whole arm in."

不如就把整隻手都伸進去。」

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

The further I have gone into this work as researcher and educator

在馬來西亞蒙納士大學擔任生物多樣性

in the field of biodiversity and conservation

和保育領域的研究員 和教育者的工作中，

at Monash University Malaysia,

the more passionate I have become.

我走得越遠，我就變得越有熱情。

I have transformed from a girl, a curious girl,

我從一個好奇的小女孩，

wanting to know what kelip-kelip is,

想知道 “kelip-kelip” 是什麼，

to a driven scientist

變成了一位致力於 保護螢火蟲的科學家。

committed to safeguarding the fireflies of the world.

The problem is that firefly habitats are disappearing fast.

問題是螢火蟲的棲息地正在迅速消失。

We are now in a race against time to name species before they disappear.

我們現在與時間賽跑， 要在它們消失之前命名物種。

I am a cochair of the IUCN Firefly Specialist Group,

我是國際自然保護聯盟 (IUCN) 螢火蟲專家組的共同主席，

but it is also my personal mission

但這也是我的個人使命，

to collaborate, to work together with firefly lovers and stakeholders

與螢火蟲愛好者和利益相關者合作，

to identify and conserve threatened firefly species everywhere.

識別並保護全球受威脅的螢火蟲物種。

Here's a flash of hope.

這裡有希望的光芒。

Join me on this journey if you are keen.

如果你感興趣，請加入我的旅程。

Fireflies need your help

螢火蟲需要你的幫助，

before they flash that one last time.

才能在它們最後一次 閃爍之前得到保護。

Thank you.

謝謝。

(Applause)

（掌聲）