In the 1600s, there were so many right whales in Cape Cod Bay off the east coast of the U.S.
在17世纪，美国东海岸科德角湾生活着大量的露脊鲸，
that apparently you could walk across their backs from one end of the bay to the other.
数量之多，你几乎都能踩着鲸鱼背从海湾的一端走向另一端。
Today, they number in the hundreds, and they're endangered.
如今，他们只剩数百只，属于濒危生物。
Like them, many species of whales saw their numbers drastically reduced by 200 years of whaling,
同露脊鲸一样，许多其他鲸鱼种类的数量也急剧下降，原因就是200年的捕鲸，
where they were hunted and killed for their whale meat, oil and whale bone.
这期间鲸鱼被猎杀，被猎取鲸鱼肉，鲸鱼油和鲸鱼骨。
We only have whales in our waters today because of the Save the Whales movement of the '70s.
今天我们的海域中之所以还有鲸鱼，要归功于上世纪70年代的拯救鲸鱼运动。
It was instrumental in stopping commercial whaling,
该运动对于阻止商业捕鲸起了重要作用，
and was built on the idea that if we couldn't save whales, what could we save?
其基本理念是，如果我们连鲸鱼都拯救不了，我们还能拯救什么？
It was ultimately a test of our political ability to halt environmental destruction.
这项运动实质上考验了我们政治能力，阻止环境破坏的政治能力。
So in the early '80s, there was a ban on commercial whaling that came into force as a result of this campaign.
80年代初，因为这项运动的努力，商业捕鲸被禁止。
Whales in our waters are still low in numbers, however, because they do face a range of other human-induced threats.
不过，我们的海域中鲸鱼数量仍旧稀少，因为鲸鱼还面临一系列其他的人类威胁。
Unfortunately, many people still think that whale conservationists like myself do what we do only
很不幸，很多人仍觉得我这样的鲸鱼保护人士
because these creatures are charismatic and beautiful.
是出于鲸鱼的魅力和美丽而保护鲸鱼。
This is actually a disservice, because whales are ecosystem engineers.
这种思维其实会起反作用，因为鲸鱼是生态系统的工程师。
They help maintain the stability and health of the oceans, and even provide services to human society.
它们帮助维护海洋的稳定和健康，甚至还能为人类社会做贡献。
So let's talk about why saving whales is critical to the resiliency of the oceans.
让我们来谈谈为什么拯救鲸鱼对保证海洋的自我调节很重要。
It boils down to two main things: whale poop and rotting carcasses.
归根结底是两个主要的东西：鲸鱼粪便和腐烂遗骸。
As whales dive to the depths to feed and come up to the surface to breathe, they actually release these enormous fecal plumes.
当鲸鱼潜入深海捕食然后浮上海面呼吸时，它们排放出巨量的排泄流。
This whale pump, as it's called, actually brings essential limiting nutrients from the depths to the surface waters
这种所谓的鲸鱼泵能将深海中的稀缺关键养分带到水表，
where they stimulate the growth of phytoplankton, which forms the base of all marine food chains.
促进浮游生物的生长，而浮游生物是一切海洋食物链的基础。

So really, having more whales in the oceans pooping is really beneficial to the entire ecosystem.
所以，让更多的鲸鱼在海洋中排泄会对整个生态系统都有好处。
Whales are also known to undertake some of the longest migrations of all mammals.
鲸鱼还是哺乳动物中迁徙距离最远的之一。
Gray whales off America migrate 16,000 kilometers between productive feeding areas and less productive calving, or birthing, areas and back every year.
美国沿岸的灰鲸每年要迁徙16000公里，来回在营养丰富的捕食水域和营养欠缺的繁殖水域之间。
As they do so, they transport fertilizer in the form of their feces from places that have it to places that need it.
在此过程中，它们的粪便作为肥料被从养分富饶的地方运送到养分稀缺的地方。
So clearly, whales are really important in nutrient cycling, both horizontally and vertically, through the oceans.
很显然，鲸鱼在海洋的营养循环中起重要作用，无论是纵向还是横向的营养循环。
But what's really cool is that they're also really important after they're dead.
但非常有意思的是，它们死后也在起重要作用。
Whale carcasses are some of the largest form of detritus to fall from the ocean's surface, and they're called whale fall.
鲸鱼遗骸是海平面下沉的腐质中最大的之一，它们被称作鲸鱼下沉物。
As these carcasses sink, they provide a feast to some 400-odd species, including the eel-shaped, slime-producing hagfish.
当遗骸下沉时，超过400种生物会迎来它们的大餐，这些生物中包括鳗鱼状的、产生粘液的蒲氏粘盲鳗。
So over the 200 years of whaling, when we were busy killing and removing these carcasses from the oceans,
所以在200年的捕鲸活动里，我们在匆忙杀戮、从海洋中移除这些遗骸的同时，
we likely altered the rate and geographic distribution of these whale falls that would descend into deep oceans,
我们也很可能改变了这些鲸鱼下沉物的产生率和地理分布，
and as a result, probably led to a number of extinctions of species that were most specialized and dependent on these carcasses for their survival.
而这可能会导致一些专门食用和非常依靠这种遗骸生存的生物的灭绝。
Whale carcasses are also known to transport about 190,000 tons of carbon,
鲸鱼遗骸还能从大气层向深海运送大约190000吨的碳，
which is the equivalent of that produced by 80,000 cars per year from the atmosphere to the deep oceans,
这相当于80000辆汽车一年排放的总和，
and the deep oceans are what we call "carbon sinks,"
深海被我们称为“碳池”，
because they trap and hold excess carbon from the atmosphere, and therefore help to delay global warming.
因为那里能锁住和存储大气中多余的碳，从而帮助减缓全球变暖。
Sometimes these carcasses also wash up on beaches and provide a meal to a number of predatory species on land.
有时这些遗骸还被冲刷上海岸，为陆地上一些捕猎生物提供午餐。
The 200 years of whaling was clearly detrimental and caused a reduction in the populations of whales between 60 to 90 percent.
200年的捕鲸活动明显是有害的，鲸鱼数量减少了60%到90%。
Clearly, the Save the Whales movement was instrumental in preventing commercial whaling from going on, but we need to revise this.
拯救鲸鱼运动在阻止商业捕鲸中起了关键作用，但我们需要做一些改进。
We need to address the more modern, pressing problems that these whales face in our waters today.
我们需要面对如今鲸鱼所面临的更当代、更紧迫的问题。
Amongst other things, we need to stop them from getting plowed down by container ships when they're in their feeding areas,
其中，我们要防止鲸鱼在繁殖水域中被运输船撞死，
and stop them from getting entangled in fishing nets as they float around in the ocean.
还要防止鲸鱼在海洋上游荡时被渔网缠住。
We also need to learn to contextualize our conservation messages,
我们还需学会将我们的动物保护信息放入合适的语境，
so people really understand the true ecosystem value of these creatures.
以便人们能够真正了解这些生物的真正生态价值。
So, let's save the whales again, but this time, let's not just do it for their sake.
让我们再次拯救鲸鱼，但是这次，我们这样做不仅是为了鲸鱼。
Let's also do it for ours. Thank you.
我们也是在为我们自己。谢谢。