Episode Details

Researchers with NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, catch a leatherback sea turtle off the coast of California.

美国国家海洋和大气管理局(NOAA)的研究人员在加利福尼亚海岸捕获了一只棱皮龟。

The tens of millions of years old species is in serious decline, says ecologist Scott Benson.

生态学家斯科特·本森说，这个已存在数千万年的物种正在急剧减少。

Estimates are that the population now is about 1400 adult females remaining.

据估计，目前成年雌性个体仅剩下约1400只。

That's down from literally tens of thousands several decades, a few decades ago.

这与几十年前动辄数以万计的数量相比已经减少了。

Benson co-authored a new study that says the foraging area used by the leatherback sea turtle saw a population drop of about 80 percent in the past 30 years.

本森参与合著的一项新研究指出，过去30年间，棱皮龟觅食区域内的种群数量下降了约80%。

He says this is amazing given the species adaptability. The leatherback turtle is an ancient mariner.

他说，考虑到该物种的适应能力，这十分令人惊讶。棱皮龟是古老的航海者。

They've been around for almost as long as 80 million years in their present form, date back to the time of the dinosaurs.

它们以现在的形态存在了近8000万年，其历史可以追溯到恐龙时代。

It's not a poorly adapted species. They've been through all kinds of things, meteor strikes, climate changes, you name it.

它们并非适应能力差的物种，经历过陨石撞击、气候变化等各种磨难。