国家地理:追逐抹香鲸的水下摄影师(4)

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In Dominica, Skerry followed a research team led by Shane Gero, a biologist at Denmark's Aarhus University and founder of the Dominica Sperm Whale Project. Each year Gero's team tracks families of Caribbean sperm whales to try to decode their communication. The research contributes to a broader understanding of whale behavior, which can influence human activity and conservation strategies to help populations rebound.

在多米尼克，斯科利加入了肖恩·杰洛的研究团队，他是丹麦奥胡斯大学的生物学家，也是多米尼克抹香鲸计划的发起人。杰洛的团队每年都会追踪加勒比地区的抹香鲸家族，以试着破解它们的沟通方式。这项研究让我们能更广泛地理解鲸鱼行为，继而影响人类活动和保护策略，帮助鲸鱼数目的回升。

Collecting data, however, is slow work. Like other wildlife photographers, Skerry talks a lot about patience, as though that's enough to land a masterful shot. But only when in the boat with him is it possible to understand the mental gymnastics required to wait, trigger ready, for weeks at a time -- knowing that the moment may never come. And yet, every so often, Skerry has not just a good day but an epic one.

然而，搜集资料是件缓慢的工作。和其他野生动物摄影师一样，斯科利经常谈论关于耐心这件事，彷佛有耐心就足以拍出大师级的作品。但唯有跟他一起上船，才有可能明白一次数周的等待所需要的心理锻练--因为深知那一瞬间可能再也不会出现。不过，有时候斯科利也会碰上好日子，而且是极其美好的。

One day last spring, after a string of fruitless weeks, Skerry got a tip from a research boat that a pod of whales appeared to be moving toward the surface to socialize. Such behavior is rare for people to witness, let alone photograph. Skerry raced to the site and found six sperm whales under sunny skies. He swam with them for more than an hour, filling two memory cards with 1,500 images. Nature often has good reason to frown on humans -- but sometimes it smiles anyway.

去年春季的某一天，在连续数周没什么收获后，斯科利从一艘研究船得知，有一群鲸鱼似乎将游向水面进行社交。这样的行为很少被人类目睹，更不用说拍到。斯科利飞快赶至现场，在阳光灿烂的天空下看到了六只抹香鲸。他和它们共游超过一小时，拍满了两张记忆卡一共1500 张照片。大自然常有充分的理由对人类摆脸色--但有时候也会对我们微笑。