据联合国统计，每天倒入海洋、河流和湖泊的塑料垃圾足以装满2000辆垃圾车。海底和珠穆朗玛山顶上都有塑料垃圾。现在在另一个不太可能的地方发现了塑料：寄居蟹的背部。
According to a study published in February in the journal Science of the Total Environment , hermit crabs (寄居蟹) are using plastic litter as shells.
根据2月发表在《整体环境科学》杂志上的一项研究，寄居蟹正在使用塑料垃圾作为外壳。
Zuzanna Jagiello is the study’s lead author. “ A_hermit crab in a plastic shell could be an_icon_of our times ,” Jagiello told TIME for Kids . “They don’t have homes, so they use rubbish.” Jagiello studies the Anthropocene age. That’s the geologic (地质的) age we’re in now. Scientists define it as the period in which human activity has had a major impact on the environment. Hermit crabs using plastic waste as shells is one example of that impact.
Zuzanna Jagiello是该研究的主要作者。“一个塑料外壳中的寄居蟹可能是我们这个时代的一个象征，”Jagiello告诉《儿童时代》。“他们没有家，所以他们使用垃圾当家。” Jagiello研究了人类世时代。这就是我们现在所处的地质时代。科学家将其定义为人类活动对环境产生重大影响的时期。使用塑料废物作为外壳的寄居蟹就是这种影响的一个例子。
Hermit crabs are small, soft-bodied crabs that live near oceans. To protect themselves from predators, the crabs typically wear seashells that have been left behind by dead sea snails. But according to February’s study, at least 386 hermit crabs have been documented wearing garbage. Of the world’s 16 species of hermit crabs that live on land, 10 have been seen wearing trash. Nearly nine out of every 10 of those crabs were wearing plastic waste, such as bottle caps. The others wore glass or metal, such as broken lightbulbs or soda cans.
寄居蟹是生活在海洋附近的小而柔软的螃蟹。为了保护自己免受捕食者的侵害，螃蟹通常会戴上死海螺留下的壳。但根据2月的研究，至少有386只寄居蟹被记录穿着垃圾。在世界上生活在陆地上的16种寄居蟹中，有10种被发现穿着垃圾。每10只螃蟹中就有9只戴着塑料垃圾，比如瓶盖。其他人则戴着玻璃或金属，例如破碎的灯泡或汽水罐。
Jagiello says that she and her team first learned about hermit crabs wearing garbage when they noticed photos of them posted online. They decided to learn more by conducting research (see “Internet Ecology”). For their study, the researchers scanned the Internet for photos of hermit crabs wearing trash. They found photos from all over the world. Some had been taken by scientists. Some had been taken by nature photographers. Many had been taken by people who were just curious.
Jagiello说，当她和她的团队注意到网上发布的寄居蟹照片时，他们首先注意到寄居蟹穿着垃圾。他们决定通过研究了解更多。在他们的研究中，研究人员在互联网上扫描了寄居蟹穿着垃圾的照片。他们发现了来自世界各地的照片。有些的科学家拍的。有些是由自然摄影师拍摄的。许多是好奇的人拍的。
Scientists agree that plastic pollution harms wildlife and habitats in many ways. But they aren’t sure why hermit crabs are choosing litter instead of sea snail shells, nor are they sure if the crabs are in any danger. “It’s really an amazing example of how some animals are coping with the Anthropocene age,” Jagiello says. “What are the long-term consequences of these adaptations? We don’t know.”
科学家们一致认为，塑料污染在许多方面危害野生动物和栖息地。但是他们不确定为什么寄居蟹选择垃圾而不是海螺壳，也不确定螃蟹是否有任何危险。“这真的是一些动物如何应对人类世时代的一个惊人的例子，” Jagiello说。“这些适应的长期后果是什么？我们不知道。”
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