海岸 The coast.
是自然界中最严酷的狩猎场 Nature's most demanding hunting ground.
环境极为险恶 因而少有掠食者常年在此 So hazardous that few predators stay here all year.
海洋与陆地的边界不停变化 This frontier between sea and land is continuously changing.
机会从不长久 Opportunities never last long.
为了在海岸捕猎 你必须在合适的位置 To hunt at the coast, you have to be in the right place
而且在恰当的时间 at just the right time.
在美国东海岸 南卡罗莱纳州的潮溪中 On the east coast of America, in the tidal creeks of South Carolina,
一群捕猎者准备离开安全的栖息地 a team of hunters is about to leave the safety of their natural habitat.
这群宽吻海豚将一种独特的捕猎策略 This group of bottlenose dolphins has perfected
发挥到极致 a unique hunting strategy.
这依靠团队合作 智力和时机 It relies on teamwork, intelligence and timing.
如此登陆上岸不仅困难 而且很危险 But beaching themselves like this is also difficult and dangerous.
只有在潮水很低 泥滩露出的三个小时内 Hunting is only possible for three hours around low tide,
捕猎才有可能 when the mud banks are exposed.
如刀片般锋利的牡蛎 覆盖了大部分岸边 Razor-sharp oysters cover much of the shore.
在这里登陆有生命危险 Beaching here could be lethal.
捕猎者们需要找到展开的海岸线 The hunters need to find a stretch of shoreline
而且有合适的坡度 with just the right slope.
坡度太平 海豚将有搁浅的危险 Too level and the dolphins risk stranding.
坡度太陡 就无法将猎物赶出水 Too steep and they can't force their prey from the water.
众海豚合作无间 将鱼群包围 Working as a team, the dolphins surround the fish,
将它们赶向岸边 driving them towards the shore.
海豚同步攻击 制造出一道波浪 Attacking in perfect synchrony, the dolphins create a bow wave.
将猎物带到泥滩上 It carries their prey onto the muddy banks.
其它食鱼动物也分一杯羹 Other fish-eaters profit from their daring.
白鹭和海鸥 每次捕猎都会跟随 Herons and gulls follow every hunt.
为了最先捉到鱼 To get to the fish first,
海豚冲向岸边的高处 the dolphins drive themselves high up the bank.
如果冲得太远 就有搁浅的危险 But if they go too far, they risk stranding.
为防止鱼从空隙溜走 To prevent fish escaping between them,
所有海豚在同一侧上岸 the dolphins all beach themselves on the same side.
它们经常成功 Always the right.
但这有一个代价 But this has a cost -
每捕到一条鱼 它们都会啃一嘴泥 each time they grab a fish, they also take in a mouthful of mud.
这会逐渐磨损它们的牙齿 The grit gradually wears down their teeth
但只会磨损一侧 but on one side only.
时间久了 年老海豚的牙齿会变得很钝 In time, these teeth get so worn down that older dolphins can no
无法再这样捕猎 只好另寻出路 longer hunt like this and must find other ways to catch fish.
几小时之内 海滩会再次消失 Within a few hours, the banks will vanish once again
淹没在浑浊的海水之下 beneath the muddy water.
潮水的退落和流动掌控了所有的 The ebb and flow of the tide dominates the lives of all
在海岸捕猎动物的生活 who try to hunt on the coast.
澳洲北部的潮水 在热带地区是最高的 Northern Australia has the highest tides in the tropics,
露出了广阔的海岸线 which expose vast areas of shoreline.
这里生存着一种非同寻常的章鱼 And here lives a truly extraordinary species of octopus.
章鱼是海生动物 它们在水中生存呼吸 Octopuses are marine animals - they live and breathe underwater.
退潮时 大多数章鱼被困在岩石水坑中 At low tide, most octopuses would be imprisoned in their rocky pools.
但这只不是一般的章鱼 But this is no ordinary octopus.
它是唯一适应在陆地行走的种类 It's the only one specially adapted to walk on land.
借助在触手上排列的 It pulls itself along,
数百个吸盘 它拖着自己前进 using the hundreds of tiny suckers that line its arms.
它从一个水坑到另一个 捕食螃蟹 Hunting for crabs, it walks from pool to pool.
除了一条惊吓过度的鱼 Apart from a rather startled fish
这个水坑空无一物 this one is empty.
章鱼继续前进 So the octopus moves on.
岩石水坑看似安全的避难所 A rock pool may seem like a safe refuge.
章鱼借助触手上的吸盘 But the octopus' suckers enable it to move
出水后仍能像在水中一样隐秘行动 just as stealthily in water as out of it.
章鱼在附近时 没有地方是安全的 Nowhere is safe when this octopus is around.
这里每一种生物 都得配合海岸的节律 Everything living here must march to the rhythm of the coast.
寄居蟹的大军 有数千之众 Regiments of soldier crabs, several thousand strong,
在澳洲的海滩上浩浩荡荡地前进 march and counter-march across these Australian beaches.
它们筛出微小的食物 They sift out microscopic food.
只有沙子是湿的 它们才有几小时进食的时间 But they can only feed for a few hours while the sand remains damp.
它们不仅要与潮水竞赛 And it's not just the tide they're racing against.
捕食鸟也随它们而来 Hunting birds follow in their wake.
但这支大军没有被吓住 But the army is undeterred.
它们的聚集数量极为巨大 They swarm in such huge numbers
掠食者只能对它们造成很小的损失 that their predators make little impact upon them.
在这些平地上 巨大的数量不是唯一的防御措施 But safety in numbers isn't the only defence on these flats.
另一种螃蟹拥有不同的策略 Another crab here has a different strategy.
股窗蟹 只有豌豆那么大 The sand bubbler crab - no bigger than a pea.
它们也筛出食物微粒 They also sift out tiny food particles
在身后留下沙子的小球 and then leave the sand as pellets in their wake.
股窗蟹很机警 从不离开巢穴太远 Sand bubblers are wary and never venture far from their burrows.
这些螃蟹仔细地将沙球摆放好 The crabs position their sand balls very carefully
以保证通畅的退路 to ensure there is a clear path back to safety.
一旦危险过去 它们重新出发 As soon as the coast is clear, they're off again,
在沙子变干前 继续觅食的竞赛 racing to feed before the sand dries out.
螃蟹制造出无数沙球 改变了海滩的面貌 The industry of thousands transforms the whole beach
直到潮水再次到来 until the tide returns once more.
只有少数捕猎者 将海岸作为永久住所 Few hunters make the coast their permanent home -
大多数只是前来利用短暂的机会 most only visit to take advantage of short-lived opportunities.
在泰国的海岸边 On the coast of Thailand,
一只最不可能的访客等待着退潮 a most unlikely visitor waits for the tide to ebb.
长尾猕猴主要以树林中的水果和树叶为食 Long-tailed macaques feed mostly on fruit and leaves in the forest.
但这些猕猴已经学会 用海鲜补充素食为主的膳食 But these have learnt to supplement their vegetarian diet with seafood.
随着潮水退去 猕猴们前往岸边 As the tide begins to fall, the macaques make their way
一处正要开放的海边餐馆 down to the shore - a beach-side restaurant is about to open.
只要你知道怎么获得 这里的食物很充足 There's plenty of food here, if you know how to get at it.
猕猴已经学会使用大石块为工具 The macaques have learnt to use heavy rocks as tools
来打开海螺的壳 to break open the sea snails.
掌握这种技术需要极高的技巧 It takes a great deal of skill to master this technique,
并非所有猕猴都能学会窍门 but not everyone has got the hang of it.
在海岸边生存 你得有高超的创造力 You have to be ingenious to make a living at the coast.
随着潮水退得更远 显露出下一道菜 As the tide falls still further, it reveals the next course.
要吃到种食物 To feed on this dish,
它们需要具有特殊形状的石头工具 they need a stone tool with a very particular shape.
它们在寻找岩石上的牡蛎 They're after rock oysters.
为了打开牡蛎的壳 它们得使用选好的工具 To crack the shells open, they must strike the oyster
在恰当的位置敲打牡蛎 in just the right place with their chosen tool.
潮水最低时 一种非常美味的食物出现了 The lowest tide reveals a course that is particularly delicious
但也极难获得 but also very hard to collect.
螃蟹视力很好 移动速度很快 Crabs have good eyesight and can move fast.
捕捉它们需要特殊的技巧 So catching them requires a special trick.
突袭之前 猕猴等待一道波浪作为进攻掩护 Before pouncing, the macaques wait for a wave to obscure their attack.
猕猴通过观察父母学习技术 Macaques learn their skills by watching their parents.
某些技巧需要时间才能纯熟 But some techniques do take time to perfect.
时间和潮水不会等待猕猴 And time and tide waits for no macaque.
潮水回来了 餐馆改日开放 The returning water closes the beach restaurant for another day.
主宰海岸动物生活的 It's not just tides that rule the lives
不仅是潮汐 of those that live on the coast.
智利的海岸 The shores of Chile are battered
饱受猛烈寒冷海浪的侵袭 by some of the wildest and coldest seas.
这条海岸线上 居住着一种非凡的小型捕猎者 This coastline is home to a remarkable little hunter
南美海獭 the South American marine otter.
世界上最小的海洋哺乳动物 The world's smallest sea mammal.
这种稀少难寻的海獭 体型只有其欧洲近亲的一半 This rare and elusive otter is half the size of its European cousin.
它们生存在南美洲太平洋沿岸 They live along the Pacific coast of South America,
一直到这片大陆的顶端合恩角 right down to Cape Horn at the very tip of the continent.
令人吃惊的是 猛烈的海浪 Surprisingly, the pounding breakers
对小海獭来说不是问题 aren't a problem for the little otters
寒冷的海水才是 but the cold water is.
持续的寒冷洋流 从南极洲袭来 A continuous frigid current sweeps up from Antarctica.
小体型相比于大体型 热量损失更快 A small body loses heat faster than a large one,
这些小型海獭在寒冷的水中 一次只能捕猎20分钟 so these tiny otters can only hunt in the chilly water for 20 minutes at a time.
但较小的体型使它们能够捕猎 But their small size enables them to reach the fish and crabs
藏在石块中的鱼和螃蟹 that hide amongst the boulders.
为了保持体温 海獭每天必须摄入相当于 To stay warm, marine otters have to eat a quarter of their body weight
自己体重四分之一的食物 in seafood every single day.
对这只母海獭来说 情况极为困难 And things are particularly hard for this female
它的幼崽们还没有长大到自己能捕猎 because her cubs aren't yet old enough to hunt for themselves.
在它进入海藻丛中捕鱼前 Before each fishing trip she rolls in seaweed,
将空气存入皮毛 trapping air in her fur,
因而将自身与冰冷的海水隔开 so insulating herself from the chill of the seas.
寒冷并不是唯一的挑战 The cold isn't her only challenge.
这些体型如此小的海獭 屏息的时间 Being so small, these otters can only hold their breath
只有约一分钟 每一次潜水都是争分夺秒 for about a minute, making every dive a race against time.
这只海獭的生活举步维艰 This otter lives on a calorific knife-edge,
一次捕猎的收获 仅仅够维持下一次捕猎 often only getting enough from one hunting trip to fuel the next.
成功了 给幼崽的一顿美餐 Success - a meal for the youngsters.
这些海獭终身生活在海岸边 These otters spend their entire lives at the coast,
因此它们必须接受日复一日的挑战 so they must accept its day-to-day challenges.
海岸的脉动不仅是每天的节律 But coasts pulse to much more than just the daily rhythms.
在阿拉斯加的岸边 On the shores of Alaska,
一场壮观的年度盛事即将发生 a spectacular annual event is about to take place.
每年七月 掠食者们聚集参加年度盛宴 Each July, predators gather for the biggest feast of the year
但只会持续几周时间 but it will only last a few weeks.
棕熊从山上下来 Brown bears come down from the hills.
狼从树林里出来 Wolves appear out of the woods.
海豹在海洋中集合 And seals assemble in the ocean.
只有在海岸边 海陆空的捕猎者 The coast is the only place where hunters from the sea
才会彼此相遇 meet those from land and air.
棕熊的嗅觉比人类灵敏2000倍 Bears have a sense of smell 2,000 times better than ours
甚至能察觉到海中的猎物 and can even detect prey out at sea.
它们知道 鲑鱼要来了 They know the salmon are coming.
它们也知道最佳捕鱼点 They also know the best fishing spots
并准备为此一战 and are prepared to fight for them.
在太平洋觅食数年后 After years feeding out in the Pacific,
鲑鱼回来产卵 the salmon are returning to spawn.
但在逆流而上之前 But before they head upriver,
它们必须停下来 调整身体机能以适应淡水 they must pause and modify their bodies to function in fresh water.
鲑鱼还在海浪中 年幼的棕熊已经迫不及待 The young and overeager try to catch the salmon
想要抓到他们 while they're still in the surf.
有经验的棕熊则更耐心 Those with experience are more patient.
在冬季巢穴里饿了半年 After six months of starvation in a winter den,
这些食物对幼熊极具诱惑力 all this food is just too tempting for the youngster.
聪明的老熊等着鲑鱼进入河里 Wise old bears wait for the salmon to move into the river,
它们知道在那里捕鱼更容易 where they know the fishing will be easier.
即来的潮水是变化的信号 The incoming tide signals a change.
有经验的熊占据了位于河口的 The experienced bears now take up their prized fishing spots
宝贵的捕鱼点 at the mouth of the river.
鲑鱼终于来了 The salmon are finally here.
当鲑鱼涌入浅水区 As the fish are funnelled into shallower water,
海豹就有机会 a seal gets its chance.
狼不得不等着 The wolves will have to wait.
棕熊控制了河口 Bears dominate the river-mouth.
鲑鱼的洄游为棕熊提供了 These bears rely on the salmon run
一年中九成的食物来源 for nearly 90% of their year's food.
大多数鲑鱼都逆流而上 过了棕熊这一关 Most of the salmon make it upstream past the bears,
但现在 它们必须逃脱狼的夹击 but now they must run the gauntlet of wolves.
鲑鱼会一直为狼提供食物 直到夏天结束 The salmon will sustain the wolves through the rest of the summer.
极为富足的季节性奖励 The sheer abundance of this seasonal bounty
使这些棕熊成为北美洲最大的动物 has made these bears the largest in North America.
河口是河流与海洋的交汇处 Estuaries are the meeting place of rivers and sea,
是迁徙鸟类重要的站点 and they're vital staging points for migrating birds.
在欧洲 数百万的涉水禽在秋天来此 In Europe, each autumn, they're visited by millions of waders.
这些鸟从北极的繁殖地返回 The birds are returning from their breeding grounds in the Arctic
到非洲越冬 在这里停靠补给 to overwinter in Africa, and are stopping off to refuel.
只有泥滩露出来时 大滨鹬才能觅食 Knot can only feed when the mudflats are exposed.
潮水很高时 它们被迫上岸 At high tide, they're forced onshore
等着潮水退去 食品仓库才会重开 where they must wait for the tide to turn and reopen the larder.
一只游隼 A peregrine falcon.
年轻游隼在秋天来到河口 Young peregrines come to these estuaries in autumn
捕猎涉水禽 to hunt waders.
游隼是世界上最快的空中捕猎者 Peregrines are the world's fastest aerial hunters,
但对于年轻游隼 这种环境极具挑战性 but this is a very challenging environment for a young falcon.
一只掠食者面对着数千只猎物 It's one predator faced with thousands of prey.
黑白闪动 Flashing black and white,
令人眩晕的翅膀 让视力敏锐的游隼眼花缭乱 the swirling mass of wings dazzles the falcon's sensitive eyesight.
单独的目标可能是更好的选择 An individual target may be a better option.
游隼的羽翼 防水性能不佳 A peregrine's plumage is not properly waterproof,
它不能让羽毛沾湿 so he can't afford to get his feathers wet.
它必须将猎物赶到空中 He must flush his prey into the air.
但只要它一靠近 But as soon as he gets close,
涉水禽就跑到海里 让游隼无法追赶 the waders ditch into the sea where he can't follow.
成功依赖于避免让猎物入水 Success depends on keeping his prey away from the water.
现在是近距离混战 Now it's a dogfight at close quarters.
只有当涉水禽来河口时 Peregrines only stay around estuaries
游隼才会逗留数月 for the few months the waders are there.
一旦猎物离开 它们就会返回内陆 As soon as their prey leaves, they will head back inland.
一些动物来到海岸边 不是为了觅食 Some animals come to the coast, not to feed
而是为了生产后代 but to have their young.
巴塔哥尼亚海狮 Patagonian sea lions.
这些只有几个月大 These are just a few months old.
海狮不能再海中生产 Sea lions can't give birth at sea,
它们必须到陆地上生产幼崽 they must come to land to have their pups.
每年夏天 在阿根廷的瓦尔德斯半岛沿岸 Each summer, thousands cluster in colonies
海狮聚集成数千个群体 along Argentina's Valdes Peninsula.
母海狮定期返回海中捕猎 The mothers regularly return to sea to hunt
幼海狮待在沙滩上 but their young stay on the beach
因为它们还没有学会游泳 for they have not yet learnt to swim.
虎鲸 又称杀人鲸 Orca. Killer whales.
它们每年同一时间来这里捕猎幼海狮 They come at exactly the same time each year to hunt the pups.
这个机会转瞬即逝 It's a narrow window of opportunity
而且时机对捕猎者不利 and the odds are stacked against the hunters.
正如海豚一样 Just like the dolphins,
虎鲸离开它们的自然栖息地 要冒很大的风险 orca take great risks in leaving their natural habitat.
每次进攻 都会有搁浅的真正危险 With every attack, there's a real danger of being stranded.
虎鲸每天只能捕猎几小时 Orca can only hunt for a few hours each day,
因为在低潮时 礁石阻挡了到海滩的路线 because at low tide a rocky reef blocks their access to the beach.
在潮水涨高之前 幼海狮很安全 So until the tide is high, the pups are safe.
在这个季节的早期 虎鲸有一项巨大的优势 Early in the season the orca have one big advantage
幼海狮还太小 无法辨别出虎鲸的威胁 the pups are naive and don't yet recognise the whales as a threat.
但幼海狮很快能学会 But the young sea lions will learn quickly.
虎鲸无声无息地进入位置 Silently, the killer whales move into position.
虎鲸进攻的成功率不到一半 Less than half the attacks are successful
随着每一次尝试 幼海狮就会变得更机敏 and with each attempt, the pups grow wiser.
虎鲸渐渐失去了优势 The orca's advantage is slipping away.
接下来几周时间 For the next few weeks,
猎手与猎物陷入胶着 hunter and hunted are locked in a desperate race.
虎鲸想要捉到幼海狮 The orca to seize pups,
幼海狮要学会躲避虎鲸的攻击 and the sea lions to learn how to evade their attacks.
这些年轻海狮获胜了 These young sea lions have triumphed.
它们已经学会辨识危险 并躲避杀手 They've learnt to recognise the danger and evade the killers.
对虎鲸来说 For the orca,
机会之窗要等到下一个捕猎季节 the window of opportunity has closed for another season.
加拿大纽芬兰 Newfoundland, Canada.
独特的季节盛事 会使这里巨变 A unique seasonal event is about to transform this place.
这是地球上最大的繁殖奇观 It is the greatest coastal breeding spectacle on the planet,
但只会持续一两周 but it will only last a week or two.
毛鳞鱼 Capelin.
有数十亿条 Billions of them.
在初夏 这些小鱼在海岸外聚集 In early summer, these tiny fish mass just offshore.
巨大的鱼群必然会吸引掠食者 The great shoals inevitably attract predators.
座头鲸 Humpback whales.
它们旅行了3000英里 They've travelled over 3,000 miles
从加勒比海的繁殖地来此 from their breeding grounds in the Caribbean.
全世界无法再找到 Nowhere else in the world
更多数量的座头鲸聚集起来觅食 do humpback whales gather to feed in greater numbers.
座头鲸刚到这里 But no sooner have the whales arrived
毛鳞鱼就做出了看似自杀的事情 than the capelin do something apparently suicidal.
它们有意地将自己抛到岸上 They deliberately cast themselves ashore,
而且一旦离开水 它们就开始产卵 and, once out of water, they lay their eggs.
它们是仅有的两种鱼之一 They're one of only two species of fish
像这样离开海洋产卵 that leave the ocean to spawn like this.
离水的鱼唾手可得 A fish out of water is an easy meal.
毛鳞鱼蔓延如此一大片 But capelin go to these extreme lengths
保证了后代的最高成活率 to give their offspring the best chance of survival.
对很多人来说 这是非凡的牺牲 For many, it's the ultimate sacrifice.
鳕鱼 Cod.
从深水中大量涌出 Great numbers of them move in from deeper water
抢夺短暂的奖赏 to plunder this brief bounty.
它们对鱼群的冲击很小 Their impact on the vast shoals is small
但在鳕鱼捕猎时 它们将毛鳞鱼驱赶出海床 but as they hunt, the cod drive capelin off the seabed
径直落入等待已久的座头鲸口中 and up into the range of the waiting humpbacks.
座头鲸将鱼群赶到悬崖边 The whales herd the fish against the cliffs.
然后使出秘密武器 Then they unleash a secret weapon.
这些奇怪的叫声让毛鳞鱼惊慌失措 These bizarre calls panic the capelin,
迫使鱼群聚得更紧 driving the fish ever closer together,
是它们变成更集中的目标 making them a more concentrated target.
这种好运几天内就会消失 This bonanza will disperse within days,
因此座头鲸会尽可能充分利用 so the humpbacks have to make the most of it while they can.
海岸边的捕猎者总是在分秒必争 Hunters at the coast are always in a race against time.