[Stories from the Sea] [Fish Tale My Secret Life as Plankton] How did I get here? Well, it's a stranger story than you might think. I came from a world of drifters, a place few humans have ever seen. The world of plankton. I came from a batch of a million eggs, and only a few of us survived. When I became a larva, I moved among other drifters. ["Plankton" comes from the Greek "planktos" for wandering] My fellow plankton came in all sizes, from tiny algae and bacteria to animals longer than a blue whale. I shared my nursery with other embryos and juveniles, from clams and crabs to sea urchins and anemones. (High pitch sound) We drifting animals are called zooplankton. The most common animals here are copepods and krill. (Buzzing) You could search the world over, but you'd never find a place more diverse than my childhood home. A teaspoon of seawater can contain more than a million living creatures. It can be a pretty tough existence, though. Trillions are born here, but only a few make it to adulthood. He may be no larger than a pin head, but this crab larva is an arrow worm's worst nightmare. (Bumping noises) (Buzzing) Epic battles between carnivores like these are just one way to get food. But the real powers of this place come from phytoplankton. Single-celled life that transforms sunlight and carbon dioxide into edible gold. Phytoplankton are the base for the largest food web in the world. During the night, many animals like me would rise up from the depths to feed on this sun-powered feast. (Maraca sound) I was part of the largest daily migration of life on Earth. During the day, I'd return to the darkness, where I'd join my bizarre companions. (High pitch buzz) (Flapping noises) Cannibals, like this sea butterfly mollusk, that eats its next of kin. And comb jellies, that beat cilia like rainbowed eyelashes. Some of these snare their prey with sticky tentacles, while others just take a bite out of their cousins. And siphonophores that catch prey with toxic fishing lures. But my favorite would have to be the crustacean Phronima. Its monstrous looks inspired the movie "Aliens." It can catch tiny bits in its bristles, but prefers larger prey like salps. With two sets of eyes, this female prowls the deeper water. Prey in hand, she performs one of the strangest behaviors in the entire animal kingdom. With body parts from her victims, she delicately assembles a barrel-like home feeding her young until they can drift off and survive on their own. Best of all, they make the perfect snack for a small fish like me. Here among the plankton, the food web is so tangled and complex, even scientists don't know who eats whom. But I do. At least now you know a bit of my story. There's so much more to me than just a tasty meal.
(音樂) 海中傳奇 魚的自述: 我曾是浮游生物的秘密生活 (音樂) 我是怎麼到這裡的? 嗯,這故事比你想像的更奇怪 我來自充滿浮游流浪者的世界 一個少有人類見過的地方 浮游生物的世界 我從數以百萬計的卵中孵出來 我們之中只有極少數存活下來 當我孵化成幼體時 我和其他的浮游者一起活動 「浮游生物一詞來自希臘文 planktos 即漫遊之意」 我們浮游生物大小各不相同 從微小的藻類與細菌 到比藍鯨更長的動物 我在托兒所的同學 還有胚胎和幼年的 蛤蜊和螃蟹,海膽和海葵 (浮游生物雜音) 我們浮游的動物被稱為 「浮游動物」 (zooplankton) 這裡最常見的動物 是橈足類 (copepod) 和磷蝦 (krill) 您可以找遍世界各地 但你找不到比我童年家庭 更多樣化的地方了 一茶匙的海水 可能包含一百萬個以上小生物 不過生活相當艱難 雖然出生的數以兆計 但活到成年的只有少數 牠可能不比針頭大 但這隻蟹苗是箭頭蟲 (arrow worm) 最可怕的噩夢 (浮游生物雜音) 肉食動物之間的永恆戰鬥 只是獲得食物的方式之一 這個地方的真正能量來源是 「浮游植物」(phytoplankton): 它是單細胞生物 將陽光和二氧化碳轉換為 可以吃的「金礦」 浮游植物是世界上 最大食物網的基礎 在夜間 許多像我這樣的動物,從深處上升 飽餐一頓太陽能的盛宴 (浮游生物雜音) 我是地球上最大規模 每日遷移生物的一部分 到了白天 我回到黑暗,加入奇異的同伴中 (浮游生物雜音) 有些會同類相殘,像這隻 軟體動物──海蝴蝶 (sea butterfly) 會吃掉牠的近親 櫛水母 (comb jelly) 令人吃驚的纖毛 像是七彩的睫毛 有的設下陷阱 用黏黏的觸手捕捉獵物 有的則是一口咬掉堂兄弟 管水母 (Siphonophorae) 是用 有毒的魚餌捕捉獵物 我的最愛則是甲殼動物「巧戎」 (虫戎) (Phronima) 可怕的長相啟發了電影「異形」 牠可以用短毛捕捉小東西 但更喜歡樽海鞘 (salps) 這類更大的獵物 牠有兩對眼睛 這隻雌性在更深的水中覓食 獵物在手 她在執行整個動物王國中 最奇怪的行為之一 使用她受害者的肢體 巧妙組裝成水桶狀的家 餵養寶寶,直到牠們漂走獨立生存 最重要的是,對我這樣的小魚而言 牠們是完美的點心 浮游生物之間的 食物網太糾結複雜了 連科學家都不知道誰吃了誰 但我知道 至少你現在知道了一些我的故事 我可不只是道美味的菜餚而已