關于古怪的鸮鸚鵡的事實

關于古怪的鸮鸚鵡的事實

The kakapo is an unusual bird. The world's largest parrot was common throughout its native New Zealand until predators hunted it to the brink of extinction. Now the stocky green-and-yellow bird is critically endangered and lives only on four islands off the coast of New Zealand. It's the focus of a considerable conservation effort from the New Zealand Department of Conservation's Kakapo Recovery program. There are currently 211 known adult birds, each named and extensively monitored. That's a big jump from 1995, when there were only 51 known birds.

鸮鸚鵡是一種不同尋常的鳥。世界上最大的鸚鵡在它的祖國新西蘭隨處可見，直到食肉動物將它獵殺到滅絕的邊緣。現(xiàn)在這種粗壯的黃綠相間的鳥已經瀕臨滅絕，只生活在新西蘭海岸附近的四個島嶼上。這是新西蘭自然保護部鸮鸚鵡恢復計劃的重點保護對象。目前已知的成年鳥類有211只，每只都被命名并受到廣泛監(jiān)測。與1995年相比，這是一個很大的飛躍，當時只有51只已知的鳥類。

Sirocco has become the ambassador parrot for kakapo conservation. (Photo: New Zealand Department of Conservation [CC BY 2.0]/Flickr)

From its funky facial hair to its elaborate courtship rituals, the kakapo is certainly special. Here are some strange facts about this unique bird.

從它時髦的胡須到復雜的求偶儀式，鸮鸚鵡的確很特別。以下是關于這種獨特鳥類的奇怪的事實。

This bird doesn't really look like a parrot.

這只鳥看起來不像鸚鵡。

The kakapo looks more like an owl. It has a whisker-y face that looks as if it's sporting muttonchops or sideburns.

鸮鸚鵡看起來更像貓頭鷹。它有一張胡須般濃密的臉，看起來就像是在炫耀自己的胡子或鬢角。

Every kakapo has a name.

每只鸮鸚鵡都有名字。

The first kakapo chick of the 2016 breeding season. (Photo: New Zealand Department of Conservation)

Because there are so few birds, all kakapo have names. They are named by members of the Kakapo Recovery program. Older birds were typically given English language names like Boomer, Flossie and Ruth. More recent chicks have Maori names such as Ra, Ruapuke and Taeatanga. Some birds have been named for people who are involved in conservation efforts. For example, Attenborough was named in honor of conservationist Sir David Attenborough.

因為鸮鸚鵡很少，所以它們都有名字。它們由鸮鸚鵡恢復計劃的成員命名。年齡較大的鳥通常被起英文名，如Boomer、Flossie和Ruth。最近的雛鳥有毛利人的名字，如Ra、Ruapuke和Taeatanga。一些鳥類以參與保護工作的人的名字命名。例如，阿滕伯勒是為了紀念環(huán)保主義者大衛(wèi)·阿滕伯勒爵士而命名的。

It's a nocturnal loner.

它是夜行者。

Its name means "night parrot" in Maori because it prefers solo nighttime walkabouts. Kakapo Recovery calls the parrot a "midnight rambler" due to its penchant for sleeping all day and wandering through the forest alone at night. These birds typically tuck themselves into a tree during the day and head out as a party of one in the evening to find food. These birds look for company only when it's time to breed.

它的名字在毛利語中的意思是“夜鸚鵡”，因為它更喜歡獨自夜間漫步。Kakapo Recovery稱這只鸚鵡為“午夜漫步者”，因為它喜歡整天睡覺，晚上獨自在森林里漫步。這些鳥通常會在白天把自己塞到樹上，晚上和其他鳥類一起出去覓食。這些鳥只有在繁殖的時候才會尋找同伴。

Kakapo are single mothers.

Kakapo是單身母親。

Three kakapo chicks check out the world. Their mom will feed them until they're 6 months old. (Photo: New Zealand Department of Conservation [CC BY 2.0]/Flickr)

After the business of breeding is over, males abandon the females to let them raise their chicks alone. The female usually lays one to four eggs. She has to leave the newborn chicks alone at night while she looks for food. Typically, the chicks leave the nest after about 10 weeks, but often a mother will continue to feed them until they reach 6 months old.

當繁殖期結束后，雄鸮鸚鵡會拋棄雌鸮鸚鵡，讓它們獨自撫養(yǎng)小企鵝。雌性通常產一到四個蛋。當她在晚上尋找食物時，她不得不讓新生的小雞獨自呆著。通常情況下，雛鳥會在10周后離開巢，但通常母親會繼續(xù)喂養(yǎng)它們，直到它們長到6個月大。

It makes some unusual noises.

它發(fā)出一些不尋常的聲音。

Boom-chings aside, the kakapo squawks like a typical parrot, but it has a more varied vocabulary. Some of its other noises sound like a donkey's bray or a pig's squeal.

撇開嗡嗡聲不談，鸮鸚鵡像典型的鸚鵡一樣嘎嘎叫，但它的詞匯更豐富。它的其他一些聲音聽起來像驢叫或豬叫。

They freeze when noticed.

一旦被發(fā)現(xiàn)，他們就會被嚇呆。

A kakapo will stay totally still if the bird thinks it has been seen. (Photo: New Zealand Department of Conservation [CC BY 2.0]/Flickr)

It may not the most successful mode of defense, but when a kakapo is disturbed or frightened, it keeps absolutely still and hopes it won't get noticed. The kakapo likely developed this behavior when most of New Zealand's predators were birds and freezing might have worked.

它可能不是最成功的防御方式，但當一只鸮鸚鵡受到干擾或驚嚇時，它會保持絕對的安靜，并希望自己不會被發(fā)現(xiàn)。鸮鸚鵡的這種行為可能是在新西蘭的大多數捕食者都是鳥類的時候形成的，而呆住可能起了作用。