世界匪夷所思的自然現象:澳洲希利爾粉色湖
Fly over Western Australia for a rare visual treat: nestled among dense emerald-green woodlands surrounded by the deep blue of the Southern Ocean are a series of lakes in a shocking shade of bubblegum pink.
爲了去尋求一個珍稀的視覺盛宴，飛越西澳大利亞：深藏在濃密的祖母綠樹林裏，被深藍色的南大洋半包圍着的是一片口香糖粉色的湖羣。
One of the most well known is Lake Hillier, a 600m-long lake on the edge of Middle Island in the Recherche Archipelago off Western Australia’s south coast. Surrounded by a thin ring of sand and an expansive forest of paperbark and eucalyptus trees, the rosy pink lake punctuates a stunning landscape.
其中最著名的是長達600米的希利爾湖，它位於西澳南海岸邊的勒謝什羣島中的一座——中央島邊緣。這片玫瑰粉色的湖泊被細細的環形沙和大片千層樹和桉樹所包圍，其景相當壯觀。
But even more surprising than its Pepto-Bismol shade is that “nobody seems to be able to definitively explain its distinctive colour,” according to Quora user Garrick Saito. Possible causes include the presence of green algae that can accumulate high levels of beta-carotene, a red-orange pigment; haloarchaea, a type of microorganism that appears reddish in large blooms; or a high concentration of pink brine prawn.
Quora用戶加里克•薩伊託說，然而比它那佩託比斯摩（Pepto-Bismol，美國一種粉紅包裝藥物品牌）外形更令人詫異的是“幾乎沒有人能解釋那獨一無二的粉色湖水成因。”可能的原因有：湖水中的綠藻含大量β胡蘿蔔素，這種胡蘿蔔素有橘紅色染色功能；一種只要大量聚集就能呈現紅色的微生物；或是大量聚集的粉紅色鹽水蝦。
Most tourists admire the chromatic splendour of Lake Hillier from a helicopter or plane ride. For on-the-ground visitors, there’s an added treat: Lake Hillier is highly saline but the water isn't toxic, so pack your swimsuit and go for a swim. Thanks to its high salinity, you’ll bob like a cork.
大多數乘直升機或客機鳥瞰希利爾湖的遊客都對它那獨一無二的色彩讚不絕口。而對於在陸上的遊客，希利爾湖則另有一番風情：希利爾湖雖然含鹽度極高，但湖水並沒有毒，因此趕緊帶上你的泳裝，來游泳吧。由於它的高鹽度，你能輕鬆地浮在水面。
