氣候變暖致大堡礁珊瑚大規模白化

Scientists in Australia have revealed unprecedented damage to the Great Barrier Reef.

來自澳大利亞的科學家日前透露，大堡礁正遭受前所未有的破壞。

Mass bleaching is occurring on the Great Barrier Reef for the second consecutive year, they said.

他們稱，大堡礁連續第二年發生大面積白化。

Bleaching happens when algae that lives in the coral is expelled due to stress caused by extreme changes in temperatures, turning the coral white and putting it at risk of dying.

白化指的是，當氣溫極端變化帶來的壓力驅逐了生活在珊瑚中的藻類時，珊瑚會變成白色並面臨死亡的風險。

Marine Park Authority director of reef recovery David Wachenfeld said: "How this event unfolds will depend very much on local weather conditions over the next few weeks."

海洋公園管理局負責珊瑚恢復的主管戴維·瓦亨費爾德稱：“事情接下來會如何發展主要取決於未來數週內當地的天氣情況。”

"Climate change is the single greatest threat to the Great Barrier Reef," said Prof Morgan Pratchett, from Queensland's James Cook University. "It all comes down to what the governments in Australia and around the world do in terms of mitigating further rises in temperatures."

來自昆士蘭州詹姆斯庫克大學的摩根·普拉切特教授表示：“氣候變化是大堡礁的最大威脅。這一切都歸結於澳大利亞和世界各國政府在減緩全球變暖方面的作爲。”

The Great Barrier Reef is the world's largest collection of coral reefs, with 400 types of coral, 1,500 species of fish and 4,000 mollusc species.

大堡礁是世界最大的珊瑚礁羣，這裏生活着400種珊瑚、1500種魚類和4000種軟體動物。