在月光洒下的夜空下，小海龟从土耳其地中海沿岸的沙滩中破沙而出，争先恐后地向大海爬去。科学家表示，它们正在参与一项日益受到气候变化影响的古老自然循环。
Under a moonlit sky, turtle hatchlings emerge from the sand on Turkey's Mediterranean coast and scramble towards the sea, taking part in an ancient natural cycle that scientists say is increasingly being shaped by climate change.
整个夜晚，海龟生物学家亚库普·卡斯卡（Yakup Kaska）及其志愿者团队一直在监测巢穴的活动。金字塔形的笼子保护着埋在沙里的卵，免受在长达4公里（2.5英里）的伊兹图祖（Iztuzu）沙洲上游荡的狐狸侵害。这里白天是旅游海滩，夜晚则是海龟保护区。
Throughout the night, sea turtle biologist Yakup Kaska and his team of volunteers monitor activity in the nests. Pyramid-shaped cages protect the eggs buried in the sand from foxes that roam the 4-km (2.5-mile) Iztuzu sandbar, a tourist beach by day and haven for turtle conservation by night.
红海龟在地中海各地的海岸筑巢，是土耳其将于下个月主办的联合国年度气候峰会COP31的吉祥物。海洋保护将是安塔利亚海岸会议的一个核心焦点。
The loggerhead turtle, which nests on shores across the Mediterranean, is the mascot of COP31, the annual UN climate summit that Turkey hosts next month. Marine conservation will be a key focus of the gathering along the coast in Antalya.
研究人员表示，海龟生动地说明了气候变化如何改变地中海的生态系统。自20世纪80年代初以来，地中海一直经历着长期的变暖趋势。
Researchers say the turtle illustrates how climate change is altering ecosystems in the Mediterranean, which has experienced a long-term warming trend since the early 1980s.
路透社的一项分析显示，欧洲水域经历了有记录以来最热的夏季月份，对一些沿海社区造成了严重后果。研究人员表示，气候变化也在稳步使地中海各地的筑巢海滩变暖。小海龟的性别由巢穴温度决定。变暖的沙子会产生更多的雌性。
A Reuters analysis showed European waters had their hottest summer months on record with severe consequences for some coastal communities. Researchers say climate change is also steadily warming nesting beaches across the Mediterranean. The sex of turtle hatchlings is determined by nest temperature. Warming sands produce more females.
于斯屈达尔大学（Uskudar University）生态学讲师艾费尔·西林（Ayfer Sirin）对红海龟进行了广泛研究，她表示：“海龟为我们提供了一个非常快速的预警系统。”她指出，由于海龟既依赖陆地又依赖海洋，它们反映了影响沿海和海洋生态系统的环境变化。
"Sea turtles provide us with a very rapid warning system," said Uskudar University ecology lecturer Ayfer Sirin, who has carried out extensive research on loggerheads. She said they reflect environmental changes affecting coastal and marine ecosystems because they depend on both land and sea.
在帕穆卡莱大学（Pamukkale University）为期五年的博士研究中，西林发现变暖的温度与更早的筑巢时间、更短的孵化期以及雌性的绝对优势有关。
In a five-year doctoral study at Pamukkale University, Sirin found that warming temperatures were linked to earlier nesting, shorter incubation periods and a predominance of females.
帕塔拉（Patara）海滩的研究估计，平均约有70%的红海龟孵化幼龟为雌性，并得出的结论是，仅靠行为调整可能不足以抵消气候变化的影响。
The study at Patara beach estimated that on average some 70% of loggerhead hatchlings were female and concluded that behavioural adjustments alone may not be enough to offset the effects of climate change.
卡斯卡说，在过去20年里，伊兹图祖的巢穴温度上升了近1摄氏度（1.8华氏度），并补充说更广泛的分析表明，在许多海龟种群中，雌性占到了孵化幼龟的80%至90%。
Nest temperatures at Iztuzu rose by nearly 1 degree Celsius (1.8 degrees Fahrenheit) over the past 20 years, Kaska said, adding that broader analysis suggested females accounted for as many as 80-90% of hatchlings in many sea turtle populations.
科学家表示，存在这样一种风险：持续变暖最终可能会产生过少的雄性，从而无法支持成功的繁殖。西林说，另一个危险是超过30摄氏度（86华氏度）的巢穴温度会增加胚胎死亡率的风险。
Scientists say there is a risk that continued warming may eventually produce too few males to support successful reproduction. Another hazard is that nest temperatures above 30 C (86 F) increase the risk of embryo mortality, Sirin said.
根据海洋海龟专家组（Marine Turtle Specialist Group）的数据，红海龟在全球范围内被列为易危物种。地中海的红海龟被列为最不担心关注的物种，这反映了保护工作的成果，但科学家表示气候变化正在带来新的压力。
According to the Marine Turtle Specialist Group, loggerheads are classified as vulnerable globally. Those in the Mediterranean are listed among those of least concern, reflecting conservation gains, but scientists say climate change is creating new pressures.
卡斯卡说，海龟的迁徙生活方式说明了在COP31上进行跨国合作的必要性。
The turtles' migratory lifestyle illustrates the need for cross-border cooperation at COP31, Kaska said.
他说：“它们可能在土耳其筑巢，但它们在突尼斯觅食，或者在亚得里亚海觅食等等”，他呼吁各国合作保护地中海的生物多样性。
"They might be nesting in Turkey, but they are feeding in Tunisia or they are feeding in the Adriatic and so on," he said, calling on countries to collaborate to protect Mediterranean biodiversity.
COP31主席、土耳其环境部长穆拉特·库伦姆（Murat Kurum）上个月在海洋与大海会议上表示：“保护海洋是我们共同的责任。我们呼吁各方将这种责任转化为大胆、具体的行动：恢复生态系统并增强复原力。”土耳其已设定了到2053年实现温室气体净零排放的目标，并强调扩大可再生能源为其气候策略的关键要素。
COP31 President Murat Kurum, Turkey's environment minister, told an Ocean and Seas conference last month: "Protecting the oceans is a responsibility we all share. We call on every party to turn that responsibility into bold, concrete action: restoring ecosystems and building resilience." Turkey has set a goal of reaching net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2053 and has highlighted the expansion of renewable energy as a key element of its climate strategy.
卡斯卡说，雌性红海龟通常会在几十年后回到它们孵化过海滩筑巢，但生态系统的变化意味着一些海龟正向更北、以往不常见的地方筑巢。
Female loggerhead turtles typically return decades later to nest on the beaches where they hatched, but ecosystem changes mean some are nesting farther north, where they were previously uncommon, Kaska said.
然而，伊兹图祖仍然是一个关键地点，每个季节有来自数百个巢穴的大约3万只小海龟游入大海。
However, Iztuzu remains a key location with about 30,000 hatchlings entering the sea each season from hundreds of nests.
在海滩上，志愿者们监控着小海龟，使用微弱的红光以尽量减少对它们向海浪方向爬行时的干扰。在海水中，小海龟面临着更多的威胁，包括来自渔网、船只和塑料垃圾的威胁。
On the beach, volunteers monitor the hatchlings, using dim red lights to minimise disturbance as they navigate towards the waves. In the sea, the hatchlings face further threats, including from fishing nets, boats and plastic waste.
西林说：“一只被困在渔网中的海龟无法浮出水面呼吸空气，不幸的是会溺水身亡。”
"A sea turtle caught in a fishing net cannot come up for air and unfortunately dies by drowning," Sirin said.
距离伊兹图祖海滩步行不远，受伤的海龟在德卡默（Dekamer）康复中心的大型圆形水池中康复，兽医在那里治疗包括船用螺旋桨造成的伤害。
A short walk from Iztuzu beach, injured turtles recover in large circular pools at the Dekamer rehabilitation centre, where veterinarians treat injuries, including from boat propellers.
塑料污染是一个特别令人担忧的问题。卡斯卡说，被带到该中心的60%的海龟消化系统中至少有五块塑料。他说：“在海里扔一个塑料袋，对海龟来说就像扔一颗子弹。”
Plastic pollution is a particular concern. Kaska said 60% of turtles brought to the centre have at least five pieces of plastic in their digestive systems. "Throwing a plastic bag in the sea is like throwing a bullet for the turtles," he said.
对研究人员而言，海龟是地中海生态系统健康状况的一个直观衡量标准。
For researchers, the turtles are a visible measure of the health of the Mediterranean ecosystem.
随着黎明临近，最后一群小海龟消失在海浪中。如果它们能幸存下来，其中一些可能会在几十年后返回筑巢。
As dawn approaches, a final group of hatchlings disappears into the waves. If they survive, some may return decades from now to nest.