Why it’s perfectly normal to see baby puffins thrown off cliffs in Iceland each year

為甚麼冰島每年小海鸚被丟下懸崖相當平常

【摘要2023-02-19.日.自由】◎林雨萱

Watching thousands of baby puffins being tossed off a cliff is perfectly normal for the people of Iceland’s Westman Islands. The chicks of Atlantic puffins hatch in burrows on high sea cliffs.

對冰島威斯特曼群島居民來說，看見數千隻小海鸚被丟下懸崖相當平常。大西洋海鸚幼鳥在海邊懸崖高處的洞穴裡孵化。

When they’re ready to fledge, they fly from their colony and spend several years at sea until they return to land to breed. Pufflings have historically found the ocean by following the light of the moon.

當牠們羽翼豐滿準備展翅飛翔時，就會離開巢穴，花費數年待在海上直到返回陸地繁殖。歷史上，海鸚能跟隨月光找到海洋。

Many residents of the Westman Islands spend a few weeks in August and September collecting wayward pufflings that have crashed into town after mistaking human lights for the moon.

威斯特曼群島上許多居民會在8月和9月間花費數週把偏離方向的海鸚集中起來，在牠們把人為燈光誤認為月亮，墜入城鎮後。

Releasing the fledglings at the cliffs the following day sets them on the correct path.

隔天在懸崖邊釋放幼鳥，使牠們走上正確的道路。

新聞辭典

toss：動詞，扔、擲。例句：Jack tossed a coin to decide who wash the dishes.（傑克扔錢幣決定誰洗碗。）

burrow：名詞，洞穴。例句：The cat chases a mouse into its burrow.（貓咪把老鼠追趕進入牠的洞穴。）

wayward：形容詞，難以管束的、任性的、不朝預定方向移動的。例句：Tiffany seems to be a wayward child.（蒂芬妮貌似是個難以管束的孩子。）