built upon various pillars.

建立在幾根不同支柱上

One of them is the honey bee.

蜜蜂是其中之一

One out of three meals eaten by humans is made possible by honey bees.

人類三分之一的食物都可能來自於蜜蜂

They are so important that if all the honey bees were to die out,

他們太重要了，所以萬一有天蜜蜂滅絕了

thousands of plants would follow,

將有數千種植物跟著死亡

which could lead to millions of people starving in the following years.

在幾年內進一步導致數百萬人的飢荒

On top of that, honey bees have a huge economic impact.

除此之外， 蜜蜂也對經濟有著重大影響

The dollar value of plants pollinated by them each year

所有通過蜜蜂授粉的植物加起來

is around $265 billion.

年產值約為2650億美元

Food we take for granted would just stop existing without them,

沒有他們，我們生活中習以為常的食物也將不存在

or there would be a massive decrease in productivity.

或者產量會明顯銳減

Food including apples, onions, pumpkins, and also plants used for feeding livestock

像是蘋果，洋蔥，南瓜及一些用來餵養家畜的作物

and thus extremely important for our milk and meat.

這同時也是牛奶跟肉類的重要來源

Einstein is often quoted as having said,

相傳愛因斯坦曾說過這樣一句話

“If honey bees die out, humans will follow a few years later.”

"如果全世界的蜜蜂都死光，人類也活不了幾年了"

Actually, he probably didn’t say that,

事實上，他可能沒說過這句話

but there might be some truth in the statement.

但這句話確實有他的道理在

It’s unsettling, but honey bees have started to disappear.

這件事令人不安，蜜蜂已經開始消失了

Millions of hives have died in the last few years.

過去幾年已有數以百萬計的蜂巢死亡

Beekeepers all over the world have seen an annual loss of 30–90% of their colonies.

全世界的養蜂人士正面臨一年減少30%-90%的蜜蜂數量

In the US alone, bees are steadily declining.

以美國來說，蜜蜂的數量正持續下降中

>From 5 million hives in 1988 to 2.5 million today.

在1988年時有500萬個蜂巢，到今日只剩下250萬個

Since 2006, a phenomenon called “colony collapse disorder”

從2006年，一種叫"蜂群衰竭失調"的現象

has affected honey bees in many countries.

開始影響眾多國家的蜜蜂群

And we’re not entirely sure what’s causing it.

我們不完全了解是什麼原因造成的

All we know is that it’s pretty serious.

但我們能確定的是它非常嚴重

Over the last few decades bees have seen an invasion of very dangerous foes.

過去數十年間，蜂群面臨著嚴重的侵襲

Parasites straight out of a horror movie, like Acarapis woodi,

如同把恐怖片搬出螢幕的寄生生物，如Acarapis woodi(氣管螨)

microscopic mites that infect the tracheae (that’s the breathing tubes) of bees.

是一種會影響蜜蜂氣管的微生物

Here, they lay their eggs and feed from the fluids of their victims,

他們在氣管內產卵並吸食受害者的體液

weakening them considerably and spending their whole life inside the bees.

大大衰弱了蜜蜂的生命，並且終其一生寄生在蜂體內

Or Varroa destructor, a fitting name because they can only reproduce

或是Varroa destructor(瓦螨)， 一個名副其實的名字，因為他們只能在蜂巢內繁殖

in honey bee hives and are one of the bees’ greatest enemies.

並且被視為蜜蜂最大的敵人之一

The female mite enters a honey bee brood cell and lays eggs on the bee larva

母螨會進入巢室並在幼蟲上產卵

before it’s about to pupate and

就在牠們蛹化前

before the hive bees cover the cell with a wax capping.

也在蜜蜂用蜂蠟將巢室封口前

The eggs hatch and the young mites and their mother feed on the developing bee

孵化後, 這些幼螨會以成長中的蜜蜂為食

in the safety of the capped cell.

在安全的密封巢室內

The bee is not normally killed at this stage, just weakened,

在這個階段蜜蜂通常還不會死亡，只是被虛弱化

so it still has enough strength to chew its way through the wax capping

所以牠們還有能力可以嚼碎封口的蜂蠟

and release itself from the cell.

並從巢室中出來

As it does, it releases the mother mite and her new offspring from the cell,

同時，也將母螨和幼螨從巢室中釋放出來

and these are free to spread across the hive,

使牠們輕易的在蜂巢中散佈

starting the process over again in a cycle of about 10 days.

這個過程會在10天內再一次發生

Their numbers grow exponentially, and after a few months,

瓦螨的數量以指數成長，接著在數月後

this can lead to the collapse of the entire bee hive.

導致整個蜂巢失去生機

Once outside of the cell, adult mites also suck the bodily fludis of bees

在巢室外，成螨也會吸取蜜蜂的體液

and weaken them considerably.

同時衰弱牠們的生命力

To make things worse, they also transmit viruses that harm the bees even more

更有甚者，他們還散佈病毒給蜜蜂

and can lead to birth defects like useless wings.

造成先天性的疾病，如有缺陷的翅膀

But there are other threats too, such as viruses and fungi.

還有一些其他威脅，像是病毒和黴菌

Under normal circumstances, these phenomena should be manageable

正常情況下，這些現象是可被掌握的

and are not enough to explain

而且並不足以用來解釋

the horrendous amount of dying going on in bees.

在蜜蜂間如此駭人數量的死亡

Over recent years new insecticides have been introduced

近年來，一些新的殺蟲劑被採用

that are deadly to bees.

但對蜜蜂是致命的

Neonicotinoids, a chemical family similar to nicotine,

新菸鹼類(Neonicotinoids)，這個化學類相似於尼古丁(nicotine)

was approved in the early 1990s as an alternative to chemicals like DDT.

已經在1990年代被證實可以代替DDT

They attack insects by harming their nervous systems.

他們藉由傷害神經系統來攻擊昆蟲

Today, they are the most widely used insecticides in the world.

在今日，它們是全世界最被廣泛使用的殺蟲劑

Globally, they saw sales of €1.5 billion in 2008,

全球在2008年，就有150億歐元的銷售額

representing 24% of the global market for insecticides.

佔了全球24%的殺蟲劑市場

In 2013, neonicotinoids were used in the US on about 95% of corn and canola crops,

在2013年，美國95%的玉米及芥花油作物都噴灑neoicotinoids

and also on the vast majority of fruit and vegetables,

也被用在大多數的蔬菜水果上

like apples, cherries, peaches, oranges, berries, leafy greens, tomatoes, potatoes,

像是蘋果，櫻桃，桃子，柳橙，莓果，葉菜，蕃茄，馬鈴薯

cereal grains, rice, nuts, grapes, and many more.

穀物，稻米，花生，葡萄及多種其他作物

Bees come into contact with the toxin

透過收集花粉或污染的水源

while collecting pollen or via contaminated water,

蜜蜂就接觸到這些毒物

often bringing material into the hive,

往往把這些物質帶回蜂巢中

where it can accumulate and slowly kill the whole colony.

一點一點慢慢累積，最後殺害整個族群

The toxins harm bees in a variety of horrible ways.

這些毒素以數種不同的恐怖方式傷害蜜蜂

In high enough doses, it quickly leads to convulsions, paralysis, and death.

高劑量下，它會快速地導致抽搐，癱瘓和死亡

But even in small doses, it can be fatal.

但就算劑量很低，也是災害性的

It may lead to bees forgetting how to navigate the world,

它可能造成蜜蜂失去方向感

so bees fly into the wild, get lost, and die alone, separated from their hives.

蜜蜂飛到野外，迷路，接著自己死在外地

If this happens often enough, a hive can lose its ability to sustain itself.

如果這現象過於頻繁，蜂巢可能無法維持應有的機能

We know that neonicotinoids are harmful to bees

我們都知道 neonicotinoids 對蜜蜂是致命的

and that we urgently need an alternative to it,

我們迫切需要另一種替代方案

but there are billions of dollars to be made in delaying this.

但是數億美元的商機延緩了這個行動

Studies sponsored by the chemical industry magically appear to prove

與獨立科學研究相比，由化學工業贊助的報告

a much lower toxicity to bees, compared to those produced by independent scientists.

奇蹟性的指出這是一種對蜜蜂較低毒性的藥劑

There are even more factors contributing to the demise of bees,

還有很多因素造成蜜蜂的消亡

like too much genetic uniformity, crop monocultures,

如太多的基因均一性，單一作物化

poor nutrition due to overcrowding, stress because of human activities,

過度栽種造成的營養匱乏，人類活動導致的生存壓力

and other pesticides.

以及其他殺蟲劑等

Each of those factors on its own is a major problem for bees,

任一個單一因素都是蜜蜂重要的生存困境

but together, they probably account for colony collapse disorder.

若全部加起來，極有可能形成蜂群衰竭失調

With parasites upping their game in recent decades,

加上幾十年來爬到頭上的寄生蟲

the honey bees are now fighting for survival.

蜜蜂現正為了生存而奮鬥著

It would be a catastrophe if they lost this fight.

若他們戰敗了，這將會是一場浩劫

This is a conundrum we have to solve if we want to continue living

這是我們必須解決的一個難題，假使我們還想繼續存活在

with a relative abundance and diversity of food.

有大量不同豐富的食物的日子

Humanity is deeply interconnected with Earth and the other lifeforms on it,

人類其實跟地球上其他生物間有深厚的關聯

even if we pretend that we’re not.

就算我們假裝沒有

We have to take better care of our surroundings,

我們必須多關心周遭的環境

if not to preserve the beauty of nature, then at least to ensure our own survival.

就算不去保護這美麗的自然，至少也要確保自己能生存

This video is supported by the Australian Academy of Science,

這部影片由澳洲科學院贊助

which promotes and supports excellence in science.

澳洲科學院負責推廣及支持優秀的科學研究

See more at .

想了解更多請點...

It was a blast to work with them, so go check out their site.

與他們一同工作真是太精彩充實了，去看看他們的網站吧

Our videos are also made possible by your support on .

我們的影片也是由你們支持加入而產生

Recently, we passed an important milestone,

就在近期，我們走過了一個重要的里程碑

which is why there will be an additional video in July.

這就是為什麼7月份會多一部額外的影片

If you want to support us and become part of the Kurzgesagt Bird Army,

如果你也想支持我們並且成為其一

check out our Patreon page!

那就來 Patreon 的網頁看看吧!

Recently, the YouTube channel Field Day gave us the oppotunity

最近，在YouTube上的Field Day頻道給了我們一個機會

to make something different: a short video about Game of Thrones.

製作不同的東西: 關於冰與火之歌的一個短片

Go check it out on their channel!

也去他們的頻道看看吧!

Subtitles by the Amara.org community