I brought something beautiful.

今天我到這裡，

This is a feather from one of the most beautiful birds we have in Kenya,

帶來了很美麗的東西。

the crested guinea fowl.

這根羽毛，來自肯亞 最美麗的鳥類之一，

But this feather is more than just that.

冠珠雞。

If you've taken time when you are outdoors

但這根羽毛不只如此。

to look at the feathers around you,

如果你在戶外的時候花點時間，

you'll have noticed

去看看你周圍的羽毛，

that there is this huge variety of different sizes,

你就會注意到，

shapes and even colors.

它們的大小、形狀、甚至顏色，

The feather is one of the most astonishing pieces of technology

都有很大的不同。

invented by the natural world,

羽毛是自然世界所發明出來

and for centuries, this feather has helped birds to keep dry,

最令人驚奇的技術之一，

to keep warm and even power flight.

數世紀以來，這羽毛 協助鳥兒們保持乾燥，

Only one section of the tree of life can actually make a feather.

保持溫暖，甚至是飛行的助力。

Among all the world's animals,

生命之樹只有一個部份 可以真正做出羽毛來。

birds are the only ones who can make something

在世界上所有的動物當中，

like what I'm holding today.

只有鳥類可以做出像我現在

I personally have given them a nickname,

手上拿著的東西。

and I like to call them the feathermakers.

我個人給了牠們一個暱稱，

It is the major difference between birds and any other animals we have on earth,

我喜歡叫牠們羽毛製造者。

and if you can't make a feather, you cannot call yourself a bird.

鳥類和地球上所有 其他動物有很大的不同，

(Laughter)

如果你無法做出羽毛， 你就不能稱你自己是鳥。

For us humans, who are earthbound,

（笑聲）

birds represent freedom.

對我們受限在陸地上的人類而言，

This feather has enabled birds to conquer gravity

鳥兒代表自由。

and take to the air in an extraordinary way.

羽毛讓鳥能夠克服地心引力，

Don't you sometimes wish you could fly like a bird?

並用很不凡的方式駕馭天空。

Birds are my passion,

你們不會有時很希望自己 能像鳥兒一樣飛翔嗎？

and I want to change the way each one of you thinks about them.

鳥類是我的熱情所在，

The easiest reason I love them so much is because they are beautiful.

我想要改變每個人對於鳥的看法。

There are 10,000 species in the world,

我這麼喜愛牠們， 最簡單的理由是牠們很漂亮。

and each one of them is uniquely beautiful.

世界上有 10,000 種鳥，

Birds are amazing,

每一種都有獨特的美。

and this talk is dedicated to all the birds of the world.

鳥類很不可思議，

(Laughter)

這場演說，是要獻給 世界上所有的鳥。

(Applause)

（笑聲）

Indeed, these birds have been part of our lives and cultures

（掌聲）

all over the world for centuries,

的確，鳥一直是我們 生活和文化的一部份，

and every society has a story about birds.

數世紀以來在全世界皆是如此，

You probably have heard childhood stories of different birds

每個社會，都有一個 和鳥有關的故事。

and how they relate with man.

你們在兒時可能有聽過 一些故事，是關於鳥兒

I personally recently learned

以及牠們和人類的關係。

that our human ancestors would follow flocks of vultures

我自己最近才學到，

and then they would help them

我們人類的祖先會跟隨著禿鷹群，

to identify where carcasses have been dropped by large carnivores,

禿鷹會幫助人類

and these humans will scavenge and eat part of that meat.

找出屍體被食肉動物丟在哪裡，

Birds have been used as brands and labels all over the world.

這些人就會去撿拾那些肉來食用。

You know the bald eagle?

世界各地都有用鳥 來設計的品牌和商標。

It was chosen as the national emblem for the US

認得這隻白頭鷹嗎？

because of its majestic strength,

牠被選為美國的國徽，

beautiful looks

因為牠有雄偉威嚴的力量、

and even a long lifespan.

漂亮的外表、

And just like us humans

甚至有很長的壽命。

who have managed to live in virtually all habitats of this earth,

和我們人類一樣，

birds have also conquered the world.

人類已經幾乎在地球上 所有可以居住的地方定居，

From birds such as these beautiful penguins

鳥類也同樣征服了世界。

that live in the cold ice caps

從像這些漂亮的企鵝

to even others like the larks,

住在寒冷的冰帽上，

who live in the hottest deserts you can imagine.

到其他鳥類如百靈鳥，

Indeed, these species have conquered this world.

住在你所能想像出最炎熱的沙漠。

Birds also build houses like us.

的確，這些品種已經征服了世界。

The real pros in housebuilding

鳥類也和我們一樣會蓋房子。

are a group of birds we call the weaverbirds,

真正的蓋房子專家，

and this name they were given

是被我們稱為織巢鳥的一種鳥，

because of the way in which they weave their nests.

牠們得到這個名字，

An interesting one:

是因為牠們編織鳥巢的方式。

birds also love and date just like us humans.

很有趣的一點：

In fact, you'll be surprised to know that males dress to impress the women,

鳥類也和我們人類一樣， 會戀愛、會約會。

and I'll show you how.

事實上，很讓人驚訝的是， 公鳥會用穿著來讓母鳥印象深刻，

So here we have a long-tailed widowbird,

讓我來展示牠們怎麼做。

and this is how they would normally look.

這裡有一隻長尾巧織雀，

But when it comes to the breeding season,

這是牠們平常看起來的模樣。

everything changes,

但到了繁殖季，

and this is how he looks.

一切就改變了，

(Audience murmurs)

牠會變成這個樣子。

Yeah?

（觀眾低語）

Birds also, multiple species of them,

是吧？

do love to touch and cuddle just like humans.

此外，有數種鳥類

And I know you're wondering about this one.

和人類一樣喜歡接觸和摟抱。

Yes, they kiss too,

我知道你們很想知道。

sometimes very deeply.

是的，牠們也會接吻，

(Applause)

有時候是深吻。

Some have even learned to cheat on their spouses.

（掌聲）

(Laughter)

有些鳥甚至學會欺騙配偶。

For example, the African jacana:

（笑聲）

the females will mate with multiple males

比如，長腳雉鴴：

and then she takes off to find other males to mate with

母鳥會和不只一隻公鳥交配，

and she leaves the male behind to take care of the chicks.

接著牠會落跑，去找其他公鳥交配，

(Laughter)

牠丟下公鳥，讓公鳥照顧小鳥。

(Applause)

（笑聲）

And birds help us so much,

（掌聲）

and they play very crucial roles in our ecosystems each day.

鳥類也會幫我們很多忙，

Vultures clean up our environment

牠們在我們的日常生態系統中 扮演關鍵的角色。

by literally digesting disease-causing pathogens,

禿鷹會清理我們的環境，

and they finish carcasses that would otherwise cost us lots of money

牠們真的會把造成疾病的 病原體給消化掉，

to clear from the environment.

牠們也會把屍體解決掉，為我們省下

A sizable flock of vultures is capable of bringing down a carcass

大筆清理環境的錢。

the size of a zebra straight to the bone

一大群的禿鷹可以把斑馬大小的

within just about 30 minutes.

屍體吃到剩骨頭，

Owls help to rid the environments of rodents

只要不到三十分鐘。

and this helps us a lot because it saves us money --

貓頭鷹能幫忙擺脫 齧齒目動物的環境，

we don't lose our crops --

這能幫助我們省下很多錢──

and secondly, we don't have to buy harmful chemicals

作物不會損失──

to handle these rodents.

再者，我們也不用買有害的化學藥物

The beautiful sunbirds we see in our environments

來對付齧齒目動物。

are part of nature's pollination crew,

在我們的環境中能看到的漂亮太陽鳥

and they help our plants to form fruits.

隸屬大自然的授粉團隊，

Together with other pollinators like insects,

牠們協助植物長出水果。

they have actually helped us

牠們和其他的授粉團隊成員合作，

to get most of the food crops that we depend on for many years.

如昆蟲，就能協助我們

Unfortunately, the story of birds is by far not perfect.

收穫我們多年來 一直賴以為生的作物。

They are faced by numerous challenges every day wherever they live.

不幸的是，目前， 鳥類的故事並不完美。

Top on the threats facing birds

牠們不論住在哪裡， 每天都要面對許多挑戰。

is habitat loss

鳥類要面對的挑戰之首，

and reduced food availability.

就是失去棲息地，

Birds are also hunted, especially migratory species

可得食物也在減少。

and ducks that congregate in water bodies.

鳥類也會被獵殺，特別是候鳥

Poisoning is happening to flocks that like to stick together,

以及在水中群聚的鴨子。

especially in places like rice schemes.

喜歡團結在一起的鳥群 特別容易被毒害，

Moreover, power lines are electrocuting birds

特別是在稻田中。

and wind farms are slicing birds

此外，電線會讓鳥類觸電而死，

when they fly through the blades.

鳥類飛過風電廠的風車葉片間時

Recently, we've heard the talk of climate change

會被切到而受傷死亡。

making a lot of headlines,

最近，我們聽到 許多氣候變遷的言論，

and it's also affecting birds,

登上許多頭條新聞，

because birds are being forced to migrate to better breeding and feeding grounds

這也會影響鳥類，

because unfortunately where they used to live

因為鳥類被迫遷離 較佳的繁殖地及飼育地，

is no longer habitable.

因為，很不幸地，牠們過去的居住地

My own perspective towards birds was changed

不再適合棲息。

when I was a small boy in high school,

我自己對於鳥類改觀的時間點，

and there was this boy who struck,

是在高中時，我還是個小男孩，

injuring the wing and the leg of a bird we called the augur buzzard.

當時有一個男孩

I was standing there,

攻擊一隻棕鵟，傷了牠的翅膀和腳。

just a mere 14-year-old,

我站在那裡，

and I imagined a human being in a similar situation,

我才十四歲，

because this bird could not help itself.

我想像著人類處在同樣的情境中，

So even if I was hardly any biologist by then,

因為這隻鳥無法幫牠自己。

I gathered with three of my friends and we decided to house the bird

雖然那時我實在算不上是生物學家，

until it had regained strength and then let it free.

我召集了三個朋友， 我們決定養這隻鳥，

Interestingly, it accepted to feed on beef from our school kitchen,

直到牠重新恢復力氣，再放牠自由。

and we hunted termites around the compound for its dinner every day.

有趣的是，牠接受我們餵牠 吃從學校廚房拿來的牛肉，

After a few days, it had regained strength

我們每天也在圍牆建築 附近找白蟻來給牠當晚餐。

and we released it.

幾天之後，牠恢復力氣了，

We were so happy to see it flap its wings

我們就放牠走了。

and fly off gracefully.

我們好高興看到牠再次拍動翅膀，

And that experience changed the way we looked at birds.

優雅地飛走。

We went on to actually make a magazine,

那次經驗改變了我們對鳥類的觀點。

and we called it the Hawk Magazine,

我們接著創立了一本雜誌，

and this was in honor of this bird

我們叫它「鷹雜誌」，

that we had helped within our own high school.

目的是在紀念這隻鳥，

Those experiences in high school made me the conservationist I am today.

我們在高中時幫助過的這隻鳥。

And a passion for birds should especially matter for Africa

那些高中的經驗，導致我現在 成為一位自然環境保護主義者。

and all Africans,

對於非洲以及非洲人而言， 對鳥類的熱愛應該是

because among all other continents,

特別有重要性的，

Africa hosts some of the most amazing bird species

因為在所有的大陸當中，

you can find anywhere in the world.

非洲有一些最令人驚奇的鳥類品種，

Imagine having a name like "shoebill."

是世界上其他地方找不到的。

That's the name of that bird.

想像一個叫做「鯨頭鸛」的名字。

And there are countries like DR Congo,

這是那隻鳥的名字。

Tanzania, Uganda and Kenya

有些國家，像是剛果民主共和國、

who are leading the continent in highest numbers of diversity

坦尚尼亞、烏干達、肯亞，

when it comes to the species.

它們在鳥類品種的數目及多樣性上，

These birds continue to provide the continent

是遙遙領先的。

with very crucial ecosystem services that Africa needs.

這些鳥類持續提供非常關鍵的

Moreover, there is huge potential

生態系統服務，這些服務 是非洲大陸很需要的。

for Africa to lead the world in avian tourism.

此外，非洲也很有潛力

The economy will definitely benefit.

能領導世界的鳥類觀光。

Imagine how many communities will benefit from groups of tourists

經濟方面一定會受惠。

visiting their villages just to see the endemic birds

想像一下有多少社區能夠受惠，

that can only be found in those villages.

如果觀光團造訪他們的村落，

How can we help birds together?

只是去看僅在這些村落中 才找得到的地方特有鳥類。

There is now a chance for all of you

我們能怎麼合作幫助鳥類？

to turn your passion for birds

現在大家有個機會，

into contributing to their continued survival,

可以把對鳥類的熱情

and you can do that by becoming a citizen scientist.

轉成為牠們的持續生存做出貢獻，

Citizen science is a growing trend around the world,

你可以藉由變成一名 公眾科學家，來做到這一點。

and we are having scenarios where people are sharing information

公眾科學家的趨勢正在全世界成長，

with the rest of the community about traffic updates,

已經可以看到的做法

security alerts and so on.

包括人們會與社區中其他人 分享交通新資訊、

That is exactly what we realized as bird-watchers,

安全警告、等等。

and we thought, because birds are found everywhere,

那正是我們野鳥觀察家領悟到的，

if we've got all of you and everyone else in Africa

我們認為，因為到處都能看到鳥類，

to tell us the birds they find where they live,

如果我們能讓你們所有人、 以及非洲的其他人，

where they school, or even where they work,

能告訴我們，在他們居住、上學、

then we can be able to come up with a map of every single species,

甚至工作的地方，能找到哪些鳥類，

and from there scientists will be able

那麼我們就能做出一張 有所有品種的地圖，

to actually prioritize conservation efforts

這麼一來，科學家就能夠

to those habitats that matter the most.

針對最重要的棲息地

Take for example these two projects,

優先投入做保育。

the Africa Raptor DataBank,

用兩個專案計畫來當例子，

which is mapping all birds of prey in the continent of Africa,

「非洲猛禽資料庫」，

and the Kenya Bird Map,

是針對非洲大陸上所有 捕食型鳥類製作地圖，

which is mapping about 1,100 species that occur in my country, Kenya.

及「肯亞鳥類地圖」，

These two projects now have online databases

為我的祖國肯亞出現的 1,100 種鳥類製作地圖。

that are allowing people to submit data,

現在這兩項專案計畫 都有線上資料庫，

and this is converted into very interactive websites

讓人們可以提交資料，

that the public can consume and make decisions from.

且還建立了一個非常互動式的網站，

But when we started, there was a big challenge.

民眾可以在網站上消費和做決策。

We received many complaints from bird-watchers,

我們開始的時候遇到很大的挑戰。

and they will say,

很多野鳥觀察家向我們投訴，

"I'm in a village, and I cannot access a computer.

他們會說：

How do I tell you what birds live in my home,

「我在村落裡，我沒有電腦可以用。

or where I school, or where I work?"

我要如何告訴你在我家附近、

So we were forced to renovate our strategy and come up with a sustainable solution.

學校附近、工作地附近有什麼鳥類？

It was easy:

所以我們被迫要修改策略， 提出永續的解決方案。

we immediately realized that mobile phones

方法並不難：

were becoming increasingly common in Africa

我們馬上想到，

and most of the regions could get access to one.

手機在非洲變得越來越普及了，

So we came up with mobile phone applications

在大部份的區域都會有手機可以用。

that you can use on your iPhone and on your Android phone,

所以我們做了一個手機應用程式，

and we made them freely available

可以裝在 iPhone 或 Android 手機上，

for every bird-watching enthusiast out there.

這個應用程式是免費的，

So we came up with BirdLasser, which is used by the Kenya Bird Map,

讓外面的每個野鳥觀察家都能用。

and also we have the African Raptor Observations,

我們推出了 BirdLasser 配合「肯亞鳥類地圖」使用，

which is now used by the African Raptor DataBank.

還有 African Raptor Observations（非洲猛禽觀察）

This was a huge breakthrough in our work

配合「非洲猛禽資料庫」。

and it made us get enormous amounts of data

這是我們工作上的大突破，

from every birder out there in the regions.

讓我們能取得極大量的資料，

With this, we realized that citizen science

由外面各地的所有野鳥觀察家提供。

is indeed very powerful,

這讓我們了解到公眾科學

the reason being, citizen science is adaptive.

的確是非常強大的，

And we were able to actually convert many bird-watchers

原因是，公眾科學是有適應性的。

to start sharing new information with us.

我們也確實讓許多 野鳥觀察家做出轉變，

When we were starting,

開始和我們分享新資訊。

we didn't know that birds could be a huge gateway

我們剛開始的時候，

to approaching conservation of other forms of animals.

我們沒有料到鳥類能夠成為

Interestingly, now in the Virtual Museum for Africa,

保育其他動物的一條途徑。

we have maps for dragonflies and damselflies,

有趣的是，現在在非洲 「虛擬博物館」中，

butterflies and moths,

我們有蜻蜓和蜻蛉的地圖、

reptiles, frogs, orchids, spiders,

蝴蝶和蛾的地圖、

scorpions, and yes, we are even mapping mushrooms.

還有爬行動物、青蛙、蘭花、蜘蛛、

Who could have imagined mapping mushrooms?

蝎子、還有，是的， 我們甚至為菇類做了地圖。

So this showed us that indeed we've created a community of people

誰能想像為菇類做地圖？

who care about nature in Africa.

這表示，我們的確 創造出了一個社群，

I hereby call upon all of you

關懷非洲大自然的社群。

to join me in promoting the value of birds

在此，我邀請所有人，

within your communities.

加入我，在你們的社區內，一起來

Please just tell your friends about birds,

推動鳥類的價值，