Every year, thousands of marine animals wash up on beaches all around the world. This bizarre phenomenon is known as “beaching” or “stranding” and can affect many kinds of marine life. However, it’s something that is especially widespread among social animals, such as whales and dolphins. Beachings don’t discriminate as they affect healthy, injured, and dead animals alike, and even impact entire collectives3 of animals in what are called mass strandings.
While beachings are not abnormal, scientists don’t yet know exactly why they happen. However, there’s an assumption4 that some likely causes are natural. Coastal topography is a possibility, and beachings are common in places such as the Farewell Spit in New Zealand and the North Sea’s coastlines. These are areas that are dangerous for whales because they are too shallow for them to safely navigate5. To make matters worse, tide cycles can cause water to rapidly recede several kilometers, meaning that some unaware marine animals could get caught.
Beachings can happen because a whale is sick, injured, old, lost, or unable to feed, too, and weakened animals may find themselves drifting until they land ashore. Also, animals escaping predators can accidentally get beached when they essentially run out of6 ocean to flee to.
Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons 照片：維基共享資源提供
Human factors might include fishing and pollution that cause injury and death to marine life. Humans create a lot of noise pollution with the use of sound pulses7 from sonar devices. These can deafen and disorient whales and dolphins, altering8 their navigation capabilities9.
While tragically many animals die because of beachings, there is one silver lining. Beachings allow scientists to gain a better understanding of marine animals, which is especially useful for species that are difficult to study, including beaked whales. Looking at these animals can teach us not just about how they died, but also how they might have lived.
每年，有數以千計的海洋動物被沖上世界各地的海灘。這種怪異的現象被稱為「擱淺」，並且會影響多種海洋生物。然而，它在鯨魚與海豚這類的群居動物中尤為普遍。擱淺的發生並不會有所區別，因為無論是健康的、受傷的，或是死亡的動物都一樣會受到影響，甚至會在所謂的集體擱淺中影響整個生物群體。
雖然擱淺並不反常，但科學家們仍不清楚它們確切的發生原因。然而，有一種假設認為一些可能的原因是自然造成的。海岸地形是一種可能，而像是在紐西蘭的送別角以及北海的海岸線等地， 擱淺很常發生。這些區域對鯨魚來說是危險的，因為它們太淺而無法讓牠們安全潛行。更糟的是，潮汐循環會導致海水迅速後退數公里，這意味著一些未能及時察覺的海洋動物可能會受困。
擱淺會因為鯨魚生病、受傷、年老、迷路或無法進食而發生，而虛弱的動物可能會發現自己只能隨波漂流，直到最終觸及陸地。此外，當逃離掠食者的動物在海中基本上已無處可逃時牠們可能會意外擱淺。
人為因素可能包括導致海洋生物傷亡的捕魚和汙染。人類使用聲納設備所發出的音波脈衝製造了大量的噪音汙染。這些音波脈衝可能會使鯨魚和海豚失聰並迷失方向，這會改變它們的導航能力。
雖然許多動物因擱淺而不幸死亡，但這之中仍有一絲希望。擱淺使科學家能夠更佳了解海洋動物，這對於包含喙鯨在內研究起來很困難的物種而言特別有幫助。觀察這些動物不僅能讓我們得知牠們是如何而死的，還能讓我們得知牠們過去可能是如何生活的。
MORE INFORMATION
topography n. 地形；地勢
recede v.（水）退去；消散
predator n. 掠食者
sonar n. 聲納
disorient vt. 使迷失方向
silver lining （不幸中的）一絲希望或慰藉
KEY VOCABULARY
1. marine adj. 海洋的；航海的
The marine environment is home to lots of interesting animals, like whales and sharks.
海洋環境是許多如鯨魚和鯊魚等有趣動物的家園。
2. strand vt. 擱淺／stranding n. 擱淺；觸礁
beach v. 使擱淺；將（船隻）拉上岸／beaching n. 擱淺
The scientists are investigating why some dolphins get stranded on beaches near humans.
這些科學家正在調查為什麼有些海豚會擱淺在臨近人類的沙灘上。
3. collective n. 集體；聯合組織
A collective of art students organized an art exhibition to raise money for the school.
一群藝術系學生為了替學校募款籌辦了一場藝術展。
4. assumption n. 假設；臆測
Harry invested all his money in the company on the assumption that it would do well in the stock market.
哈利臆測這間公司在股票市場的表現會很出色，就將他全部的錢都投入到這間公司。
5. navigate v. 航行；導航；確定方向／navigation n. 導航
Dolphins navigate the ocean by making sound and listening to how the sound reflects back to them.
海豚藉由發出聲波並聆聽聲波如何反射回牠們身上的方式在海中確認方向。
6. run out of 用完；耗盡
We’re running out of batteries; can you pick some up from the store?
我們的電池快要用完了；你能從店裡買一些嗎？
7. pulse n.（光或聲音的）脈衝；脈搏
There was a pulse of light outside that I think could have been lightning.
外面有一束光波，我想那可能是閃電。
8. alter v. 改變；修改
I altered my plans for the weekend so that I have time to hang out with you.
我改變了週末的計畫，這麼一來就有時間能跟你出去。
9. capability n. 能力；才能
The man’s capability to understand language has been severely damaged by the accident.
這名男子的語言理解能力因那場事故而嚴重受損。
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