英語(yǔ)聽(tīng)力：自然百科 蛙之殤（二）

I’d say the most amazing footage we were lucky enough to shoot was done in Panama. We were out in the forest and we found an egg clutch with a male frog guarding his tadpoles which was really amazing. So Andy Young, the wonderful cinematographer who shot the film, got out the macro lens. There was another egg clutch on the next leaf over and suddenly wasps started attacking it. The tadpoles inside the eggs became really animated and they actually started hatching. It was incredible that we happened to catch this moment. A lot of it comes down to luck because when you go out in the field to shoot, there is no guarantee, there is no guarantee you’ll even find a frog especially, especially these days.

One of the most disturbing moments for me when we were making this film was when we hiked 7 hours in Yosemite to this beautiful pristine lake, where there is a very endangered population of frogs. And suddenly we saw a dead frog in the water, it was perfectly intact. It had died from chytrid fungus. It was the first time that I’d seen the impact of this disease, and it was just haunting.

To see firsthand what’s happening globally, you really get a sense of how serious this problem is. The main reason that frogs are having such a hard time is because of human activities. I mean we have destroyed so much of their habitat. And if their wetlands are intact but polluted, they are not gonna be healthy. A lot of the biggest problems are actually right in our own backyards. We shot insuburban Connecticut on this pond that’s just choked with duckweed. Dr. David Skely has some pretty scary findings from studying the frogs here.

In suburban ponds like this, we are finding that about 21% of all the frogs have deformities, that is, male frogs are growing eggs inside their testes, and that is not normal at all.

A lot of us don’t think about the chemicals we put on our lawns and the impact, not only on animals like frogs but on humans too. Frogs are really giving us a wake-up call.

What gave me hope during the making of this film were all the scientists we came in contact with. They are just an amazing group of people doing everything they can to try to find answers, to try to find solutions. They are kind of unsung heroes because you never see them. Most of them are out working at night in really remote areas. These people are so dedicated, going out night after night in the pouring rain, hiking for hours at a time just to get to some alpine lake 12,000 feet above sea level with all their gear on their backs. They are really incredible. Without them, I don’t think frogs would have a chance.

I just hope that this film will serve as a reminder that the battle is ongoing to save these amazing creatures. The future of amphibians is absolutely in our hands. And really we can all make a difference.