保護帝王蝶谷 墨西哥總統力促成立世界遺產場址 | 環境資訊中心
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保護帝王蝶谷 墨西哥總統力促成立世界遺產場址

2007年11月29日
摘譯自2007年11月26日ENS墨西哥,米卻阿肯州報導;林盈秀編譯;蔡麗伶審校

美、加的大樺斑蝶九月飛往墨西哥山區,五月底返回。圖片來源:ENS墨西哥總統卡爾德龍(Felipe Calderon),25日參訪位於墨西哥中部山區Sierra Chincua的大樺斑蝶保護區,聲明他對保護區提升和宣傳的計劃。新計劃中,卡爾德龍政府將花費460萬美元,為保護區添購設備及廣告,此保護區原先由墨西哥及聯合國教科文組織人與生物圈計劃共同保育。

卡爾德龍表示:「此自然保護區每年有上百萬的蝴蝶在我們古老神聖的杉林渡冬,從加拿大至墨西哥旅程長達4000公里。」

卡爾德龍指出:「對普而皮洽(Purepecha)印地安人來說,蝴蝶的停留象徵死亡,因為蝴蝶通常在鬼節的時候到來,而對歐圖密族和馬薩瓦人而言,則代表收穫的精神,因為收穫隨著大樺斑蝶的來臨告一段落。」

政府每年已經撥款3640萬美元至蝴蝶保育區,以維持公園管理員營運,保護蝴蝶棲地的樹木免於木材盜伐者之害。墨西哥自然保育基金會與世界自然基金會表示,這些努力已讓非法伐木和2006年相比降低48%。卡爾德龍說:「在對抗非法伐木上,我們取得了進展。」

大樺斑蝶擁有世界上最不尋常的遷移習性。每年9月,上百萬隻黑橘色的斑蝶,從它們位於加拿大東部及部分美國東部的森林生育地,飛越3400英里到墨西哥山區,尋找祖先曾經落腳的地方。

在5月底,大樺斑蝶返回美國及加拿大,他們在前往墨西哥之前可以孵育5個世代。典型的蝴蝶在一生中通常只遷徙一次。有些大樺斑蝶未能飛完全部遷徙路徑,蝴蝶的數量會在旅程上減少,由它們的子代繼續飛行。

卡爾德龍總統25日聲明,他的政府正和聯合國極積努力促使大樺斑蝶區能成為世界遺產場址,他表示:「我們希望結果能越快達到越好。」

Mexican President Vows to Protect Sacred Butterfly Trees
ANGANGUEO, Michoacán, Mexico, November 26, 2007 (ENS)

President Felipe Calderon visited the Sierra Chincua monarch butterfly reserve in the mountains of central Mexico on Sunday to announce his plan to enhance and publicize the reserve. Under the new program, the Calderon government will spend $4.6 million to buy additional equipment and advertising for the reserve, which is protected by Mexico and also internationally under the UNESCO Man and the Biosphere Program.

"This nature reserve annually receives millions of butterflies that come to spend the winter in our ancient sacred firs after a journey of over 4,000 kilometers from Canada to Mexico," said President Calderon.

For the Purepecha Indians, said Calderon, "the butterflies' stay meant the essence of the dead, because the butterflies used to arrive around the time of the Day of the Dead and for the Otomí and Mazahua, they represented the spirit of the harvest, because the harvest ended when the Monarch butterfly arrived."

About $36.4 million in government funding already comes to the butterfly reserve each year to support a team of park rangers who attempt to protect the trees favored by the butterflies from armed groups of lumber thieves.

The Mexican Fund for Nature Conservation and the World Wildlife Fund say these efforts have resulted in a 48 percent drop in illegal logging, compared to last year. "We're gaining ground in the fight against illegal logging," Calderon said.

Monarch butterflies have one of the world's most unusual migration patterns. Every September, millions of the black-and-orange insects fly 3,400 miles from their breeding grounds in the forests of eastern Canada and parts of the eastern United States to the mountains of Mexico where they seek the same locations their forebears once inhabited.

In late March, the monarchs return to U.S. and Canada where they breed up to five generations before heading back to Mexico. A typical butterfly will make just one migration during its lifetime. Some monarchs do not travel the entire migration route but reproduce and die along the way. Their offspring continue the flight.

President Calderon announced Sunday that his government is working with the United Nations to have the monarch butterfly area recognized as a World Heritage Site, a result "which we hope to achieve soon," he said.

全文及圖片詳見 :ENS

作者

林盈秀

林盈秀,財務金融系畢業,曾任職於綠建築顧問公司。2019年獲得台達電英國環境獎學金後,於英國里茲大學攻讀企業永續碩士。目前研究主題為永續金融與氣候金融。

蔡麗伶(LiLing Barricman)

In my healing journey and learning to attain the breath awareness, I become aware of the reality that all the creatures of the world are breathing the same breath. Take action, here and now. From my physical being to the every corner of this out of balance's planet.