几十只考拉在澳大利亚的伐木种植园被“屠杀”

In between the felled trees and barren soil, dozens and dozens of koalas have been found dead or starving at a plantation in Australia.

在被砍伐的树木和贫瘠的土壤之间，澳大利亚的一个种植园里发现了几十只或死或饿的考拉。

Local sources have told Friends of the Earth (FOE) that “hundreds of koalas” have been killed or injured at a blue gum tree plantation near Cape Bridgewater in the Australian state of Victoria.

当地消息人士告诉地球之友(FOE)，在澳大利亚维多利亚州布里奇沃特角附近的一个蓝桉树种植园里，“数百只考拉”被杀或受伤。

Stephie (@Stephiewashere)

Blue gum trees (Eucalyptus globulus) are much more than a home to koalas, they are also a vital source of nutrition. So, when huge swathes of blue gums were slashed at the plantation during logging season late last year, dozens lost shelter and were faced with starvation.

蓝桉树(蓝桉树)不仅是考拉的家，也是重要的营养来源。因此，当去年年底的伐木季节，大片的蓝桉树被砍倒时，数十只考拉失去了栖身之所，面临着饥饿。

"A couple of days ago people apparently witnessed the bulldozing of many dead koalas into slash piles," FOE said in a statement over the weekend.

“几天前，人们亲眼目睹了许多考拉尸体被推土机压成碎片，”福在周末的一份声明中说。

Police have declared the Cape Bridgewater plantation a “crime scene.” Under the Australian Wildlife Act 1975, those found responsible for killing, harassing, or disturbing wildlife can land themselves with an $8,000 AUD ($5,360 USD) fine, with an additional $800 AUD ($536 USD) per head of wildlife.

警方已经宣布布里奇沃特角种植园为“犯罪现场”。“根据1975年澳大利亚野生动物法案，那些对杀害、骚扰或干扰野生动物负有责任的人将面临8000澳元(5360美元)的罚款，每头野生动物还将面临800澳元(536美元)的罚款。”

State authorities are also on the scene to help locals and conservation groups relocate the koalas, along with providing the suffering animals with food, water, and veterinary care. So far, authorities have reportedly removed around 80 koalas from the area.

国家当局也在现场帮助当地居民和环保组织安置考拉，同时为这些受苦的动物提供食物、水和兽医服务。据报道，到目前为止，当局已经从该地区转移了大约80只考拉。

“Unfortunately, a number of koalas have had to be euthanized on-site due to injuries or starvation,” Victoria’s Department of Environment, Land, Water, and Planning said in a statement.

维多利亚州环境、土地、水和规划部在一份声明中说:“不幸的是，由于受伤或饥饿，许多考拉不得不被现场安乐死。”

“The Conservation Regulator is taking this matter very seriously and is investigating the events that led to this incident. There are penalties for killing, harassing or disturbing wildlife and for animal cruelty under Victorian law,” it added.

“环保监管机构非常重视这件事，并正在调查导致这起事件的原因。根据维多利亚法律，杀害、骚扰或干扰野生动物以及虐待动物都要受到惩罚。”

Lily D'Ambrosia, Australia Minister for Energy Environment & Climate Change, expressed her anger on Sunday, tweeting: “I am appalled by reports of dead, injured and starving koalas on private property near Cape Bridgewater.”

澳大利亚能源环境与气候变化部长莉莉·达姆布罗西亚周日在推特上表达了她的愤怒:“我对布里奇沃特角附近私人地产上死去、受伤和挨饿的考拉的报道感到震惊。”

Keith Troeth, whose family reportedly owns the Cape Bridgewater plantation, told The Age that a small number of animals may have died during logging in November 2019, however, they made "every effort to avoid fatalities".

据报道，凯斯·特罗斯的家族拥有布里奇沃特角种植园。他告诉《时代》杂志，2019年11月，一小部分动物可能死于伐木，但他们“尽了一切努力避免死亡”。

The situation of koalas on the plantation is not straightforward. According to FOE, the population is descended from koalas originally from nearby Gippsland. When numerous blue gum plantations started to appear in the 1990s, hundreds of koalas settled here, bred, and thrived. Koalas frequently undergo booms and busts in their population cycles, however, they undergo a significant loss once the plantation growing period comes to an end, every 14 years or so.

考拉在种植园里的情况并不简单。根据地球之友的说法，考拉的祖先是附近吉卜斯兰的考拉。20世纪90年代，当大量的蓝桉树种植园开始出现时，数百只考拉在这里定居、繁殖并茁壮成长。考拉在它们的种群周期中经常经历繁荣和萧条，然而，一旦种植园的种植期结束，每14年左右，考拉就会经历一次巨大的损失。

Worse still, the incident near Cape Bridgewater is on the back of the huge losses seen from this season’s bushfires. Experts believe that around 1.25 billion animals may have been killed directly or indirectly by the ongoing fires. While it’s not possible to know precise numbers, koalas were among the hardest-hit species, primarily because they’re slow-moving and live among the forested areas being decimated by the fires.

更糟糕的是，布里奇沃特角附近的这次事故是在本季度的森林大火造成巨大损失之后发生的。专家们认为，约有12.5亿只动物可能已经直接或间接地死于正在进行的火灾。虽然不可能知道确切的数字，但考拉是受影响最严重的物种之一，主要是因为它们行动缓慢，生活在森林被大火摧毁的地区。

Hundreds of koalas slaughtered during the logging of bluegum plantation near Portland. Company is #southwestfibre, a joint venture between #midway and #mitsui. This is absolutely unacceptable.

在波特兰附近的蓝胶种植园伐木期间，数百只考拉惨遭屠杀。公司是西南纤维公司，是中途岛公司和三井公司的合资企业。这是绝对不能接受的。