评论
打印
It is after midnight when the windshield fogs up on Thomas Aycock’s pickup truck.
午夜过后，托马斯·艾科克的皮卡车挡风玻璃起雾了。
He smiles as he slowly drives through the sawgrass and down dirt roads deep in the Florida Everglades. His foggy windshield confirms what he knows.
他微笑着，缓缓驶过锯齿草，沿着土路深入佛罗里达大沼泽地。他那起雾的挡风玻璃证实了他的猜想。
When the dew point drops in the middle of the night, it is perfect time for pythons.
当半夜露点下降时，正是蟒蛇出没的最佳时机。
“I catch more pythons when that happens,” Aycock said.
“当这种情况发生时，我会捕捉到更多的蟒蛇，”艾科克说。
The retired U.S. Army veteran always takes part in the Florida Python Challenge. The wildlife commission runs the 10-day event.
野生动物委员会举办了为期10天的佛罗里达蟒蛇挑战赛，这位退役的美国陆军老兵总是参加这一活动。
The aim is to get people interested in finding and catching the snakes.
该活动的目的是让人们对寻找和捕捉蛇感兴趣。
There is a reason for the timing of the event.Pythons usually hatch from their eggs each August before finding their way into the swamp.
举办这个活动是有原因的。蟒蛇通常在每年八月从蛋中孵化出来，然后进入沼泽。
Aycock works for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
艾科克为佛罗里达州鱼类和野生动物保护委员会工作。
He has hunted Burmese pythons in the Everglades for 11 years. Aycok loves snakes. And he loves preserving the Everglades.
他在大沼泽地猎捕缅甸蟒蛇已经11年了。艾科克喜欢蛇。他也热爱保护大沼泽地。
He understands the “greater ecological issue with these pythons.”
他理解这些蟒蛇所带来的“更大的生态问题”。
The invasive Burmese pythons are doing very well in Florida’s preserved wetlands. Pythons have no natural predators.
入侵的缅甸蟒蛇在佛罗里达州的保护区湿地中生活得很好。它们没有天敌。
And they are threatening Florida’s native snakes and mammals.
而且它们正在威胁佛罗里达州的本土蛇类和哺乳动物。
The United States Geological Survey (USGS) estimates tens of thousands live in South Florida. The snakes are destroying local wildlife.
美国地质调查局（USGS）估计有数万条缅甸蟒蛇生活在南佛罗里达州。这些蛇正在破坏当地的野生动物。
In one 2012 study, the USGS found that populations of raccoons had declined by 99.3 percent, opossums by 98.9 percent and bobcats by 87.5 percent since the early 2000s.
在2012年的一项研究中，美国地质调查局发现，自21世纪初以来，浣熊的数量减少了99.3%，负鼠减少了98.9%，山猫减少了87.5%。
Controlling this hungry snake, scientists say, is a critical goal.
控制这种饥饿的蛇，科学家们说，是一个关键目标。
More than 600 hunters took part in this year’s challenge.
超过600名猎人参加了今年的挑战赛。
Their goal is to beat last year’s top total of 209 pythons killed. The hunter who kills the most wins $10,000.
他们的目标是超过去年捕杀209条蟒蛇的最高纪录。捕杀最多的猎人将赢得1万美元。
The competition is designed to create understanding about Florida’s python problem. It has succeeded in doing that.
这场竞赛旨在让人们了解佛罗里达州的蟒蛇问题。它已经成功地做到了这一点。
The event has drawn famous people and has led to some reality television shows. But the need for python control remains urgent.
该事件吸引了名人，并衍生了一些真人秀节目。但对蟒蛇控制的需求仍然紧迫。
Since 2017, Florida has been paying about 100 contractors to catch the snakes year-round.
自 2017 年起，佛罗里达州向约 100 名承包商支付了全年捕蛇的费用。
That project is shared by the wildlife agency and the South Florida Water Management District.
该项目由野生动物管理局和南佛罗里达水管理区共同承担。
Through 2023, more than 18,000 pythons have been removed from the wild. Contractors like Aycock have removed about 11,000. The pay is average. Hunting along backroads pays $13 an hour. Walking through the swamp pays $18 an hour.
截至2023年，已有超过18,000条蟒蛇被从野外移除。像艾科克这样的承包商已经移除了大约11,000条。报酬是平均水平。在小路上狩猎每小时支付13美元。在沼泽中行走每小时支付18美元。
Contractors also get paid per snake: $50 for the first 1.2 meters in length, plus more for longer snakes.
承包商捕蛇也有报酬：1.2米长的蛇每条50美元，更长的蛇报酬更高。
“You’re not going to make a living doing this full-time. There’s no way you could do it,” Aycock said.
艾科克表示：“你不可能靠这个全职谋生，根本不可能做到。”
Florida does not permit hunters to use firearms to kill pythons. Catching them is a hands-on exercise.
佛罗里达州不允许猎人使用枪支杀死蟒蛇。捕捉它们是一项亲力亲为的工作。
Aycock goes into the wetlands to check on known hatching spots and grabs at them when he can.
艾科克进入湿地检查已知的孵化点，并在合适的时机抓住它们。
But mostly he drives down empty roads at night, shining a strong light into the swamps.
但大多数情况下，他会在晚上开车行驶在空旷的道路上，将强光照射到沼泽中。
He says these bug-filled drives help his mental health.
他说，这些充满虫子的驾驶活动有助于他的心理健康。
Sometimes he brings along fellow members of the Swamp Apes, a mental health non-profit organization for veterans.
有时，他会带来沼泽猿的成员，这是一个为退伍军人提供心理健康服务的非营利组织。
The group catches invasive snakes in the wild, clears overgrown areas, and works toward environmental preservation.
该组织在野外捕捉入侵蛇类，清理杂草丛生的地区，并致力于环境保护。
The group’s founder, Tom Rahill, is also a snake hunting contractor.
该组织的创始人汤姆·拉希尔也是一名捕蛇承包商。
He knows the swamp so well that he can smell a python’s “musk” odor. He says he can feel when a snake is near.
他对这片沼泽地了如指掌，甚至能闻到蟒蛇的“麝香”味。他说，当蛇靠近时，他能感觉到。
There is an art to catching a snake, the hunters say. The methods change from hunter to hunter.
捕蛇是一门艺术，猎人们说。每个猎人的方法都不一样。
Some use a snake hook and then jump on them before putting them into bags.
有些人使用蛇钩，然后在把它们放进袋子之前跳到它们身上。
Rahill likes using his hands -- if the snake is calm enough.
拉希尔喜欢用手——如果蛇足够平静的话。
“Instead of jumping on the snake, you just kind of gently get up to it and then just pick it up,” he said.
“你不用跳到蛇身上，只要轻轻地靠近它，然后把它捡起来就行了，”他说。
But the snakes are not always calm. Sometimes a hunter needs a helper to keep the snake uncoiled until it calms down and can be contained to prevent escape.
但蛇并不总是很平静。有时猎人需要一个助手来保持蛇不卷曲，直到它平静下来，可以被控制以防止逃跑。
Once the snakes are caught, the hunters have 24 hours to take them to the wildlife agency.
一旦蛇被捕获，猎人有24小时的时间将它们带到野生动物管理机构。
It is illegal for any person other than a licensed contractor to transport a live, invasive snake.
除有执照的承包商外，任何人运输活的入侵蛇都是违法的。
Aycock takes them home first to be “humanely killed.”
艾科克先把它们带回家，然后进行“人道毁灭”。
“That’s the part of the job that I really just ... hate,” he said. “I hate having to kill snakes. ”
“这是我工作中非常讨厌的部分，”他说。“我讨厌不得不杀死蛇。”
I’m Anna Matteo.
我是安娜·马特奥。
