【VOA慢速】数百万只鸟为墨西哥东部带来游客

Every year, millions of birds fly between Mexico's Sierra Madre Oriental Mountains and the Gulf of Mexico in an event known as the "river of raptors".

每年，数百万只鸟在墨西哥的东马德雷山脉和墨西哥湾之间飞翔，这一事件被称为“猛禽河”。

Many kinds of birds such as hawks, falcons, kites, vultures and eagles travel though the area from August to November to escape cold temperatures.

鹰、隼、鸢、秃鹫和老鹰等多种鸟类从8月到11月在该地区飞行，以躲避低温。

The event brings hundreds of foreign birdwatchers to the coastal area of Veracruz.

这一事件吸引数百名外国观鸟者前往韦拉克鲁斯的沿海地区。

"Many of my clients have been at other famous bird migration sites

“我的许多客户都去过其他著名的鸟类迁徙地，

but say they never have seen anything like the river of raptors in Veracruz," said Steven Koevoet.

但他们说自己从未见过像韦拉克鲁斯“猛禽河”这样的景象，”史蒂文·科沃特说。

He is a birdwatching guide in Mexico.

他是墨西哥的一名观鸟向导。

Koevoet has shown visitors places in Yucatan and Veracruz states for over 25 years.

科沃特在尤卡坦州和韦拉克鲁斯州向游客介绍这些地方已经超过25年。

Yet the yearly event has not led to a large increase in ecotourism.

然而，这个一年一度的事件并没有导致生态旅游的大幅增长。

Ecotourism is part of the tourism industry that gets people to visit natural places in a way that does not damage the environment.

生态旅游是旅游业的一部分，它让人们以不破坏环境的方式参观自然景点。

Critics suggest the lack of increased ecotourism is partly caused by

批评人士认为，生态旅游没有增长的部分原因是

Mexico's failure to support tourism away from its beach resorts like Cancun and Cabo San Lucas.

墨西哥未能支持坎昆和卡沃圣卢卡斯等海滩度假胜地以外的旅游业。

"Mexico has a lot of potential because of...its great diversity.

“墨西哥有很大的潜力，因为它很多元化。

But it lacks tourist infrastructure," said Efrain Castellanos, a biologist in Chiapas state.

但它缺乏旅游基础设施，”恰帕斯州的生物学家埃夫拉因·卡斯特利亚诺斯说。

High levels of violence and environmentally unfriendly methods are also problems for developing ecotourism in the states of Chiapas and Veracruz.

在恰帕斯州和韦拉克鲁斯州，严重的暴力和不环保的措施也是发展生态旅游的问题。

Violence stopped birdwatching for years in some places,

在一些地方，暴力事件导致观鸟活动中断了多年，

where the activity was an important source of income for local communities, said Vicente Rodriguez.

而观鸟活动是当地社区的一个重要收入来源，维森特·罗德里格斯说这样说。

He is a bird specialist at Mexico's National Commission for the Knowledge and Use of Biodiversity.

他是墨西哥国家生物多样性知识和利用委员会的鸟类专家。

Mexico's national and state tourism ministries did not answer a request from Reuters news agency for comment.

墨西哥国家和州旅游部没有回应路透社的置评请求。

But, environmental groups, universities and farmers in Veracruz are working together

但是，韦拉克鲁斯州的环保组织、大学和农民正在共同努力，

to develop ecotourism linked to the yearly bird migration.

开发与每年鸟类迁徙有关的生态旅游。

Angel Viveros is a member of a family of ranchers near Jose Cardel, a town about 10 kilometers from Mexico's Gulf Coast in Veracruz.

安赫尔·维韦罗斯是何塞-卡德尔附近一个牧场主家庭的一员。何塞-卡德尔是距离韦拉克鲁斯州墨西哥湾沿岸地区约10公里的一个小镇。

Viveros uses 150 hectares of land owned by his family for activities including birdwatching, horse riding, skydiving and hiking.

维韦罗斯利用他家所拥有的150公顷土地进行各种活动，包括观鸟、骑马、跳伞和徒步旅行。

Viveros is supported by the non-profit group Pronatura Veracruz, which studies and counts the birds in the yearly migration.

维韦罗斯得到了非营利组织 “韦拉克鲁斯·善待自然”的支持，该组织研究并统计每年迁徙的鸟类。

He is now receiving hundreds of visitors yearly.

他现在每年接待数百名游客。

Local coffee producers Cafe de Mi Rancho, Rancho San Fermin and Cafetalera San Felipe

当地咖啡生产商Cafe de Mi Rancho、Rancho San Fermin和Cafetalera San Felipe

offer coffee tastings and educational talks about the importance of birds in spreading seeds.

举办咖啡品鉴会和教育讲座，介绍鸟类在传播种子方面的重要性。

"A green, bird-friendly stamp for those producers could be the next step,"

“下一步可能是发给这些生产商一种绿色的鸟类友好认证，

said Juan Salazar, a professor at University of Cordoba in Veracruz.

韦拉克鲁斯州科尔多瓦大学教授胡安·萨拉查说。

One retiree who has been visiting Veracruz since 2002 had this to say.

一位自2002年以来每年都来游览韦拉克鲁斯的退休人员是这样说的。

"Apart from feeling the physical emotion, it is like something spiritual ...

“除了视觉上给人的感受，它也像是精神上的东西……

there are no words to describe what it feels like to see the river of birds," Jose Alejandro Ramirez said.

这些鸟就像一条河一样，无法用语言来描述看到此情此景的感觉，”何塞·亚历杭德罗·拉米雷斯说。

I'm John Russell.

约翰·罗素为您播报。