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Researchers have estimated that blue whales take in about 10 million pieces of microplastics each day.
研究人员估计，蓝鲸每天会摄入大约1000万片微塑料。
Microplastics are particles of plastic debris that are less than 5 millimeters long.
微塑料指的是长度小于5毫米的塑料碎片颗粒。
They come from the breakdown of many kinds of plastic products and industrial waste.
它们是由多种塑料制品和工业垃圾分解而成。
Particle levels have been building up in the world's oceans for many years.
多年来，全球海洋中微塑料颗粒的含量一直在增加。
The possible health effects on whales from eating microplastics are still not well understood.
人们对摄入微塑料对鲸鱼健康可能产生的影响仍不甚了解。
Scientists studied three species of baleen whales – blue, fin and humpback.
科学家研究了三种须鲸——蓝鲸、长须鲸和座头鲸。
Baleen whales are born without teeth.
须鲸生来就没有牙齿。
But they have special plates in their mouths that filter food.
但是它们的嘴里有特殊的盘子来过滤食物。
They feed on very small animals, mainly the shrimp-like creatures called krill.
它们以非常小的动物为食，主要是一种名为磷虾的类似虾的生物。
A study by the researchers says the estimated 10 million pieces of microplastics blue whales eat daily weigh about 44 kilograms.
研究人员的一项研究表明，蓝鲸每天吃的大约1000万片微塑料重约44公斤。
The whales were studied off America's Pacific coast.
科学家是在美国太平洋海岸研究这些鲸鱼的。
Research results were recently reported in the publication Nature Communications.
研究结果最近发表在《自然-通讯》杂志上。
The study found that fin whales may take in up to 6 million microplastic pieces a day.
研究发现，长须鲸每天可能会摄入多达600万片微塑料。
Humpbacks that mostly feed on krill likely eat about 4 million microplastic pieces daily, the researchers said.
研究人员表示，主要以磷虾为食的座头鲸每天可能会摄入大约400万片微塑料。
Humpbacks that favor fish may take in a much smaller amount, about 200,000 pieces a day.
喜欢吃鱼的座头鲸的摄入量可能要小得多，每天大约20万片。
Matthew Savoca was a co-writer of the study.
马修·萨沃卡是这项研究的联合作者。
He told the Reuters news agency that about 99 percent of the plastic material came from other animals the whales eat -- not from the water they filter.
他告诉路透社，大约99%的塑料材料来自鲸鱼吃的其他动物，而不是来自它们过滤的水。
The study demonstrates the different reasons baleen whales may be at a heightened risk for taking in microplastics.
这项研究证明了须鲸摄入微塑料风险增加的不同原因。
These include the way they feed, the amount of food they eat and the fact that their environment is close to polluted areas.
这些因素包括它们进食的方式，它们吃的食物的数量以及它们的环境靠近污染地区的事实。
Blue whales can grow up to 30 meters long.
蓝鲸可以长到30米长。
Fin whales can reach 24 meters, while humpbacks are generally about 15 meters.
长须鲸可以长到24米，而座头鲸一般在15米左右。
The researchers estimated the daily microplastic intake by examining the food search behavior of 126 blue whales, 65 humpbacks and 29 fins.
研究人员通过调查126头蓝鲸、65头座头鲸和29头长须鲸的觅食行为估计了它们每天的微塑料摄入量。
They used measurements from electronic tag devices that they attached to the animals’ backs.
他们使用电子标签设备估算数据，这些电子标签设备被安装在鲸鱼的背上。
The device was equipped with a camera, microphone and a GPS tracker.
该设备配备了摄像头、麦克风和GPS追踪器。
They then considered levels of microplastics that exist in the travel path of the whales.
他们考虑了鲸鱼移动路径中存在的微塑料含量。
A study published last year suggested that blue whales off the U.S. Pacific coast eat about 10 to 20 tons of krill daily.
去年发表的一项研究表明，美国太平洋海岸的蓝鲸每天大约吃10到20吨磷虾。
Fin whales eat an estimated 6 to 12 tons of krill a day, while humpbacks take in about 5 to 10 tons of krill or 2 to 3 tons of fish daily.
据估计，长须鲸每天吃6到12吨磷虾，而座头鲸每天吃大约5到10吨磷虾或2到3吨鱼。
The new study found that the whales mainly feed at ocean depths of 50 to 250 meters.
这项新研究发现，鲸鱼主要在50至250米的海洋深处觅食。
This is within the area with the highest measured microplastic levels in the open-ocean environment.
这是在公海环境中测得的微塑料含量最高的区域内。
I’m Bryan Lynn.
布莱恩·林恩为您播报。
译文为可可英语翻译，未经授权请勿转载！
