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Researchers from Cuba are working with a Canadian partner to learn more about migratory birds that travel between North America and Cuba each year.
来自古巴的研究人员正在与加拿大的一个合作伙伴合作，以了解更多关于每年往返于北美和古巴之间的候鸟。
Daniela Ventura is a bird biologist at the University of Havana in Cuba.
丹妮拉·文图拉是古巴哈瓦那大学的鸟类生物学家。
On a recent day, she caught a catbird with a net in the capital city's botanical gardens.
最近的一天，她在首都的植物园里用网捕到了一只猫鹊。
The small, gray animal is one of the species of migratory birds that fly from the United States and Canada to Cuba each winter.
这种灰色的小动物是每年冬天从美国和加拿大飞往古巴的候鸟之一。
Ventura calls out observations to her students, who take notes nearby.
文图拉把观察结果告诉她的学生，学生们在旁边做笔记。
She describes the species, its weight and its estimated body fat.
她描述了这种动物的种类、体重和体脂估值。
The information provides new data for a joint project between Canada and Cuba.
这些信息为加拿大和古巴之间的一个联合项目提供了新的数据。
Ventura and the other project researchers hope to learn more about how and where the birds spend their winters in Cuba.
文图拉和其他项目研究人员希望了解更多关于这种鸟在古巴如何以及在哪里过冬的信息。
"We know a lot about their ecology in the breeding zone (in North America) but very little about what happens in their wintering zone," Ventura said.
文图拉说：“我们对它们在北美繁殖区的生态环境了解很多，但对它们在越冬区发生的事情知之甚少”。
Part of the problem is politics, said Lourdes Mugica.
卢尔德·穆吉卡说，部分问题在于政治。
She is an expert on birds and helped organize the research.
她是鸟类专家，并帮助组织了这项研究。
A long-lasting U.S. embargo has made cooperation between the United States and Cuba difficult.
美国长期的禁运使美国和古巴之间的合作变得困难。
That includes scientific research.
其中包括科学研究。
Migratory birds, of course, are indifferent to the restrictions.
当然，候鸟对这些限制措施无动于衷。
"Birds don't understand embargoes or geographic borders, they don't need a visa to enter our country," Mugica said.
穆吉卡说：“鸟类不懂禁运和地理边界，它们不需要签证就能进入我们的国家”。
"I hope there comes a time when relations are normal and that we can have joint projects between (the U.S. and Cuba.)"
“我希望有一天，两国关系会恢复正常，美国和古巴可以开展联合项目。”
Mugica says the project – with partnership from Environment and Climate Change Canada – suggests what is possible.
穆吉卡表示，这个与加拿大环境和气候变化部合作的项目表明了什么是可能的。
Martin Acosta, another leading bird expert in Cuba, agrees.
古巴另一位著名的鸟类专家马丁·阿科斯塔对此表示赞同。
The Canadian and Cuban partners put up a radio telemetry antenna in Cuba.
加拿大和古巴的合作伙伴在古巴安装了无线电遥测天线。
The antenna operates as part of an international research network called MOTUS.
该天线是MOTUS国际研究网络的一部分。
It is the first time Cuba has been included in the MOTUS network.
这是古巴首次被纳入MOTUS网络。
The antenna can follow birds that have been radio-tagged in other parts of North America.
该天线可以追踪在北美其他地区被无线电标记的鸟类。
It recently found in Cuba a small Swainson's thrush.
它最近在古巴发现了一只斯氏夜鸫。
The bird was first tagged in Canada's British Columbia – 5,000 kilometers away from the Caribbean nation.
这只鸟最初是在加拿大不列颠哥伦比亚省被标记的，该省距离这个加勒比海国家5000公里。
"We never thought we'd reach the level of sophistication we now enjoy," said Acosta.
阿科斯塔说：“我们从未想过我们会达到我们现在享有的先进程度。”
"Sophistication" means highly developed and complex.
“Sophistication”指的是高度发达和复杂。
Both Mugica and Acosta remember the hard days during their careers in science.
穆吉卡和阿科斯塔都记得他们在科学生涯中的艰难日子。
Mugica said she lost over 30 kilograms doing research many years ago, at a time when food in Cuba was hard to find.
穆吉卡说，她多年前做研究时瘦了30多公斤，当时古巴的食物很难找到。
It is still hard to carry out their research some days, they say.
他们表示，有些日子他们的研究仍然很难进行。
Their 20-year-old truck needed a push start on a recent morning, for example.
例如，在最近的一个早上，他们那辆开了20年的卡车需要推力启动。
But the teams celebrate small victories.
但研究团队都在庆祝小小的胜利。
The catbird that Ventura recently captured had been given an identifying leg band back in November at the same place, data showed.
数据显示，文图拉最近捕获的猫鹊早在11月就在同一个地方被戴上了识别身份的带子。
The bird had gained body fat in the three months since, ahead of its migration north across the Gulf of Mexico.
在那之后的三个月里，这只鸟的身体脂肪在穿越墨西哥湾向北迁徙之前增加了。
Ventura said, "To think these little birds, which weigh less than 10 grams, cross the sea and come back and survive is spectacular."
文图拉说：“想到这些体重不到10克的小鸟能穿越海洋回来并存活下来，真是太令人惊叹了。”
I'm Gregory Stachel.
格雷戈里·施塔赫尔为您播报。
译文为可可英语翻译，未经授权请勿转载！
