Časoris is an online newspaper aimed at children. Each week we’ll take an article and post it here as a Slovene-English dual text.
Ptice so začele peti tiše
The birds began to sing quieter
Written by Urša Adamič, translated by JL Flanner & G Translate
Od sredine marca, ko so povsod po svetu začeli veljati ukrepi zaradi pandemije, je raziskovalna skupina natančno poslušala oglašanje ptic na obali San Francisca in v njegovi okolici.
Since mid-March, when pandemic measures took effect around the world, a research team has been listening intently to bird calls on and around the San Francisco coast.
Prišla je do presenetljivega odkritja: ptice so prepevale tišje kot leta poprej. In ne samo to. Tudi njihovo vedenje se je spremenilo.
it made a surprising discovery: the birds sang quieter than previous years. And not only that. Their behaviour has also changed.
Poslušali so beloglave vrabonade iz družine vrabcev. Na podeželju, kjer je slišati le veter in morske valove, pojejo drugače kot v glasnem mestu.
They listened to the white-crowned sparrow from the sparrow family. In the countryside, where only the wind and sea waves can be heard, they sing differently than in a loud city.
Vozila proizvajajo stalen šum na nizki frekvenci. Slišimo ga kjerkoli v mestu. Zaradi tega mestnega šuma se tudi ptice pevke med seboj slabše slišijo.
Vehicles produce constant noise at low frequency. We hear it everywhere in the city. Due to this city noise, songbirds also hear each other less well.
»To jim povzroča veliko težav. S svojo pesmijo namreč iščejo partnerja, branijo hrano in gnezdo. Številne ptice pevke so razvile prilagoditve, s katerimi preglasijo mestni hrup,« je za Časoris razložila vodja raziskovalne skupine Elizabeth Derryberry.
“It causes them a lot of problems. With their song they’e looking for a partner, defending food and a nest. Many songbirds have developed adaptations to overcome city noise, ”research team leader Elizabeth Derryberry told Časoris.
Da bi ptice preglasile šum iz okolice, so se v mestu začele oglašati glasneje in na višjih frekvencah. V času umiritve javnega življenja zaradi pandemije novega koronavirusa pa se je mestni šum močno zmanjšal in vplival tudi na petje ptic.
In order for the birds to drown out the noise from the surroundings, they began to sing louder and at higher frequencies in the city. At a time when public life was calming down due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, however, city noise was greatly reduced and this also affected bird singing.
»Šum mesta je postal podoben šumu iz časa, ko so v njem odraščali naše babice in dedki. Ko je mesto skoraj utihnilo, se je spremenilo tudi petje ptic. Pele so tišje, na nižjih frekvencah in uporabljale so širši razpon tonov,« je še dodala Elizabeth.
“The noise of the city has become similar to the noise from the time when our grandparents grew up in it. As the city almost fell silent, the birdsong also changed. They sang quieter, at lower frequencies, and used a wider range of tones, ”added Elizabeth.
Njihov napev je postal bolj podoben napevu ptičev na podeželju. Njihovo petje je bilo slišati dvakrat dlje kot ponavadi.
Their song became more like the songs of birds in the countryside. Their singing was heard twice as long as usual.
Tudi njihovo vedenje se je spremenilo. Samci so postali manj bojeviti.
Their behaviour has also changed. Males have become less combative.
>Napev samca beloglavega vrabonada
The tune of a male white-crowned sparrow.
Read more stories and improve your Slovene at Časoris, while all our dual texts can be found here.
