結果非常簡單,地震並不會對藍鯨的鳴叫造成干擾。數據顯示地震前後藍鯨發出 D calls 的次數或強度,或是歌唱的頻度 (intensity),在統計上都沒有顯著的差異。就算是比較地震有無之間的鳴唱情況,也沒有明顯差異。如果硬要說有什麼統計上顯著的發現,就是鳴叫前後段的發聲頻率有著負相關的關係——也就是前段發聲頻率高的話,後段發聲的頻率就略低;或是前段發聲頻率低,後段的發聲頻率就變高。但這個相關性與地震事件並沒有任何關聯性。
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台日組則是晚了一小步。時任鴨川水族館館長的鳥羽山照夫、東京大學教授的西脇昌治、以及在台灣水產試驗所研究員的楊鴻嘉,於同年九月發表他們在日本鴨川和台灣高雄採集到的沙勞越海豚/弗氏海豚的紀錄。但是因為晚了幾個月才發表,而且是發表在日本鯨類研究所自營的期刊「Scientific Reports of the Whales Research Institute」裡,所以這篇研究並沒有受到太多矚目。
直到今年 (2020 年),一個包括筆者在內,由台灣、日本、英國和波多黎哥的學者所組成的研究團隊,使用了採集自台灣、日本、菲律賓、東熱帶太平洋、墨西哥灣和加勒比海等地的弗氏海豚生物組織樣本,透過粒線體 DNA 和微衛星基因座序列多樣性的方式,企圖一探弗氏海豚在北半球,特別是西太平洋海域的族群遺傳結構。
註1:後來大英博物館將自然史部門的資料和館藏分出來,另外成立了自然史博物館 (Natural History Museum)。弗氏海豚的模式標本現在也是存放在自然史博物館裡,有興趣的捧油們可以找時間去倫敦朝聖一下。
註2:顯然是因為縮寫都是 F. C. Fraser 、同樣是英國人、而且在幾乎同時間和大英博物館都些淵源,有些文獻和資料庫把 (素人) 昆蟲學家 Frederick Charles Fraser (1880—1963) 和我們的鯨豚大師 Francis Charles Fraser (1903—1978) 搞混了。雖然說是素人,但是 Frederick Charles Fraser 在蜻蜓研究上也是小有名聲的。
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為了挑戰老祖宗的智慧發揮科學家研究追根究柢的精神,一組由丹麥和英國的科學家組成的研究團隊,蒐集了三顆在紐西蘭和斯里蘭卡海灘撿到的龍涎香標本,和一隻在荷蘭死亡擱淺的抹香鯨腸子裡的一塊看似龍涎香的「結石」(圖一),企圖透過萃取出標本裡殘留的 DNA 片段,來鑑定龍涎香到底是從哪種生物體內製造出的神奇結晶。
由於龍涎香的主要成分龍涎香醇 (ambrein) ,有著疏水性和耐酸蝕的特性,所以理論上能夠保護在龍涎香裡殘留的鯨魚體細胞 DNA ,使其較不易受外在環境風吹雨打而破壞裂解。在這項研究裡,科學家們也確實成功地透過次世代基因定序技術,把四個樣本裡萃取出的鯨類粒線體基因體定序出來。
由於天然龍涎香的單價太高昂,而且供貨不穩定,所以市面上標榜龍涎香的香水產品,其實絕大多數都是使用化學合成的人工原料。使用純天然龍涎香的,應該比日本製的壓縮機還要稀少。不過,由於瀕臨絕種野生動植物國際貿易公約 (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora,簡稱 CITES,亦稱華盛頓公約) 將龍涎香視為鯨類動物排泄物,而取得排泄物不必要傷害動物本身,所以在國際間的商業交易,就不像其他鯨豚產製品一樣受 CITES 的嚴格管制約束。也因此,市面上其實還是買得到天然龍涎香做成的香水。只是價錢純度什麼的,就不好說了。畢竟沒有業配邀約,有興趣的捧油們,就請自行調查看看囉。
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