圖文閱讀:生命的綠色

—— Green may be the most common color found in nature—it's everywhere from leaves, grass, and moss （苔蘚）to snakes, butterflies, and even the northern lights（北極光）. Green represents life, vitality（活力）, nature, and, of course, environmentalism（環保）.

In a nocturnal(夜間的） rendezvous（幽會）, two green tree frog meet face-to-face atop(在...頂上） a leaf in Louisiana's Atchafalaya River Delta （路易斯安那州阿查法拉亞灣河口）

The northern lights, or aurora borealis （北極光）, produce a brilliant(光輝的） display in the skies near Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada（加拿大北部的耶落耐夫鎮）. The phenomenon （現象）is produced by the action of solar wind （太陽風）on the atmosphere at Earth's Poles（地極）.

A pool of water at the mouth of Rio Frio Cave（里歐弗里歐洞口） reflects（反射） the greenery （草木）of Belize’s Chiquibul Forest（伯利茲城齊可布爾森林） and frames （勾勒出） a visitor in silhouette （輪廓）. The easily accessible （可到達的） river cave is a popular attraction.

A bird's-eye view （鳥瞰） captures （捕獲） the serpentine （蛇般蜿蜒的） course of a river in Peru’s mountainous Chachapoya region（祕魯查查波亞山區）. Herds of grazing cattle （一羣羣在吃草的牛）can be seen as tiny specks （小斑點） on the vast, green landscape （風景）.

A green tree snake peers （凝視）from its leafy perch in Costa Rica’s Caribbean lowland （哥斯達黎加的加勒比海低地. These tropical rain forests（熱帶雨林） surround the famed La Selva Biological Station（拉塞爾瓦生物研究站）, a center for ecological（生態） research.

A rare white alligator （白短吻鱷） swims at the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans （新奧爾良奧特朋動物園）. Albino （白化病） gators are ill suited (很難適應）for life in the wild because their pale skin offers little protection from the sun.

Leaf-green pierid butterflies （葉綠色的pierid蝴蝶） alight （降落） on the sandy shores of the Tuichi River in Bolivia's Madidi National Park （玻利維亞曼迪迪國家公園的特赤河). The vast Madidi wilderness (荒原） encompasses （包圍） a staggering （交錯的） range of ecosystems—from snowcapped Andean peaks （白雪覆蓋的安第斯山）to tropical Amazonian lowlands （熱帶亞馬遜低地）.

Jack-o'-lantern mushrooms (空心狀的蘑菇） light up the Vermont （佛蒙特州）. The fungi（真菌） glow （發光）green by producing light via a chemical reaction known as bioluminescence. During the day the poisonous mushrooms are yellow-orange.