纪录片《猫的秘密》 第19期 猫的打斗

But although they found this happening over and over again,

但是尽管这种情况总有发生

rarely did it lead to fighting.

但是却很少发展成一场打斗

They are descended¹ from a solitary² species,

他们起源于一个独居的物种

so if they blunder into one another,

所以如果他们无意中闯入他人领地

then it's very difficult for either of them to back down,

对于任意一方 退后都是很困难的

because turning your back

因为把背

on another cat is a dangerous thing to do,

朝向另一只猫是一件很危险的事

and most cats will have learnt that very early on.

大部分猫都在很小的时候就学到了这点

They would actively³ defend a piece of land

他们会积极地保卫一片

which contains their core resources.

拥有他们的核心资源的土地

Cats do sometimes actually fight.

猫有时真的会打斗

There are actual wounds, claws and teeth get used.

会有真的伤口 用爪子和牙齿

But most cats will tend to try and avoid conflicts

但是多数猫会尝试避免冲突

because if you rely on yourself for survival,

因为如果你仅靠自己生存

it is not good in terms of fitness

就健康而言

to get yourself injured.

把自己弄伤并不是件好事

It's incredibly costly⁴.

代价太高昂了

So this is a big part of what your cat does beyond the cat flap.

这就是你的猫在猫洞之外的大部分活动

1 descended   

a.为...后裔的，出身于...的

参考例句：

• A mood of melancholy descended on us. 一种悲伤的情绪袭上我们的心头。
• The path descended the hill in a series of zigzags. 小路呈连续的之字形顺着山坡蜿蜒而下。

2 solitary   

adj.孤独的，独立的，荒凉的；n.隐士

参考例句：

• I am rather fond of a solitary stroll in the country.我颇喜欢在乡间独自徜徉。
• The castle rises in solitary splendour on the fringe of the desert.这座城堡巍然耸立在沙漠的边际，显得十分壮美。

3 actively   

adv.积极地，勤奋地

参考例句：

• During this period all the students were actively participating.在这节课中所有的学生都积极参加。
• We are actively intervening to settle a quarrel.我们正在积极调解争执。

4 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。