纪录片《南太平洋》 第134期 奇异岛屿（10）

A freshwater stream through the forest makes a handy highway

淡水溪流穿过森林形成一条便捷的水路

for a parent penguin¹ heading home from a fishing trip with a crop full of food.

方便了带着满满捕鱼收获的企鹅回家

Born in the forest, they stay in the forest,

出生在森林里 留在森林里

while Mum and Dad bring fresh meals straight from the ocean.

父母径直从海洋带回新鲜的食物

They can hear the waves, they can even smell the spray,

它们能听到海浪声 甚至能嗅到浪花味

but they have no idea what it looks like.

但它们不知道大海是什么样子

These chicks won't have their first splash in the ocean until they're three months old,

这些幼雏还没有在海洋里溅过水，要到3个月大才行

when they'll finally set off on their first fishing trip, alone.

它们最终将独自出发进行首次捕鱼之旅

1,500 miles from the nearest continent, New Zealand is beyond the reach of most mammals.

最近的大陆在1500哩外，新西兰是大部分哺乳动物到不了的地方

Marine² mammals aside, the only ones that did succeed, before humans arrived, had wings.

海洋哺乳动物这一边，只有一个成功了，在人类到达之前，有了翅膀

Bats. This is the short-tailed bat.

蝙蝠。这是短尾蝙蝠

It roosts in tree cavities and comes out at night to feed. So far, so normal.

栖息在树洞，晚上出来觅食。到目前为止，太正常了

But these bats have been living the island life far too long

但这些蝙蝠生活在岛上已很久很长了

not to have become a little "different". And they're not the only ones.

没有变得一点"不同"。它们不只是某一类

Wetas are primitive³ relatives of the locust⁴, but they can't fly.

沙螽是蝗虫的原始近亲 但它们不会飞

Seeing an opportunity, the bats pounced⁵.

看准机会，蝙蝠猛得一扑

After all, why waste energy hawking⁶ for insects in the sky?

还用浪费能量在空中捕食昆虫么？

when there is such a feast on the forest floor.

当林地有如此美餐。

New Zealand's night-time creepy-crawlies are at the mercy of these bats.

新西兰夜间爬行昆虫在这些蝙蝠面前毫无办法

Some try to put up a fight...but they're no match for THIS army of predators⁷.

有些试着抵抗...但它们不是这群掠食者的对手..

These bats have special sheaths that protect their wings,

蝙蝠有层特殊的外皮本是 保护它们的翅膀

all the better to burrow⁸ through the leaves. So even worms aren't safe.

现在反而更好得用来翻寻树叶。即便蠕虫也不安全

1 penguin   

n.企鹅

参考例句：

• The penguin is a flightless bird.企鹅是一种不会飞的鸟。
• He walked with an awkward gait like a penguin.他走路的步子难看得就像企鹅。

2 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

3 primitive   

adj.原始的；简单的；n.原(始)人，原始事物

参考例句：

• It is a primitive instinct to flee a place of danger.逃离危险的地方是一种原始本能。
• His book describes the march of the civilization of a primitive society.他的著作描述了一个原始社会的开化过程。

4 locust   

n.蝗虫；洋槐，刺槐

参考例句：

• A locust is a kind of destructive insect.蝗虫是一种害虫。
• This illustration shows a vertical section through the locust.本图所示为蝗虫的纵剖面。

5 pounced   

v.突然袭击( pounce的过去式和过去分词 )；猛扑；一眼看出；抓住机会（进行抨击）

参考例句：

• As soon as I opened my mouth, the teacher pounced on me. 我一张嘴就被老师抓住呵斥了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The police pounced upon the thief. 警察向小偷扑了过去。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

6 hawking   

利用鹰行猎

参考例句：

• He is hawking his goods everywhere. 他在到处兜售他的货物。
• We obtain the event horizon and the Hawking spectrumformula. 得到了黑洞的局部事件视界位置和Hawking温度以及Klein—Gordon粒子的Hawking辐射谱。

7 predators   

n.食肉动物( predator的名词复数 )；奴役他人者（尤指在财务或性关系方面）

参考例句：

• birds and their earthbound predators 鸟和地面上捕食它们的动物
• The eyes of predators are highly sensitive to the slightest movement. 捕食性动物的眼睛能感觉到最细小的动静。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 burrow   

vt.挖掘(洞穴)；钻进；vi.挖洞；翻寻；n.地洞

参考例句：

• Earthworms burrow deep into the subsoil.蚯蚓深深地钻进底土。
• The dog had chased a rabbit into its burrow.狗把兔子追进了洞穴。