纪录片《我们的地球》 第132期 辽阔平原(07)

It's a long way to travel, but for a short period, the tundra¹ is the ideal place for a grazer.

北极的苔原虽然路途遥远，但仍有短短的一段时间是食草动物的天堂。

The grass grows vigorously during the short, intense summer

在这短暂夏日，草儿茁壮生长，

and there are fewer predators² than further south.

而且这里的掠食动物比南方少多了

Here, geese can nest on the ground in relative safety.

在这里，雪雁可以比较放心地把巢筑在地上。

Nonetheless, this female must incubate her eggs for three weeks

然而，雌雪雁必须花三周的时间孵蛋，

and throughout this time she will be very vulnerable.

而在这三周里，它将变得易受攻击。

An Arctic fox surveys the colony.

一头北极狐在雪雁的领地附近逡巡。

She's been waiting for the geese all winter.

它已经等了整整一个冬天。

Sneaking³ up unnoticed is impossible.

出其不意的偷袭很难奏效。

Perhaps fortune will favour the bold.

也许命运之神会眷顾勇敢的动物。

The colony is well-defended. There are no easy pickings here.

雪雁的领地防御完善,很难让狐狸轻松下手

She's driven away from every nest, but hunger compels her to continue.

这只狐狸四处碰壁，但在饥饿的驱使下始终不肯放弃努力。

There are more eggs here than she can possibly eat now. But the nesting season is short.

这里的蛋多得它根本吃不了。但是雪雁的繁殖季很短。

So she stashes⁴ much of her plunder⁵ for later in the year when all the geese have gone.

所以狐狸会把蛋藏起来，以作雪雁迁徙之后的食物之用。

1 tundra   

n.苔原，冻土地带

参考例句：

• The arctic tundra is at the top of the world around the North Pole.北极冻原是指北极点周边的地区，是世界最高的地方。
• There is a large amount of methane gas under the Siberian tundra.西伯利亚的冻土地带之下有大量的甲烷气体。

2 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》

3 sneaking   

a.秘密的，不公开的

参考例句：

• She had always had a sneaking affection for him. 以前她一直暗暗倾心于他。
• She ducked the interviewers by sneaking out the back door. 她从后门偷偷溜走，躲开采访者。

4 stashes   

n.隐藏处( stash的名词复数 )v.贮藏( stash的第三人称单数 )；隐藏；藏匿；藏起

参考例句：

• The squirrel stashes away nuts for winter. 松鼠贮藏胡桃以备过冬。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• The giving up love, after stashes the love again, how always? 放弃爱，呜咽后再拥有爱，多么总？ 来自互联网

5 plunder   

vt.劫掠财物，掠夺；n.劫掠物，赃物；劫掠

参考例句：

• The thieves hid their plunder in the cave.贼把赃物藏在山洞里。
• Trade should not serve as a means of economic plunder.贸易不应当成为经济掠夺的手段。