纪录片《我们的地球》 第347期 广袤草原(12)

The East African savannahs support millions of grazers.

东非大草原养育着成千上万的食草动物。

Each year they devour¹ millions of tons of grass,

每年会吃掉数百万吨草，

and yet there's one creature here whose impact is far greater than all these animals combined.

然而有一种生物对草原造成的影响，远大于其他动物的总和。

They're found wherever grass grows on the planet,

地球上有草的地方都有它们的踪影，

yet their labours go almost entirely² unnoticed.

但它们的辛苦劳作几乎难以察觉。

One of the most remarkable³ is found here on the grasslands⁴ of South America.

其中最出色的出现在南美洲草原。

These blades are so tough that virtually no large grass eaters can stomach them.

这些叶片十分坚硬，几乎没有大型食草动物能消化得了。

Yet they're harvested on an industrial scale... by tiny grass cutter ants.

然而却被小小的切叶蚁大规模采集。

But they themselves can't digest one bit of it. So, why bother?

可它们根本无法消化叶片。那到底是为什么呢？

The answer is underground, and it's very ingenious.

答案在地下，可谓别出心裁。

1 devour   

v.吞没；贪婪地注视或谛听，贪读；使着迷

参考例句：

• Larger fish devour the smaller ones.大鱼吃小鱼。
• Beauty is but a flower which wrinkle will devour.美只不过是一朵，终会被皱纹所吞噬。

2 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

3 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

4 grasslands   

n.草原，牧场( grassland的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Songs were heard ringing loud and clear over the grasslands. 草原上扬起清亮激越的歌声。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Grasslands have been broken and planted to wheat. 草原已经开垦出来，种上了小麦。 来自《简明英汉词典》