侏罗纪搏击俱乐部 第91期:最早的统治者

 Tyrannosaurus-Rex may have ruled the Cretaceous, but Allosaurus was the king of Jurassic.

霸王龙也许统治了白垩纪，但异特龙才是侏罗纪的王者。

While any environment that we have on earth today we have a top predator¹, Allosaurus was the top predator of the late Jurassic in western North America.

在地球上的任何环境里都有一种顶级掠食者，异特龙是侏罗纪晚期北美西部的顶级掠食者。

Here in Alaska, you've got the brown bear, up in Arctic Alaska, polar bear, Africa, Serengeti, the lion, and if you're in India, the tiger.

在阿拉斯加，是棕熊，在阿拉斯加的极地区，是北极熊，非洲的塞伦盖提，是狮子，要是在印度，就是老虎。

And in western North America, it was Allosaurus.

在北美西部，那时候就是异特龙。

It had powerful jaws² with pretty sharp teeth.

它的双颚有力，牙齿非常锋利。

It had extremely large claws on its hand which were very useful for gripping and tearing.

它前肢的爪子非常大，对抓住和撕扯猎物是很有用的。

For nearly 20 million years, Ceratosaurus had dominated the region of North America where the Rocky Mountain states are now.

近两千万年里，角鼻龙统治着北美地区就是现在的落基山区。

But the emergence³ of Allosaurus, a bigger, faster, stronger adversary⁴, changed everything.

但是更大、更快、更壮的对手异特龙的出现，改变了一切。

What made Allosaurus unique was its build.

让异特龙出类拔萃的是它的体型。

It was much more powerful than other predators⁵ of the late Jurassic era, including Ceratosaurus which it dwarfed⁶.

它要比侏罗纪晚期其它的掠食者强大得多，也包括与它相形见绌的角鼻龙。

Allosaurus was one of the largest predatory dinosaurs⁷ in North America at the end of Jurassic.

异特龙是侏罗纪晚期北美地区最大的掠食恐龙之一。

He ultimately displaced Ceratosaurus as being the apex⁸ predator.

它最终取代了角鼻龙成为了顶级掠食者。

You were face to face with Allosaurus.

你要是面对面地碰到异特龙。

First of all, you'd be in big trouble.

首先，你麻烦大了。

Guess the first thing, you'd turn around and run.

猜首先你会转身就跑。

By the time you did, he would have foot planted on you, planting you face first into the mud, and would reach down, grab on, brace⁹ himself, and basically chop you in half.

你跑掉时候，它会一脚把你踩住，让你脸朝下摔进泥里，然后弯腰，咬住你，撑住自己，而且基本上会把你撕成两半。

For the bite force, probably comparable to a great white shark.

它的咬合力，应该可以媲美大白鲨。

Allosaurus had considerable improvements on the Ceratosaurus.

异特龙要比角鼻龙进步很多。

Its size was unprecedented¹⁰ for its time.

它的体型就前所未有。

Measuring about 10 meters long, 4 and a half meters tall and weighing up to 5 tons.

有大概十米长，四米半高，重可达五吨。

Allosaurus was the size of a railway carriage.

异特龙的大小相当于一节火车车厢。

When the first big skeletons of Allosaurus were uncovered, people finally saw that there were meat eating dinosaurs that was as big as killing¹¹ whale with powerful claws on its hand.

当第一具异特龙的巨大骨架被发现时，人们终于看到了这种食肉恐龙，跟虎鲸一样巨大前爪非常发达。

Truly, a terror from the Jurassic period.

这可真是侏罗纪时期的凶神恶煞。

One social characteristic made Allosaurus even more dangerous.

异特龙的一个社会属性使之更为危险。

Ongoing¹² research suggests they lived in packs.

持续的研究表明它们群居生活。

1 predator   

n.捕食其它动物的动物；捕食者

参考例句：

• The final part of this chapter was devoted to a brief summary of predator species.本章最后部分简要总结了食肉动物。
• Komodo dragon is the largest living lizard and a fearsome predator.科摩多龙是目前存在的最大蜥蜴，它是一种令人恐惧的捕食性动物。

2 jaws   

n.口部；嘴

参考例句：

• The antelope could not escape the crocodile's gaping jaws. 那只羚羊无法从鱷鱼张开的大口中逃脱。
• The scored jaws of a vise help it bite the work. 台钳上有刻痕的虎钳牙帮助它紧咬住工件。

3 emergence   

n.浮现，显现，出现，（植物）突出体

参考例句：

• The last decade saw the emergence of a dynamic economy.最近10年见证了经济增长的姿态。
• Language emerges and develops with the emergence and development of society.语言是随着社会的产生而产生，随着社会的发展而发展的。

4 adversary   

adj.敌手，对手

参考例句：

• He saw her as his main adversary within the company.他将她视为公司中主要的对手。
• They will do anything to undermine their adversary's reputation.他们会不择手段地去损害对手的名誉。

5 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》

6 dwarfed   

vt.（使）显得矮小（dwarf的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• The old houses were dwarfed by the huge new tower blocks. 这些旧房子在新建的高楼大厦的映衬下显得十分矮小。
• The elephant dwarfed the tortoise. 那只乌龟跟那头象相比就显得很小。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 dinosaurs   

n.恐龙( dinosaur的名词复数 )；守旧落伍的人，过时落后的东西

参考例句：

• The brontosaurus was one of the largest of all dinosaurs. 雷龙是所有恐龙中最大的一种。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Dinosaurs have been extinct for millions of years. 恐龙绝种已有几百万年了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 apex   

n.顶点，最高点

参考例句：

• He reached the apex of power in the early 1930s.他在三十年代初达到了权力的顶峰。
• His election to the presidency was the apex of his career.当选总统是他一生事业的顶峰。

9 brace   

n. 支柱,曲柄,大括号; v. 绷紧,顶住,(为困难或坏事)做准备

参考例句：

• My daughter has to wear a brace on her teeth. 我的女儿得戴牙套以矫正牙齿。
• You had better brace yourself for some bad news. 有些坏消息,你最好做好准备。

10 unprecedented   

adj.无前例的，新奇的

参考例句：

• The air crash caused an unprecedented number of deaths.这次空难的死亡人数是空前的。
• A flood of this sort is really unprecedented.这样大的洪水真是十年九不遇。

11 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

12 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。