侏罗纪搏击俱乐部 第97期:每个猎手都有适合自己的猎物

 　　Being faster and more agile¹ than your prey² was an important attribute, but the ability to ambush³ prey was a even more lethal⁴ hunting strategy.

　　比猎物更快更灵活十分重要的品质，但伏击猎物是一个更为致命的狩猎策略。

　　Predators⁶ today will seek out and hide along game trails.

　　今天的掠食者会找到猎物通路并躲在边上。

　　Those are trails that herbivores use to get to and from food and water.

　　那些是食草动物去进食和饮水的小道。

　　Well, dinosaurs⁷ like Allosaurus and Ceratosaurus would've also used these trails to their advantage.

　　像异特龙和角鼻龙这样的恐龙也会利用这样的小道。

　　They can find a grove⁸ of trees and use them for cover as they wait for the prey to walk down the trail, or they can work as a team to drive prey along a trail towards the awaiting mate.

　　它们能找一片小树林并在等待猎物做过小道时用它们作掩护，或者它们能团队配合沿小道将猎物赶往等待的那个同伴。

　　Game trails are like road maps of dinner table as far as predators are concerned.

　　这些小径对于掠食者来说就像通往餐桌的交通图一样。

　　The Jurassic Era was full of unexpected events, some as momentous⁹ as climate change or tectonic shift.

　　侏罗纪时期充满了意外事件，有些如气候变化和板块漂移般重大。

　　But it's the smaller facts that play havoc¹⁰ with the outcome of a violent challenge.

　　但是产生狂暴挑战的大破坏却是小的事件引发的。

　　Scientists know that their body structures meant that they preyed¹¹ on different dinosaurs.

　　科学家们知道它们的身体结构意味着它们捕猎不同恐龙。

　　Certainly their different structures suggest different killing¹² styles.

　　不同的身体结构当然意味着不同的猎杀风格。

　　Allosaurus may have actually concentrated on maybe larger prey.

　　异特龙可能主要关注较大的猎物。

　　Ceratosaurus with its longer teeth, some are more delicate gracile built, suggested it might have actually been feeding on some of the smaller prey.

　　角鼻龙有更长的牙齿，有些更加纤细，这说明它们可能捕食较小猎物。

　　Look at animal designs today, and you'll find that most predators are specialized¹³ in what they hunt.

　　观察当今的动物，能够发现多数掠食者专门捕猎某些动物。

　　Although they'll take advantage of any food sources that come across, they are really suited for only certain types of prey.

　　虽然它们不会放过送上门的食物，但是它们只适合捕食某种类型的猎物。

　　It's not a coincidence that you find cheetahs¹⁴ living along side of gazelles.

　　猎豹和瞪羚在同一环境生存并非巧合。

　　The same goes with lion and wildebeests.

　　狮子和角马也是一样。

　　Each predator⁵ is ideally suited to capture and kill their particular prey.

　　每个掠食者都最好地适合于捕猎它们特定的猎物。

　　And so we can apply that same behavior and hunting methods to prehistoric¹⁵ predators.

　　所以我们能把同样的行为和狩猎方式用于史前掠食者。

　　But would a Ceratosaurus attack a larger, more powerful adversary¹⁶ like Allosaurus?

　　但是角鼻龙会去攻击像异特龙那样更大、更强壮的对手吗？

　　Science looks to modern animal behavior for answers.

　　科学从现代动物行为中寻找答案。

　　Would a Ceratosaurus take on an Allosaurus?

　　角鼻龙会进攻异特龙吗？

　　Well, yes, depending on the circumstances.

　　会的，这得看具体情况。

　　If Ceratosaurus was protecting a kill or defending a territory, then I believe they would certainly at least stand their ground against Allosaurus.

　　如果角鼻龙在保护猎杀的动物或是守卫领地，我相信它们起码不会退缩。

　　If they outnumbered the Allosaurus, then I have no doubt they would stand and fight.

　　要是它们的数量比特异龙多，我相信它们会奋起反击。

　　But recreating what would've actually happened is difficult because so few clues could be found.

　　不过要想重现当时发生了什么很困难因为找到的线索太少。

1 agile   

adj.敏捷的，灵活的

参考例句：

• She is such an agile dancer!她跳起舞来是那么灵巧！
• An acrobat has to be agile.杂技演员必须身手敏捷。

2 prey   

n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨

参考例句：

• Stronger animals prey on weaker ones.弱肉强食。
• The lion was hunting for its prey.狮子在寻找猎物。

3 ambush   

n.埋伏(地点)；伏兵；v.埋伏；伏击

参考例句：

• Our soldiers lay in ambush in the jungle for the enemy.我方战士埋伏在丛林中等待敌人。
• Four men led by a sergeant lay in ambush at the crossroads.由一名中士率领的四名士兵埋伏在十字路口。

4 lethal   

adj.致死的；毁灭性的

参考例句：

• A hammer can be a lethal weapon.铁锤可以是致命的武器。
• She took a lethal amount of poison and died.她服了致命剂量的毒药死了。

5 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。

6 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》

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 grove   

n.林子，小树林，园林

参考例句：

• On top of the hill was a grove of tall trees.山顶上一片高大的树林。
• The scent of lemons filled the grove.柠檬香味充满了小树林。

9 momentous   

adj.重要的，重大的

参考例句：

• I am deeply honoured to be invited to this momentous occasion.能应邀出席如此重要的场合，我深感荣幸。
• The momentous news was that war had begun.重大的新闻是战争已经开始。

10 havoc   

n.大破坏，浩劫，大混乱，大杂乱

参考例句：

• The earthquake wreaked havoc on the city.地震对这个城市造成了大破坏。
• This concentration of airborne firepower wrought havoc with the enemy forces.这次机载火力的集中攻击给敌军造成很大破坏。

11 preyed   

v.掠食( prey的过去式和过去分词 )；掠食；折磨；（人）靠欺诈为生

参考例句：

• Remorse preyed upon his mind. 悔恨使他内心痛苦。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• He had been unwise and it preyed on his conscience. 他做得不太明智，这一直让他良心不安。 来自辞典例句

12 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。

13 specialized   

adj.专门的，专业化的

参考例句：

• There are many specialized agencies in the United Nations.联合国有许多专门机构。
• These tools are very specialized.这些是专用工具。

14 cheetahs   

n.（奔跑极快的）非洲猎豹( cheetah的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Unlike lions or cheetahs, leopards are secretive, solitary cats. 花豹不像狮子或印度豹，是属于较神秘而隐居的大猫。 来自互联网
• Among this lot are cheetahs, lions, leopards, rhinoceroses, spotted hyenas and elephants. 印度豹、狮子、花豹、犀牛、斑点土狼、大象等，都是此地的居民。 来自互联网

15 prehistoric   

adj.（有记载的）历史以前的，史前的，古老的

参考例句：

• They have found prehistoric remains.他们发现了史前遗迹。
• It was rather like an exhibition of prehistoric electronic equipment.这儿倒像是在展览古老的电子设备。

16 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。