纪录片《恐龙的战争》 极限生存(8)(在线收听) |
T. Rex has a refined array of senses, including an accute sense of smell, that should lead straight to the meal. 霸王龙有着灵敏的感官,其中便包括其敏锐的嗅觉能够引导它找到食物。 Behind the nostrils are large cavernous chambers lined with sheets of sensory tissue able to detect odors. 在鼻孔后面是大型的海绵状腔,上面遍布着感官组织,能够辨别气味。 The olfactory bulbs transmit that information back to the brain. 大脑嗅球将嗅觉信息传输回大脑。 One of the big surprises was the size of the olfactory bulbs, part of the brain associated with processing information about smells in the environment. 让我们吃惊的是,霸王龙大脑嗅球的大小,大脑的一部分与处理环境中的气味信息密不可分。 To increase the number of odor detectors, the area containing sensory tissue is designed like a radiator. 为了增加气味探测细胞的数量,感官组织的分布区域的结构像是天线。 A T. Rex can pick up the slightest scent of meat and from a long distance. 霸王龙能够嗅出在很远距离外的极微弱的肉类气味。 T. Rex had a sense of smell equivalent to 100 bloodhounds all duct-taped together. 霸王龙的嗅觉相当于一百只侦探猎犬栓在一起的总和。 They certainly had the largest olfactory lobe of any animal, living or extinct, on this planet. 它们拥有地球上所有存在或已灭绝的生物中最大的嗅叶。 This is a vital tool for a hunter. 这对于掠食者来说是个利器。 From a substantial distance, a T. Rex can hold in on prey or pick up their hatchlings' distinct scent. 从很远的距离,霸王龙便能辨别猎物或者感知到它们幼崽特殊的气味。 And there is something else unusual about T. Rex's nose, The nostrils are a huge 25 centimeters apart. 除此之外,霸王龙的鼻口部还有玄机,两个鼻孔之间的距离达二十五厘米。 Which means T. Rex can smell in stereo. 这就使霸王龙拥有立体的嗅觉。 It can triangulate an odor and pinpoint its exact source. 它能用三角测量法精确定位气味来源。 T. Rex could walk into a crowded auditorium and in a few seconds identify every single person and creature by its own idiosyncratic odors. 霸王龙可以走进一间拥挤的礼堂,并在几秒钟内能根据气味辨别出每个人和动物。 This female, desperate to eat, picks up the scent of a meal. 这只饥肠辘辘的雌龙嗅到了猎物的味道。 But it's the scent of an animal that even the strongest Tyrannosaurs prefers not to tackle. 但散发出这种气味的猎物,就算是最强壮的霸王龙,也会避而远之。 That's the most dangerous challenge that any big carnivore ever faced, was the swinging head of Triceratops. 所有大型食肉恐龙面对的最大威胁那就是三角龙的利角。 It's like a gigantic white rhinoceros on steroids. 它像是巨型的打了固醇的犀牛。 At 3 meters long and 3 meters tall, a full-grown Triceratops can reach 6 tons in weight. 身长三米,身高也是三米,一只成年的三角龙的重量可达六吨。 If there is an animal whose scent would frighten a T. Rex, it's Triceratops. 如果一只恐龙的气味能吓到霸王龙,那当属三角龙。 T. Rex is well aware of the risks. 霸王龙深知这次狩猎的危险。 Its cerebrum has information stored from previous encounters. It knows the danger ahead. 它的大脑储存了前几次遭遇的信息。它知道前方的危险。 Overpowering a Triceratops means tackling a beast with meter-long horns covered in rock-hard keratin and a body protected by a bony shield. 制服一只三角龙意味着要面对一米长的尖角,上面覆有岩石般坚硬的角质,还有它那骨质盾牌保护的身体。 But ensuring the survival of her genes for another generation would be worth a fight. 但是为了确保它的后代能够延续生命,这次冒险是值得的。 One could imagine that the conflict between Tyrannosaurs and Triceratops may have been one of the greatest combats that nature has ever had. 可以想象三角龙和霸王龙的对抗也许是自然界中最激烈的战斗了。 And this well-protected herbivore is everywhere. 并且这种防护很好的食草动物随处可见。 |
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