国家地理 加里曼丹岛的地底洞天(7)

In 1979, Eavis arrived in Borneo as part of a British expedition designed to study the rainforest and help the recently independent Malaysia understand the newly established Gunung Mulu National Park. Caving was still a relatively¹ young sport, and Eavis and a team of four others were brought on only after expedition leaders realized that there were huge caves among the forest's many treasures.

1979年，艾维斯作为一个英国探险队的一员来到婆罗洲，该探险队旨在研究雨林，并让刚刚独立的马来西亚了解新建的姆鲁国家公园。洞穴探险仍是一个相对年轻的运动，在探险队长发现雨林的丰富宝藏之下还藏有多处巨大洞穴后，派来了艾维斯和其他四名队员。

Eavis and his friends had honed their skills back home, in Britain, where caves were commonly small and cold. Borneo's caves, opposite in almost every way, pushed Eavis and his companions into another dimension.

艾维斯和他的朋友们回到家乡锤炼技能。英国的洞穴一般都是又小又冷，而婆罗洲的洞穴与英国的洞穴几乎在每一点上都大相径庭，这为艾维斯和他的同伴们打开了另一个世界。

With their first discovery they set their record for size: It was called Deer Cave, or Gua Rusa, and its entrance was so enormous—nearly 500 feet high—that the sun reached deep inside and fresh air followed, creating a strange and wonderful habitat in the seam between daylight and darkness. A mammoth² colony of bats clung to the cavern's roof, while on the floor thick piles of guano teemed³ with cockroaches⁴, crabs⁵, worms, and hosts of specialized⁶ microbes.

他们的首个发现就创下了他们去到洞穴的面积记录，这个洞穴叫做鹿洞，也叫Gua Rusa，入口很宽--有近500英尺高--阳光可以照到底下深处，里面还可以呼吸到新鲜空气，在日光与黑暗之间的缝隙中形成了一个奇妙的栖息地。巨大的蝙蝠群紧紧地贴在洞穴的顶部，而地上堆积了厚厚的海鸟粪，上面有许多蟑螂、螃蟹、蠕虫，还有特定微生物的宿主。

1 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

2 mammoth   

n.长毛象；adj.长毛象似的，巨大的

参考例句：

• You can only undertake mammoth changes if the finances are there.资金到位的情况下方可进行重大变革。
• Building the new railroad will be a mammoth job.修建那条新铁路将是一项巨大工程。

3 teemed   

v.充满( teem的过去式和过去分词 )；到处都是；（指水、雨等）暴降；倾注

参考例句：

• The pond teemed with tadpoles. 池子里有很多蝌蚪。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Ideas of new plays and short stories teemed in his head. 他的脑海里装满了有关新的剧本和短篇小说的构思。 来自辞典例句

4 cockroaches   

n.蟑螂( cockroach的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• At night, the cockroaches filled the house with their rustlings. 夜里，屋里尽是蟑螂窸窸瑟瑟的声音。 来自辞典例句
• It loves cockroaches, and can keep a house clear of these hated insects. 它们好食蟑螂，可以使住宅免除这些讨厌昆虫的骚扰。 来自百科语句

5 crabs   

n.蟹( crab的名词复数 )；阴虱寄生病；蟹肉v.捕蟹( crab的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• As we walked along the seashore we saw lots of tiny crabs. 我们在海岸上散步时看到很多小蟹。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The fish and crabs scavenge for decaying tissue. 鱼和蟹搜寻腐烂的组织为食。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 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。