纽约时报 亚洲“杀人大黄蜂”入侵美国(3)

Jun-ichi Takahashi, a researcher at Kyoto Sangyo University in Japan,

日本京都产业大学研究员高桥纯一称，

said the species had earned the “murder hornet” nickname there

该物种之所以在日本有着“杀人蜂”的绰号，

because its aggressive group attacks can expose victims to doses of toxic¹ venom² equivalent to that of a venomous snake;

是因为它们会集体攻击，来势十分凶猛，注入受害者体内的毒液剂量堪比一条毒蛇注入的剂量；

a series of stings can be fatal.

几针下来，受害者就会一命呜呼。

The night he got stung, Mr. Berube still managed to eliminate the nest and collect samples,

行动那晚，贝鲁布虽被蛰伤，但他还是设法清除了蜂巢，还收集到了样本，

but the next day, his legs were aching, as if he had the flu.

然而次日，他的腿便疼痛起来，仿佛得了流感一般。

Of the thousands of times he has been stung in his lifetime of work, he said, the Asian giant hornet stings were the most painful.

贝鲁布称，养蜂以来，他已经被蜇过成千上万次，但被亚洲大黄蜂蛰得最痛苦。

After collecting the hornet in the Blaine area, state officials took off part of a leg and shipped it to an expert in Japan.

在布莱恩地区收集到大黄蜂样本后，州官员取下大黄蜂的部分腿部，将其运给了日本的一位专家。

A sample from the Nanaimo nest was sent as well.

一道被送走的还有纳奈莫蜂巢中的样本。

A genetic³ examination, concluded over the past few weeks,

该州害虫学家泰莉莎·威尔逊表示，

determined⁴ that the nest in Nanaimo and the hornet near Blaine were not connected, said Telissa Wilson, a state pest biologist,

过去几周完成的基因检查已经确定，纳奈莫蜂巢的大黄蜂和布莱恩附近的大黄蜂之间没有联系，

meaning there had probably been at least two different introductions in the region.

这就意味着该地区可能有至少两拨大黄蜂。

Dr. Looney went out on a recent day in Blaine, carrying clear jugs⁵ that had been made into makeshift traps;

不久前的一天，身在布莱恩的鲁尼拿着作临时捕蜂器之用的透明水罐出去了一趟；

typical wasp⁶ and bee traps available for purchase have holes too small for the Asian giant hornet.

就亚洲巨型大黄蜂而言，市面上常见的那种黄蜂和小蜜蜂捕蜂器的孔太小了。

He filled some with orange juice mixed with rice wine, others had kefir mixed with water,

部分罐子他装了橙汁和米酒，另一些装了兑水的酸牛乳酒，

and a third batch⁷ was filled with some experimental lures⁸ —

还有一批倒入的是一些实验诱饵——

all with the hope of catching⁹ a queen emerging to look for a place to build a nest.

为了便是抓住一只出来找地方筑巢的蜂王。

He hung them from trees, geo-tagging each location with his phone.

他将那些罐子都挂到了树上，又用手机记下了每个罐子的位置。

In a region with extensive wooded habitats for hornets to establish homes, the task of finding and eliminating them is daunting¹⁰.

在一个拥有大量可供大黄蜂筑巢的繁茂树林的地区，要想找出并消灭掉它们并不容易。

How to find dens¹¹ that may be hidden underground?

还有藏在地下的巢穴，这种巢穴又怎么找？

And where to look, given that one of the queens can fly many miles a day, at speeds of up to 20 miles per hour?

考虑到蜂王一天能飞出数英里，飞行速度可达20英里/小时，究竟应该上哪儿去找？

The miles of wooded landscapes and mild, wet climate of western Washington State makes for an ideal location for the hornets to spread.

华盛顿州西部森林繁茂，气候温和湿润，为大黄蜂的扩散提供了理想的温室。

In the coming months, Mr. Looney said, he and others plan to place hundreds more traps.

鲁尼表示，接下来几个月，他和其他人计划再放几百个捕蜂器。

State officials have mapped out the plan in a grid¹², starting in Blaine and moving outward.

州官员规划了一个以布莱恩为起点向四周辐射的抓捕计划。

The buzz of activity inside a nest of Asian giant hornets can keep the inside temperature up to 86 degrees,

由于在亚洲大黄蜂的频繁飞舞之下，蜂巢内部温度可高达86℉（30℃），

so the trackers are also exploring using thermal¹³ imaging to examine the forest floors.

于是，追踪大黄蜂踪迹的工作人员正在尝试用热成像技术检测森林地表温度，籍此锁定蜂巢位置。

Later, they may also try other advanced tools that could track the signature hum the hornets make in flight.

以后，他们或许还能尝试其他先进工具追踪大黄蜂在飞行中发出的独特的嗡嗡声。

If a hornet does get caught in a trap, Dr. Looney said, there are plans to possibly use radio-frequency identification tags to monitor where it goes —

鲁尼表示，一旦他们用捕蜂器抓住一只大黄蜂，按计划，他们可能会用射频识别标签追踪它的去向——

or simply attach a small streamer and then follow the hornet as it returns to its nest.

或者，也可以直接给它绑一张小彩条，然后跟随它回到蜂巢。

While most bees would be unable to fly with a disruptive marker attached, that is not the case with the Asian giant hornet.

尽管大多数蜜蜂被绑上扰乱其原本飞行负重的标记后都无法继续飞行，但亚洲大黄蜂不会。

It is big enough to handle the extra load.

因为这种蜜蜂巨大的体型足以承担额外的负重。

1 toxic   

adj.有毒的，因中毒引起的

参考例句：

• The factory had accidentally released a quantity of toxic waste into the sea.这家工厂意外泄漏大量有毒废物到海中。
• There is a risk that toxic chemicals might be blasted into the atmosphere.爆炸后有毒化学物质可能会进入大气层。

2 venom   

n.毒液，恶毒，痛恨

参考例句：

• The snake injects the venom immediately after biting its prey.毒蛇咬住猎物之后马上注入毒液。
• In fact,some components of the venom may benefit human health.事实上，毒液的某些成分可能有益于人类健康。

3 genetic   

adj.遗传的，遗传学的

参考例句：

• It's very difficult to treat genetic diseases.遗传性疾病治疗起来很困难。
• Each daughter cell can receive a full complement of the genetic information.每个子细胞可以收到遗传信息的一个完全补偿物。

4 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

5 jugs   

（有柄及小口的）水壶( jug的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Two china jugs held steaming gravy. 两个瓷罐子装着热气腾腾的肉卤。
• Jugs-Big wall lingo for Jumars or any other type of ascenders. 大岩壁术语，祝玛式上升器或其它种类的上升器。

6 wasp   

n.黄蜂，蚂蜂

参考例句：

• A wasp stung me on the arm.黄蜂蜇了我的手臂。
• Through the glass we can see the wasp.透过玻璃我们可以看到黄蜂。

7 batch   

n.一批(组，群)；一批生产量

参考例句：

• The first batch of cakes was burnt.第一炉蛋糕烤焦了。
• I have a batch of letters to answer.我有一批信要回复。

8 lures   

吸引力，魅力（lure的复数形式）

参考例句：

• He left home because of the lures of life in the city. 他离家是由于都市生活的诱惑。
• Perhaps it is the desire for solitude or the chance of making an unexpected discovery that lures men down to the depths of the earth. 可能正是寻觅幽静的去处，或者找个猎奇的机会的欲望引诱着人们进入地球的深处。

9 catching   

adj.易传染的，有魅力的，迷人的，接住

参考例句：

• There are those who think eczema is catching.有人就是认为湿疹会传染。
• Enthusiasm is very catching.热情非常富有感染力。

10 daunting   

adj.使人畏缩的

参考例句：

• They were faced with the daunting task of restoring the house.他们面临着修复房子的艰巨任务。
• Starting a new job can be a daunting prospect.开始一项新工作有时会让人望而却步。

11 dens   

n.牙齿，齿状部分；兽窝( den的名词复数 )；窝点；休息室；书斋

参考例句：

• Female bears tend to line their dens with leaves or grass. 母熊往往会在洞穴里垫些树叶或草。 来自辞典例句
• In winter bears usually hibernate in their dens. 冬天熊通常在穴里冬眠。 来自辞典例句

12 grid   

n.高压输电线路网；地图坐标方格；格栅

参考例句：

• In this application,the carrier is used to encapsulate the grid.在这种情况下，要用载体把格栅密封起来。
• Modern gauges consist of metal foil in the form of a grid.现代应变仪则由网格形式的金属片组成。

13 thermal   

adj.热的，由热造成的；保暖的

参考例句：

• They will build another thermal power station.他们要另外建一座热能发电站。
• Volcanic activity has created thermal springs and boiling mud pools.火山活动产生了温泉和沸腾的泥浆池。