在线英语听力室

Goose-necked Dinosaur Was Built Like a Diving Bird

时间:2022-12-15 02:38:46

搜索关注在线英语听力室公众号:tingroom,领取免费英语资料大礼包。

(单词翻译)

Goose-necked Dinosaur1 Was Built Like a Diving Bird

The expansive dinosaur group that includes big hunters like the T. rex has a strange new member. Its bones were found in Mongolia.

Scientists named the new dinosaur Natovenator polydontus. They say it was about the size and shape of the bird called a goose. It also had a long neck, similar to a goose's.

But, it was not a bird, the scientists say. The research suggests the animal was semi-aquatic, meaning it spent much of its life in water.

It lived about 72 million years ago during a period of time called the Cretaceous Period. It was built like a diving bird, with a body meant for quickly swimming in water. Inside its mouth, were about 100 small teeth, the scientists said. And, they said they believe the dinosaur was covered in feathers.

Yuong-Nam Lee of Seoul National University in South Korea is lead writer of the research published in the journal Communications Biology. He said Natovenator has many "peculiar2" qualities.

It was the cousin of the speedy little meat-eating dinosaur the Velociraptor. But Natovenator was adapted to a life that involved a freshwater environment. The researchers said the animal may have floated on rivers and lakes, diving to hunt and using its long neck to catch fish and insects.

Natovenator's skeleton is about 70 percent complete. It was unearthed3 in the Gobi Desert. Many dinosaur skeletons have been found in the desert in recent history.

Natovenator is part of the dinosaur group called theropods. They share some qualities like walking on two feet, or bipedalism. The group is best known for large meat-eaters like Tyrannosaurus. But the group, which includes all birds, had many kinds of dinosaurs4.

Philip Currie of University of Alberta helped write the study. He said, "The diversity of theropod dinosaurs by the end of the Cretaceous is totally amazing." He believes there will be more discoveries of peculiar theropods in the future.

Not many of the dinosaurs called "non-avian," or not the birds, are known to have lived a semi-aquatic lifestyle. A close relative of Natovenator named Halszkaraptor, described in 2017, lived a similar lifestyle during roughly the same time in the same area. Both had a very bird-like appearance and were closely related to birds.

Natovenator measured about 45 centimeters long and had a head bone, or skull6, about 7 centimeters long. It's front "wings," or limbs, appeared somewhat flattened7. They could have been adapted for swimming. The increased ability to swim in water, or streamlining of its body, is shown by ribs8 that point toward the end of the body, or tail. That placement often appears in diving birds. It permits for better swimming.

There were different diving birds during the Cretaceous, including North America's Hesperornis, which reached about 1.8 meters long. But none are known from the area Natoventor lived.

"More than 30 different lineages of tetrapods (terrestrial vertebrates) have independently invaded water ecosystems," Lee said. "Why not dinosaurs?"

Words in This Story

feathers – n. any one of the light growths that make up the outer covering of the body of a bird

peculiar – adj. not usual or normal

adapt – v. to change (something) so that it functions better or is better suited for a purpose

diversity – n. the quality or state of having many different forms, types, or ideas

amazing – n. causing great surprise or wonder

rib5 – n. any one of the curved bones of the chest that connect to the spine10

ecosystem9 – n. everything that exists in a particular environment


分享到:


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 dinosaur xuSxp     
n.恐龙
参考例句:
  • Are you trying to tell me that David was attacked by a dinosaur?你是想要告诉我大卫被一支恐龙所攻击?
  • He stared at the faithful miniature of the dinosaur.他凝视著精确的恐龙缩小模型。
2 peculiar cinyo     
adj.古怪的,异常的;特殊的,特有的
参考例句:
  • He walks in a peculiar fashion.他走路的样子很奇特。
  • He looked at me with a very peculiar expression.他用一种很奇怪的表情看着我。
3 unearthed e4d49b43cc52eefcadbac6d2e94bb832     
出土的(考古)
参考例句:
  • Many unearthed cultural relics are set forth in the exhibition hall. 展览馆里陈列着许多出土文物。
  • Some utensils were in a state of decay when they were unearthed. 有些器皿在出土时已经残破。
4 dinosaurs 87f9c39b9e3f358174d58a584c2727b4     
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》
5 rib 6Xgxu     
n.肋骨,肋状物
参考例句:
  • He broke a rib when he fell off his horse.他从马上摔下来折断了一根肋骨。
  • He has broken a rib and the doctor has strapped it up.他断了一根肋骨,医生已包扎好了。
6 skull CETyO     
n.头骨;颅骨
参考例句:
  • The skull bones fuse between the ages of fifteen and twenty-five.头骨在15至25岁之间长合。
  • He fell out of the window and cracked his skull.他从窗子摔了出去,跌裂了颅骨。
7 flattened 1d5d9fedd9ab44a19d9f30a0b81f79a8     
[医](水)平扁的,弄平的
参考例句:
  • She flattened her nose and lips against the window. 她把鼻子和嘴唇紧贴着窗户。
  • I flattened myself against the wall to let them pass. 我身体紧靠着墙让他们通过。
8 ribs 24fc137444401001077773555802b280     
n.肋骨( rib的名词复数 );(船或屋顶等的)肋拱;肋骨状的东西;(织物的)凸条花纹
参考例句:
  • He suffered cracked ribs and bruising. 他断了肋骨还有挫伤。
  • Make a small incision below the ribs. 在肋骨下方切开一个小口。
9 ecosystem Wq4xz     
n.生态系统
参考例句:
  • This destroyed the ecosystem of the island.这样破坏了岛上的生态系统。
  • We all have an interest in maintaining the integrity of the ecosystem.维持生态系统的完整是我们共同的利益。
10 spine lFQzT     
n.脊柱,脊椎;(动植物的)刺;书脊
参考例句:
  • He broke his spine in a fall from a horse.他从马上跌下摔断了脊梁骨。
  • His spine developed a slight curve.他的脊柱有点弯曲。

本文本内容来源于互联网抓取和网友提交,仅供参考,部分栏目没有内容,如果您有更合适的内容,欢迎 点击提交 分享给大家。