纪录片《冰冻星球》 第8期 世界的尽头（8）

South of the tree line, the winters are shorter,

林木生长线以南 冬天更短了

so trees grow faster and taller

因此树木长得更快更高

and forests begin to appear.

树林已现雏形

As the warm, humid air from the south

当来自南方的暖湿气流

meets the cold, arctic air,

遇到北极的冷空气

the moisture it carries crystallises and snowflakes

前者携带的水分便凝结成冰晶和雪花

fall from the sky.

从空中徐徐飘落

Each crystal forms around a particle of dust.

每片雪花都以一粒灰尘为中心

All have a six-fold symmetry

且具有六边对称性

but no two have ever been found with exactly the same shape.

但世界上却没有两片完全相同的雪花

Their variety and complexity¹ is breathtaking.

雪花的多样性和复杂性令人叹为观止

Each snowflake is water waiting

每片雪花都将在春天融化

to be released in spring.

化作生命之泉

For this reason, snow is the lifeblood

因此 雪是这片寂林

of these silent forests

赖以生存的命脉

and all that live here depend on it in one way or another.

一切生命都以某种方式依赖着它

Some, like the great grey owl²,

其中 以乌林鸮为例

appear in spring for the boom times,

它们在春天万物复苏时出现

then vanish like phantoms³.

然后像幽灵一样消失

Others, like their lemming prey⁴,

另一些 像它们的猎物旅鼠

are here year-round beneath the snow,

则整年都待在雪下

insulated from the cold air above.

以抵御外面的严寒

1 complexity   

n.复杂(性)，复杂的事物

参考例句：

• Only now did he understand the full complexity of the problem.直到现在他才明白这一问题的全部复杂性。
• The complexity of the road map puzzled me.错综复杂的公路图把我搞糊涂了。

2 owl   

n.猫头鹰，枭

参考例句：

• Her new glasses make her look like an owl.她的新眼镜让她看上去像只猫头鹰。
• I'm a night owl and seldom go to bed until after midnight.我睡得很晚，经常半夜后才睡觉。

3 phantoms   

n.鬼怪，幽灵( phantom的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• They vanished down the stairs like two phantoms. 他们像两个幽灵似的消失在了楼下。 来自辞典例句
• The horrible night that he had passed had left phantoms behind it. 他刚才度过的恐布之夜留下了种种错觉。 来自辞典例句

4 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。