侏罗纪搏击俱乐部 第135期:长腿的优势

 　　They moved with their front legs more oriented inward instead of like this, like we see in bears today, and that would have given them a more efficient gate.

　　当它们进行移动时，前腿更向内靠，而不是像我们如今看到的熊类这样，那就让它们有更高的效率。

　　We now know that its long legs made it a top predator¹, a mammal that could run down its prey² at long distances, particularly, bison.

　　我们现在知道它的长腿使之成为顶级掠食者，这种哺乳动物能够长距离追逐猎物，特别是野牛。

　　With its long legs and huge size which meant a very long stride, it could probably run pretty fast and for quite a while.

　　有了长腿和巨大的体型，这意味着每一步都很大，它也许能够跑得很快也能坚持很久。

　　So it had some chance of overtaking better runners, like bison would be the obvious, probably the prey of choice for this animal.

　　所以它有机会干掉很擅长跑动的猎物，比如公认擅长跑步的野牛，也许就是短面熊的猎物之选。

　　Soon, the raw power of the mega bear would become evident.

　　人们很快就发现这种巨熊蛮力十足。

　　As paleontologists continued to investigate, they realized that this animal was so massive, it even hunted and killed giant mammoths.

　　随着古生物学家继续调查，他们意识到这种动物非常巨大，甚至能猎杀巨大的猛犸象。

　　In Utah, there was a mammoth³ found, a mammoth skeleton found that had scratch marks on some of the bones that were the size and could have been done by the canines⁵ of a short faced bear.

　　在犹他州，曾经发现过一头猛犸象，一个猛犸象的骨架，里面有些骨头上有着划痕，是短面熊犬齿的大小，可能是它的杰作。

　　And short faced bear remains⁶ were found along side this mammoth, so there is evidence that these animals were eating other animals.

　　而且这头猛犸象的旁边也发现了短面熊的遗骸，所以有证据表明这些动物在以其他动物为食。

　　This is a calcaneus or heel bone of a mammoth from Saltville, Virginia, the same site where we have recovered giant short faced bear remains.

　　这是猛犸象的跟骨就是脚后跟骨，出土于弗吉尼亚的索尔特维尔，在同一地点我们也发现了巨大的短面熊遗骸。

　　If we look at it from this angle, we can see this cut where this large canine⁴ would have gone through this bone.

　　要是我们从这个角度看，我们能看到这个切口，这里就是巨大犬齿咬进这块骨头的地方。

　　These are very dense⁷ bones, not a soft area of the skeleton.

　　这些是很致密的骨头，并不是骨架里柔软的部分。

　　And I can't think of anything else besides a giant short faced bear that could have caused something like this.

　　除了短面熊我想不到还有什么其他的东西能造成这种伤害。

　　The extent of the short faced bear's hunting territory is impressive.This bear was everywhere.

　　短面熊的狩猎领地大得惊人。这种熊无处不在。

　　The geographical⁸ distribution of giant short faced bears is across North America, from Alaska all the way down into Mexico and from coast to coast.

　　巨型短面熊的地理分布遍及北美洲，从阿拉斯加直到墨西哥，从东海岸到西海岸。

　　The only place that they were missing, until recently, was down in the very South-East.

　　直到最近，唯一没发现它们的地方是最东南端。

　　Now we're finding that they were there: we've got some records from Florida and we've got some other records from the extreme South-East, so they were all over the place.

　　我们如今已经知道它们也曾在那里：我们在佛罗里达有一些记录，我们在极东南端也有了一些其它记录，所以它们到处都是。

　　Even more evidence of the bear's range was unearthed⁹ in California's La Brea Tar¹⁰ Pits, one of the richest sources of prehistoric¹¹ bones in North America.

　　这种熊分布范围的更多证据在加州的拉布雷亚沥青坑被找到，那里是北美史前骨骼最富集处之一。

　　Rancho La Brea is a unique situation where we have oil that has come up through the ground, onto the surface and filled small cavities in the surface of the ground and set up a trap where animals would come in, get entrapped¹² in this soil, muck with the asphalt, very sticky, would end up dying there, decaying there, and the bones being preserved by the oil itself.

　　拉布雷亚沥青坑是一个独特的地方，那里有石油从地下泛上来到达地表，并且填满地面的小洞形成一个陷阱，动物们走进来，被困在土壤里，身上沾满非常黏的沥青，最终死在里面，在那里腐烂，而其骨头则被石油保存下来。

1 predator   

n.捕食其它动物的动物；捕食者

参考例句：

• The final part of this chapter was devoted to a brief summary of predator species.本章最后部分简要总结了食肉动物。
• Komodo dragon is the largest living lizard and a fearsome predator.科摩多龙是目前存在的最大蜥蜴，它是一种令人恐惧的捕食性动物。

2 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。

3 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。

4 canine   

adj.犬的，犬科的

参考例句：

• The fox is a canine animal.狐狸是犬科动物。
• Herbivorous animals have very small canine teeth,or none.食草动物的犬牙很小或者没有。

5 canines   

n.犬齿( canine的名词复数 )；犬牙；犬科动物

参考例句：

• For example, the teeth are more primitive. There are large canines and unusually shaped incisors. 譬如，牙齿更为原始，有大的犬齿和非常合适的门齿。 来自辞典例句
• Well-to-canines can attend doggy daycare centers while their owners work. 富人家的狗在主人上班的时候可以去狗狗托管中心。 来自互联网

6 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

7 dense   

a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的

参考例句：

• The general ambushed his troops in the dense woods. 将军把部队埋伏在浓密的树林里。
• The path was completely covered by the dense foliage. 小路被树叶厚厚地盖了一层。

8 geographical   

adj.地理的；地区(性)的

参考例句：

• The current survey will have a wider geographical spread.当前的调查将在更广泛的地域范围內进行。
• These birds have a wide geographical distribution.这些鸟的地理分布很广。

9 unearthed   

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。

10 tar   

n.柏油，焦油；vt.涂或浇柏油/焦油于

参考例句：

• The roof was covered with tar.屋顶涂抹了一层沥青。
• We use tar to make roads.我们用沥青铺路。

11 prehistoric   

adj.（有记载的）历史以前的，史前的，古老的

参考例句：

• They have found prehistoric remains.他们发现了史前遗迹。
• It was rather like an exhibition of prehistoric electronic equipment.这儿倒像是在展览古老的电子设备。

12 entrapped   

v.使陷入圈套，使入陷阱( entrap的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He was entrapped into undertaking the work. 他受骗而担任那工作。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He felt he had been entrapped into marrying her. 他觉得和她结婚是上了当。 来自辞典例句