The sexual deception of orchids - Anne Gaskett

翻译人员: Cindy Huang 校对人员: Viviana Hu

The world’s largest orchid grows several meters tall.

世界上最大的兰花可以长到几米高。

The tiniest is practically invisible.

最小的几乎看不见，

Some bloom high up in trees,

有些长在树稍，

while others live underground.

有些生长在地底。

All in, there are around 28,000 species of orchid on earth –

全部加起来， 世界上有大约 28000 种兰花，

about as many as all the bird, mammal and reptile species combined.

大约是世界上所有鸟类， 哺乳动物和爬行动物数量的总和。

They grow all over the world,

它们生长在世界各地，

bearing every imaginable colour, shape, and pattern.

有着每一种你可以想象到的 颜色，形状，和花纹。

And there’s a cunning purpose behind these elaborate displays:

在这些精心的展示背后 隐藏着一个狡猾的目的：

many orchids trick insects,

很多兰花会欺骗虫子，

sometimes even into having sex with them.

有时候甚至和它们发生性关系。

Like other flowers,

和其他花朵一样，

most orchids need to attract insects

大部分的兰花需要吸引昆虫

to gather their pollen and carry it between plants.

去收集它们的花粉 并传播给其他植物。

But unlike most flowers,

但和用甜美花蜜

which attract a range of pollinators with sweet nectar,

吸引传粉媒介的大多数花朵不同，

these masters of deception deploy other tactics–

这些欺骗大师使用了其他的策略：

like pretending to be an insect’s mate,

比如冒充一个昆虫的伴侣，

letting off alluring scents,

释放诱人的香味，

and mimicking the appearance of other species.

并模仿其他物种的外形。

One of their most intriguing methods is sexual deception.

它们最有趣的方法是性欺骗。

Through a combination of sexy shapes and pheromones,

通过一些性感的形状和信息素，

orchids convince insects to mate with them.

兰花“说服”昆虫与他们交配。

Take the bee orchid,

举个例子，蜜兰，

whose petals look almost exactly like the velvety body of a bee.

它们的花瓣看起来几乎 和蜜蜂毛茸茸的身体一模一样。

This disguise is so convincing that male bees land on the orchid

这种伪装能够轻易的骗过蜜蜂， 雄性蜜蜂会停留在它身上，

and try to have sex with it,

并尝试和它发生性关系，

picking up pollen as they go.

离开的时候带走花粉。

Other orchids have evolved contrasting colours and ultraviolet spots–

其他兰花进化出了 对比色和紫外线斑——

invisible to humans but irresistible to insects.

人类看不见， 但是对昆虫来说无法抗拒。

Still others have tactile ‘love-handles’

还有一些拥有触觉 “爱情之手”，

that ensure insects are positioned precisely for pollination.

确保昆虫停留在正确的位置授粉。

When a male wasp lands on the hammer orchid, for example,

举个例子，当一只雄性黄蜂 停留在锤兰上的时候，

his enthusiastic mating motion flips a hinge in the flower,

它们热烈的交配动作 会翻转花里的合页，

forcing his body into the pollen.

迫使它的身体进入花粉。

At the next flower he visits,

在它去的下一朵花上，

that same hinge pushes his pollen-covered body onto the stigma,

合页将它满是花粉的身体 推到兰花的柱头上，

fertilizing it.

使其受精。

Some orchids make such convincing mates

有些兰花是极具欺骗性的伴侣，

that insects even ejaculate on them,

一些昆虫甚至在它们身上射精，

wasting valuable sperm.

浪费了宝贵的精子。

But the most vital component of sexual deception is scent:

不过，在兰花的性欺骗中， 最重要的部分还是气味:

orchids mimic the precise scent of a single insect species.

兰花能够精准的模仿 一种昆虫的香味。

This is possible because many insects and flowers

这是可能的，因为很多昆虫和花

produce simple organic compounds called hydrocarbons,

能够生产一种叫做碳氢化合物的 简单有机化合物，

which form a layer that protects their bodies from drying out.

形成一层保护层， 防止它们的身体变干。

The precise blend of compounds in this layer is species-specific.

每个物种外层的化碳氢化合物 都是独一无二的。

Its scent can double as a way for insects to attract potential mates,

那些气味是昆虫吸引 潜在配偶的一种方式，

known as a sex pheromone.

被称为性信息素。

Over the course of many thousands of years,

经过了几千年的演变，

random compound combinations have given some orchid species

一些兰花品种进化出了 随机的碳氢化合物成分，

precisely the same signature scent as particular insect species.

其香味和某些昆虫物种恰恰相同。

This matching scent allows them to attract male pollinators

这种匹配的气味使它们 能够吸引雄性传粉者，

who fall over and over again

这些传粉者一次次被那些

伪装成同物种雌性的

for the flowers masquerading as females

of their own species.

花朵们迷倒。

Sexual deception isn’t the only trick orchids have up their sleeves.

性欺骗并不是兰花拥有的唯一伎俩。

Their oldest scam is mimicking the shapes and colours

它们最古老的骗局是模仿

of other nectar-producing flowers—

那些产花蜜的花朵的形状和颜色，

but without the sweet nectar.

尽管它们本身并不产花蜜。

Some orchids also masquerade as places where insects lay their eggs.

有些兰花伪装成了昆虫产卵的地方。

One species not only has the colour and appearance of rotting meat;

一种兰花不仅有烂肉的颜色和外观，

it emits a scent of decay as well–

还会模仿并散发出腐烂的气味——

drawing in flies who deposit their eggs on the flower

吸引苍蝇在兰花身上产卵，

and unwittingly pollinate the plant.

并无意中为它们授粉。

Other orchids look and smell just like the fungi on which certain insects

一些兰花的外观和气味 很像某些真菌，

lay their eggs.

诱使昆虫在上面产卵。

Where do all these bizarre adaptations come from?

所有这些奇怪的特征是怎么来的？

Random genetic mutations in orchids may result in a trait–

兰花的随机基因突变 可能改变它们的特征，

like a scent or a shape–

比如气味和形状——

that, by chance, matches the needs of a single insect species.

纯粹偶然的， 正好符合一种昆虫的需求。

The huge diversity within the insect world also increases the likelihood

昆虫世界的多样性也增加了

that an orchid will find a unique audience.

兰花找到特定传粉者的可能。

Able to make more seeds and offspring with the help of its dedicated pollinators,

在其专门的传粉者的帮助下， 成功制造了更多种子和后代的兰花

the orchid successfully reproduces in isolation,

会在隔离的状态下进行繁殖，

and becomes a new species.

并成为一个新的物种。

But because of their dependence on sometimes just one pollinator species,

但是因为它们对（有时只有一种） 传粉昆虫的依赖，

orchids are also vulnerable,

兰花也很脆弱，

and many quickly go extinct.

许多兰花很快就灭绝了。

Over time, though,

随着时间的推移，

more orchid species have formed than died out,

对比那些灭绝的兰花品种， 更多的兰花品种出现了。

and orchids are some of the most diverse flowering plants.

使得兰花成为了一种 最多样化的开花植物。

They have such exuberant and otherworldly shapes

它们拥有非常丰富 和超凡脱俗的形状，

that they occasionally deceive human senses, too:

偶尔也会欺骗人类的感官：

In their petals we see what appear to be tiny, dancing people,

在它们的花瓣中， 我们看到了跳舞的小人，

monkey’s faces, spiders,

猴子的脸，蜘蛛，

and even birds in flight.

甚至还有飞行中的鸟类。