Coneheads, egg stacks and anteater attacks: The reign of a termite queen - Barbara L. Thorne

譯者: yu chen Lai 審譯者: Helen Chang

Tens of thousands of conehead termites are swarming in the Panamanian air.

成千上萬隻的錐頭白蟻 在巴拿馬上空中群集。

These 4 young hopefuls are brave— oh...

這四個年輕有抱負的... 噢！三個。

I guess 3. Oh, wow, 2 in 1. Okay!

哇嗚！兩個。

一個。

好吧！

This single determined termite is braving countless threats

這隻堅定的白蟻 正孤身面臨著無數的威脅

to participate in the only flight of her lifetime.

參與牠一生中唯一一次的飛行。

She evades the onslaught of predators even as she lands, flips off her wings,

在著陸時，牠躲開了掠食者的攻擊，

拍動翅膀，分泌費洛蒙來吸引配偶。

secretes pheromones, and attracts a mate.

The pair dash from the danger zone into a rotting tree stump.

這對伴侶從危險區域 衝進一個腐敗的樹樁。

It’s the perfect first home— but they’re not alone.

這是一個完美的家， 但這裡不只有牠們。

Unlike most termite species,

不像大部分種類的白蟻，

conehead termite colonies can have multiple queens and kings.

錐體白蟻群落裡 可以擁有數個皇后和國王。

The pair is joined by several other termites ready to reproduce.

其他準備繁殖的白蟻加入了這對伴侶。

Together, they excavate a chamber in the stump,

牠們一起在樹樁裡挖出一個房間，

seal the entrance and get busy.

關閉入口，開始動工。

When the resulting offspring hatch, they bear little resemblance to their parents;

孵化的後代和父母少有相似之處。

they’re smaller, wingless, eyeless, and sterile.

牠們更小，沒有翅膀，沒有眼睛且不育。

Some of them, the soldiers,

其中一些白蟻，也就是士兵們，

have the species’ trademark conspicuously shaped heads—

擁有該物種標誌性的頭部形狀，

the function of which will soon be revealed.

其功能稍後就會揭露。

They set out to scout for dead wood, laying the pheromone trails

牠們開始尋找枯木，鋪設費洛蒙步道。

the rest of the offspring, the colony’s workers,

因此其餘的後代，也就是巢裡的工人們

follow and reinforce as they retrieve food.

在牠們尋找食物時，能跟隨並援助。

As the termites collect and decompose plant debris,

當白蟻收集和分解植物碎屑，

they return essential nutrients to the soil,

牠們歸還給土地必要的養分，

allowing more vegetation to thrive.

以讓更多的植物能茁壯成長。

Gradually, worker termites expand the colony's central chamber

逐漸地，工蟻們擴張群落的中央房間，

as they groom and feed the royals and the upcoming broods.

來培育和餵養皇室成員 及即將到來的後代。

The tiniest termites can’t yet eat wood independently.

最幼小的白蟻還不能自己吃樹木，

So, the workers process it and gift it to the youngsters through their saliva

所以工蟻們用唾液處理過後 再給予小白蟻，

and by basically throwing up into their mouths.

簡單來說，就是吐進牠們的嘴巴裡。

With the workers managing groceries, construction, and child care,

工蟻們負責管理食物、 建造還有照顧幼蟻，

the royals fully commit themselves to reproduction.

皇家成員則完全致力於生產。

The kings provide sperm on an as-needed basis,

蟻王根據需求提供精子，

and the queens undergo radical transformations.

而蟻后則經歷徹底的轉變。

Their abdomens develop efficient egg-laying machinery

牠們的腹部發展出一個高效的孵卵系統，

and extend dramatically.

並明顯地延長開來。

Each queen may produce hundreds of eggs a day.

每個蟻后每天能生產約數百個卵。

Meanwhile, a worker entourage retrieves and neatly stacks them into piles.

與此同時，隨從將卵取走 並把它們整齊地堆在一起。

The colony grows quickly.

白蟻群成長得十分快速。

And once its population is big enough,

一旦人口足夠多，

workers construct a system of tunnels stretching over 100 meters across terrain,

工蟻會建造一個長度超過一百公尺的 跨地形隧道系統。

along fallen logs, and up into tree crowns.

沿著倒下的木頭， 上到樹冠。

These tunnels shelter the termites as they travel to and from food sites

當牠們往返於食物據點時，

around the clock.

這些隧道能全天候給予白蟻們庇護。

And eventually, they build a distinctive central nest.

最後，牠們會建造一個獨特的中央巢穴

Using partially digested plant material, soil, and poop,

藉由未完全消化掉的植物材料、 土壤和糞便，

they construct a massive egg-shaped structure,

牠們建造出一個巨大的蛋形結構物，

complete with numerous passages, chambers, and ventilation holes.

裡面有著許多的通道、房間和通風口。

Deep within, they establish a royal cell that's fortified with extra thick walls.

在深處，牠們建立一個 用超厚牆壁加固的皇家巢室。

It’s not long before this architectural marvel attracts an admirer: an anteater.

不用多久，這驚人的建築物 便吸引到一位愛慕者：食蟻獸。

She swipes at the nest and pokes her long tongue in.

牠揮向巢穴並伸進長長的舌頭。

Those trapped in the tongue’s spines and sticky saliva

那些被困在舌頭上的刺和黏稠唾液的白蟻，

are whisked off to their deaths.

被死亡帶走。

But the termite soldiers launch a counterattack.

然而白蟻兵發起了反攻。

They’re tiny and blind but their heads function like squirt guns.

牠們又小又看不見， 但是牠們的頭有如水槍般。

They secure the anteater’s position using chemical signals,

牠們使用化學信號來確認食蟻獸的位置，

clench their powerful muscles and shoot a sticky spray from their heads.

收緊牠們強壯的肌肉 並從頭上噴出黏性液體。

After a minute, the anteater stops feeding,

一分鐘後，食蟻獸停止進食，

scratches the goo away, and lopes off.

刮掉黏性液體，然後離開。

The nest sustained some damage, but the royals remain undisturbed,

巢穴受到了一些毀壞， 但皇室們並未受到干擾，

pumping out eggs into their reinforced fortress.

牠們繼續生產卵到加固堡壘。

As the colony matures, some of the young develop into reproductives.

當群落成熟時，有些年輕白蟻 會發育出生殖器官。

Most fly off to establish new colonies— one lands on a fallen tree,

大部分會離開去建立新的白蟻群， 一隻降落在一棵倒下的樹，

another scrambles into a crack in a house,

一隻飛進房子的裂縫裡，

and another climbs into a shipping crate.

而另一隻則爬進一個貨箱裡。

But some will simply saunter to sites nearby

但有些會直接飛到附近，

and become the monarchs of the colony’s satellite nests.

並成為附屬巢穴的君王。

With one of the longest insect lifespans,

作為最長壽的昆蟲之一，

a termite queen’s reign can last more than 20 years.

一隻蟻后能統治超過20年。

The original queens and kings eventually die, but by the time they go,

最初的蟻后和國王最終會死去， 但隨著時間過去，

several satellite nests are already thriving.

數個附屬巢穴已經蓬勃發展。

Their reproductive offspring inherit the throne,

牠們的後代繼承了王冠，

meaning that their colony may persist for decades to come.

意味著牠們的群落 未來能存留好幾十年。