A year in the life of one of Earth's weirdest animals - Gilad Bino

譯者: Chung Hin Tam 審譯者: Amanda Zhu

Waddling along the parched Australian earth,

在澳洲乾涸的大地上，

this female platypus is searching for fresh water.

這隻蹣跚而行的雌鴨嘴獸 正在尋覓水源。

Over the past year, a severe drought turned rivers and streams

過去一年以來，嚴重乾旱 令無數浩浩溪河變成涓涓細流。

to mere trickles.

She barely survived and was unable to reproduce.

她勉強活了下來，但繁殖不了後代。

Could the next year bring a change in luck?

明年她的運氣會不會好點呢？

It's autumn and fat raindrops finally come spilling from the sky.

秋天到了，終於有大雨傾盆而下。

Within days, the platypus finds a river and begins to hunt.

幾天之內，鴨嘴獸找到一條河， 並開始去打獵。

Her webbed feet propel her along

她的蹼足讓她能在水中暢游，

and her waterproof coat traps heat close to her body.

她的防水毛皮便為身體儲熱。

Underwater, she senses her surroundings with her duck-like bill,

在水下，她像鴨子一樣的長嘴 讓她感知周遭環境，

which is fitted with about 40,000 electroreceptors.

因為上面長了約四萬個電感受器。

This allows her to detect the minuscule electrical signals

而這些電感受器讓她能夠探測到 來自透明蝦神經和肌肉的微弱電信號。

coming from a glass shrimp’s nerves and muscles.

She makes it a quick meal.

她很快地解決了一餐。

And once she clambers back on land to construct a burrow,

而當她爬回陸地上， 要去挖她棲身的洞穴時，

she waddles in a lizard-like posture,

她就會像蜥蜴般搖搖擺擺地前進，

her limbs moving horizontally to her spine.

四肢和脊椎平行移動。

The platypus has many quirks.

鴨嘴獸身上有很多奇怪的地方。

As a monotreme, she's part of the most ancient lineage of mammals alive today.

鴨嘴獸是單孔目動物， 同時也是現存最古老的哺乳動物。

Consequently, she has a curious mix of mammalian, avian, and reptilian features,

因此她身上有一堆 哺乳動物、鳥類和爬行動物的特徵。

which is reflected in her genome.

這些特徵也深藏在她的基因裡；

For instance, mammals usually have one pair of chromosomes that determine sex.

例如，哺乳動物通常 有一對染色體決定性別，

But the platypus has five, which more closely resemble a bird’s.

但是鴨嘴獸有五對，更像鳥類。

Let's hope she gets to put them to use.

希望這對她有用。

She regains her strength and, as winter turns to spring,

吃完大餐恢復體力，然後冬去春來，

it’s time to mate.

交配的時候到了。

However, she can’t raise her young here.

不過呢，她不能在這裡撫養她的孩子。

The surrounding land has begun to be deforested,

現在四處的樹林越來越少了，

causing the riverbank to erode.

導致河岸被沖刷到河水裡。

Instead, she journeys upstream

所以她逆流而上，

and settles in a clear, deep pool sheltered by a river red gum tree.

定居在有赤桉樹遮蔽的清澈深水池中。

Suddenly, a rustle flushes birds from the undergrowth and a fox appears.

突然之間，灌木叢中沙沙作響， 鳥兒都被嚇飛了。

有一隻狐狸出現了。

These predators have threatened platypuses

1855 年，白人殖民者 把他們帶到澳洲來，

ever since they were introduced to Australia by white settlers in 1855.

從此這群掠食者便一直威脅著鴨嘴獸。

The fox doesn’t see her this time, but the platypus will need to stay alert.

這次狐狸看不見她， 但鴨嘴獸也該保持警惕了。

Two males also occupy this area and, soon enough,

同時，附近有兩隻雄性鴨嘴獸 盤據在這個地方，

為了得到她的愛， 他們很快開始競爭。

they begin competing for her affections.

Each has spurs on its hind legs containing a potent snake-like venom.

他們後腿上長著的刺， 含有一種能媲美蛇毒的劇毒。

One male fights the other off and courts the female over several weeks,

最終取勝一方會在 接下來的幾週向雌性示愛，

swimming alongside her, and occasionally biting her tail.

其間他會和她一起游泳， 還偶爾咬她的尾巴。

Eventually, she reciprocates,

她終於回應愛意了。

and they swim around in circles before doing the deed.

在行魚水之歡前， 他們會繞圈圈游泳。

The male platypus has a penis with eccentric features

雄性鴨嘴獸的陰莖看起來很特別，

like two heads and spines that aid and fertilization.

它有兩個頭，還長有針刺， 好讓雌性更易受孕。

Over the following week, the female constructs an extensive burrow

在接下來的一週裡， 雌性會挖出四通八達的地道，

furnished with a cozy nest.

裡面還有個舒適的小巢。

She plugs up the tunnels leading in,

她會堵住通往小巢的隧道，

making them appear as dead ends to potential predators.

掠食者即使找到通道， 也只會看見死胡同。

Then, much like a reptile or bird, she lays eggs from her cloaca,

然後她會像爬蟲類或鳥類一樣， 從泄殖孔下蛋。

a single opening that's used for both reproduction and excretion.

泄殖孔是用來繁殖和排泄的開口。

She incubates her eggs, and as the river red gum tree blooms,

她開始孵蛋了， 然後隨著河邊的赤桉花開，

her offspring hatch.

她的孩子也就孵化了。

Like other mammals, she feeds them milk.

像其他哺乳動物一樣，她會餵奶；

But unlike other mammals, she has no nipples.

和其他哺乳動物不同的是， 她沒有乳頭。

Instead, her milk oozes from mammary glands onto her belly,

乳腺分泌的乳汁會流到肚子上，

where her babies slurp it up.

然後她的孩子就可以在那裡吃奶。

This pooled milk invites bacteria,

雖然細菌會覬覦這灘乳汁，

but the platypus also produces potent antibacterial proteins,

但鴨嘴獸的乳汁裡 含有強力的抗菌蛋白，

ensuring her newborns are safe.

確保新生兒的安全。

She continues nursing them for four months—

接下來她會照顧他們四個月——

hunting, evading the fox, and repairing her burrow all the while.

其間她會去打獵，躲避狐狸， 並修補她的洞穴。

By the time her young are ready to make their debut,

當她的孩子準備好出門時，

the summer is waning.

夏天也快過去了。

One evening, after the female platypus returns from hunting,

有天晚上，鴨嘴獸媽媽 打獵歸來後發現，

she finds that one nestling has already struck off on its own.

有個孩兒已經自己出走了。

A few days later, the other also leaves the borough.

幾天後，又一個孩子離開了巢穴。

Soon, her young are living completely independently.

很快地，她所有孩子 都開始獨立生活。

And eventually they’ll leave this part of the river to make homes of their own.

最終他們會離開這段河流， 開創自己的家園。