【龙腾网】蚂蚁真腐

正文翻译

A colony of leafcutter ants can run into the millions.

一窝切叶蚂蚁（数目之巨）可多达数百万

Within the territory of a leafcutter colony,as much as a fifth of all new plant growth will be harvested by the ants.

（顾名思意）在切叶蚁的地盘内，新长出来的植物叶子差不多有五分之一会被切蚁蚁搬回家。

Slicing through leaves with specialized mandibles,they produce high frequency vibrations,which stiffens the leaf, making it easier to cut.

软嫩的叶子于切叶蚁专门（进化而来）的颚下承切，颚发出高频振动让叶子变硬，切起来更顺嘴。

Working together, they can strip a tree bare in 24 hours.

集体出动的切叶蚁群24小时内就能剥削光一棵树。

The trick is holding on to your leaf as you fall.

诀窃在于从树上落下时紧（巴巴地）抓住叶片。

Easier said than done.

说起来容易做起来难。

But best not to return to the nest empty-handed.

但最好不要空嘴归巢。

The ants follow scent trails back to the nest,dodging unexpected obstacles.

蚂蚁群闻着气味路径归到蚁巢，躲避开出乎意料的障碍生物。

But to increase efficiency,the ants keep their paths clear of debris.

不过为了提高效率，蚂蚁群还是会清理阴挡道路的杂物碎片以保畅通。

A leafcutter nest can be up to eight meters deep and have thousands of interconnected chambers.

切叶蚁的巢可深达8米，数千个蚁室彼此互联

The workers carry the freshly harvested leaves to special rooms for processing.

工蚁群钳住新近收割的叶片，搬送至专门的蚁室加工。

The leaves are not food,but used to create gardens of fungus,which they feed to their larvae.

叶不是用来吃的，是用来建造真菌花园，喂养幼蚁的。

The success of the colony depends on keeping their gardens disease-free.

蚁群的繁荣依赖于长保花园无病灾

Scientists now believe these bacteria could provide new solutions to human diseases.

科技工作者一致认为那些与蚂蚁合作的细菌可以为人类疾病的治疗提供新的解决方案。

Here, ants don't have it all their own way.

青山绿水，蚂蚁休能为所欲为。

This one is behaving oddly.

这只马蚁的行为古怪。

It seems compelled to climb upwards,and is already several meters above the forest floor.

它向上爬行似乎是被逼迫的，蚂蚁距离森林地面好几米高了。

Something has taken control of its movements,like a puppeteer pulling at the strings of a marionette.

某种势力似乎控制了马蚁的行动，就好比木偶把式手里那绷着丝线的木偶

There's just one final act, for which the ant has no choice.

蚂蚁身不由自己，马蚁别无选择。

It must find a place to bite down,tethering it to the vegetation.

它不得不找个枝节（用那切叶的颚）钳咬住 ，束身于草木之上。

With the ant in its death grip,a parasitic fungus, Cordyceps,erupts from its body.

随着蚂蚁的死亡，一种寄生真菌，虫草菌，从它的身体里爆发出来。

Finally, the fruiting body of the fungus bursts from its head.

终于，草真菌的子实体从它的头部裂发出来。

From this bulbous container,spores will be cast into the air currents,where they will claim more ant victims.

而子实体上的这个球状容器里的孢子，随气流飘散，向蚂蚁们索要真腐循环。

评论翻译

There are thought to be over a thousand different kinds of them here...

据说,还有一千多种蛙类居住于此...