《微观深望》
Our story begins with a seed, an ant,
我们的故事要从一粒种子 一只蚂蚁
and a leaf. Or does it?
和一片树叶开始 不是吗？
Each one of these is a phase in the life of the same creature.
它们都是同一种生物生命中的一个阶段
The Australian walking stick.
即澳洲竹节虫
Deep in the forests of eastern Australia, a seed drops from the canopy above.
澳洲东部的森林深处 一粒种子从树上落下
Foraging ants carry it down to their underground burrow.
觅食的蚂蚁们把它搬到地下的蚁穴里
They snack on the nutritious cap, leaving the rest intact.
它们吃掉种子富含营养的外壳 剩余部分完好地留下
But this ”seed” is a knock-off.
但这个“种子”是个冒牌货
It’s actually an Australian walking stick insect’s egg.
它实际上是一只澳洲竹节虫的卵
Here it is next to a real seed the ants also brought into the nest.
它挨着一粒蚂蚁们搬回来的真正的种子
The delicious part of this real seed is called the ”elaiosome”,
真正的种子好吃的部分叫做“脂质体”
and the same part on the egg is called the ”capitulum”.
而虫卵上同样的部位叫做“骨端”
It’s an evolutionary strategy to get that egg underground.
使虫卵进入地下是一种进化策略
Why? Ant nests are just the right humidity for the developing egg,
为什么呢？因为蚁穴的湿度正适合虫卵发育
and are well-protected from parasites and predators.
而且能完好地保护虫卵不受寄生虫和捕食者侵害
Several months later, the egg hatches underground,
几个月后 虫卵在地下孵化出来
and a stick insect nymph emerges from the nest.
然后一只竹节虫宝宝从蚁穴中出现
It runs, looking for safety in the foliage above.
它跑着 在上面寻找安全的树叶
It has taken on a new disguise: as a red-headed spider ant.
它已经披上新的伪装：假扮成红头蜘蛛蚁
红头蜘蛛蚁 赤头细臭蚁
Not only does it look a lot like the ant, it also moves like one.
它不仅看起来很像这种蚂蚁 动起来也像
And even strikes a pose like the ant, curling its abdomen.
甚至摆的姿势也像蜘蛛蚁一样蜷曲着腹部
Looking and acting like an ant
模仿蚂蚁的外形和动作
may save this nymph’s life.
能使这只幼虫活下来
Predators tend to steer clear of ants.
捕食者往往不吃蚂蚁
Ants swarm, sometimes they bite and sting
蚂蚁们聚集成群 偶尔还会叮咬捕食者
and most worker ants aren’t all that nutritious.
而且大多数工蚁都没什么营养
On top of that, red-headed spider ants
除此之外 红头蜘蛛蚁
taste like rotten coconut or bad cheese.
吃起来像腐烂的椰子 或者坏掉的奶酪
These birds take a hard pass.
这些鸟很难找到它们
Upon closer inspection, the disguise doesn’t really hold up.
如果仔细检查 伪装是站不住脚的
But hey, it gets the job done.
但你瞧 它干的不错
And it doesn’t need to last long.
而且它的伪装不需维持太久
The red on the Australian walking stick’s head fades in just a few days.
澳洲竹节虫头上的红色过几天就褪去了
So the nymph races upwards, into the trees.
所以这只幼虫快速向上跑着 跑进了树林里
After about a month, the insect begins to change yet again.
大约一个月后 竹节虫再次开始变装
It will molt six times as it perfects its final costume
它需要蜕六次皮才能完成最后的伪装
as it grows into an adult.
那时它就长大成年了
That frenetic ant energy gives way to a gentle swaying
那种蚂蚁般疯狂的活力被温柔的摇摆取代
like a leaf in the breeze.
像一片在微风中的叶子
Nothing to see here, predators.
啥也没看到吧 捕食者
The insects graze all day, mostly on eucalyptus leaves,
这种昆虫整天都在进食 主要吃桉树叶
plumping up and growing as long as your palm.
它们吃得胖乎乎的 逐渐长得跟手掌一样长
Adults vary in color.
成虫们颜色各异
Some even take on the green ruffled shape of a lichen.
有的甚至长得像绿色多褶的青苔
You might think it’d be hard to find each other with all this camouflage,
你可能会认为这种伪装让它们很难找到彼此
but they communicate with pheromones, so no problem.
但它们通过外激素交流 所以这都不成问题
Sometime after mating, the female lays her eggs,
交配过后 雌性产卵
and the cycle begins again.
然后又开始新一轮的生命周期
The fake seed and pretend ant phases
伪装种子和蚂蚁的阶段
are more than just protection from parasites and predators.
不只是保护幼虫不被寄生虫和捕食者侵害
Since adult Australian walking stick insects don’t actually walk much,
由于成年后的澳洲竹节虫其实并不过多走动
they rely on seed-collecting ants to disperse their eggs throughout the forest.
它们依靠收集种子的蚂蚁在树林里散布虫卵
Then it’s up to their zippy, ant-impersonating offspring
然后靠它们活泼的 伪装成蚂蚁的幼虫
to help them spread out even further.
帮它们的族群扩展到更远的地方
The Australian walking stick insect has evolved so many looks,
澳洲竹节虫已经变化出这么多外形
it almost seems like it’s having an identity crisis.
它几乎像是在经历一场身份危机
But just because you can shapeshift from one form to another and another
但能从一种形态变成另一种 然后再变成另一种
doesn’t mean you don’t know exactly what you are.
并不意味着不知道自己到底是什么
Hey! Who loves ants??
看啊！谁喜欢蚂蚁?
Fungus-farming, double-crossing, baby-stealing ants!
会种真菌的 双杂交的 偷宝宝的蚂蚁！
Here’s a playlist of our ”most excel-ant” episodes for you.
这里为你展示的是我们“最棒的蚂蚁”系列剧集的列表
Also, wanna help us shape the future of Deep Look,
另外 想帮我们策划《微观深望》的新节目
and even vote on new PBS shows?
甚至投票选择PBS的新节目吗？
Great! Just take the annual PBS Digital Studios Survey.
太好了！只要参与PBS一年一度的数据调查即可
Link is in the description.
链接在视频简介里