Name: 為什麼動物越深越可怕？ (Why Animals Get Creepier the Deeper You Go)
Uploaded: 2024-09-10T06:02:21.000Z
Duration: 16 min 38 s

Not all of the darkest, strangest corners of the universe are in some distant galaxy millions of light-years away.

宇宙中最黑暗、最奇特的角落並非都在數百萬光年之外的遙遠星系中。

In fact, the most mysterious of these dark places is right here on Earth.

事實上，最神祕的黑暗之地就在地球上。

A place with no sunlight, crushing pressure, and near-freezing temperatures is not the desolate wasteland that one might expect it to be.

一個沒有陽光、高壓和近乎冰點的地方，並不是人們想象中的荒涼廢墟。

It is instead populated with a huge variety of life.

Life that takes shape in ways that our terrestrial minds can barely comprehend.

生命以我們地球人難以理解的方式成形。

Some creatures of the deep have enormous, piercing eyes.

有些深海生物的眼睛巨大而刺眼。

And others still have eyes inside their transparent, domed heads.

還有的透明圓頂腦袋裡長著眼睛。

Others glow for defense or glow for predation.

還有一些發光是為了防禦或捕食。

And at these depths, where photosynthesis cannot occur, the food chain becomes a little unpredictable.

在這些深度，光合作用無法進行，食物鏈變得有些難以預測。

Some creatures typically classified as filter feeders have even evolved to become unlikely, terrifying carnivores.

一些通常被歸類為濾食動物的生物甚至進化成了不可能的、可怕的食肉動物。

Others become such effective predators that their mouths are bigger than the rest of their entire body or have teeth that pierce the darkness in every direction.

還有一些捕食者非常有效，它們的嘴巴比整個身體的其他部分還要大，或者它們的牙齒能從各個方向刺穿黑暗。

From the ethereal to the spooky, the dark sea holds a world of adaptations that jars the imagination.

從空靈到詭異，黑暗的海洋蘊藏著一個令人浮想聯翩的改編世界。

And the deeper you go, the creepier it seems to get.

而且越往深處走，似乎越令人毛骨悚然。

What is it exactly about the deep, dark sea that creates some of the wildest creatures ever discovered?

深不見底的大海究竟是什麼造就了一些迄今為止發現的最狂野的生物？

And is there a reason we can't help but find them to be bone-chillingly creepy?

我們會不由自主地覺得它們令人毛骨悚然，這其中有什麼原因嗎？

The uppermost layer of the deep sea is the mesopelagic, aka the twilight zone, and it extends from 200 meters to 1,000 meters.

深海的最上層是中深海層，又名暮光區，從 200 米延伸到 1000 米。

A little bit of light still penetrates at these depths, but not much.

在這些深度，仍有一點光線可以穿透，但不多。

The very first color to disappear is red, because it has the longest wavelength and the least energy of the visible spectrum.

最先消失的顏色是紅色，因為它在可見光譜中波長最長，能量最小。

And a lot of creatures that spend time in the twilight zone use this to their advantage, evolving to be shades of red that render them practically invisible at these depths.

很多在暮光區待過的生物都利用了這一點，進化成紅色，在這種深度下幾乎看不到它們。

Catching a glimpse of it in the lights of a submersible, you might understand why it got such a ghastly name.

在潛水器的燈光下瞥一眼，你可能就會明白它為什麼會有這樣一個可怕的名字。

On top of its red skin, it has enormous eyes that seem to glow, and spine-like protrusions from its tentacles all give it a far more fearsome look than the cephalopods of shallower waters.

除了紅色的皮膚外，它還有一雙彷彿會發光的大眼睛，觸手上的刺狀突起都讓它看起來比淺水區的頭足類動物更加可怕。

But just as its red color seems eerie to us, but has a vital evolutionary purpose, so too do its other sinister-looking features.

不過，就像它的紅色在我們看來陰森恐怖，但卻有著重要的進化目的一樣，它的其他特徵看起來也很陰險。

Despite its spooky name, vampire squid are not actually bloodthirsty hunters.

儘管吸血烏賊的名字令人毛骨悚然，但它實際上並不是嗜血的獵手。

Unlike almost all other cephalopods, this creature is a detrivore.

與幾乎所有其他頭足類動物不同，這種生物是一種脫殼類動物。

It gets almost all of its calories from marine snow.

它的熱量幾乎全部來自海洋雪。

Marine snow is particulate matter that trickles down from higher up in the ocean and is made of decaying crustaceans, zooplankton, larvacean houses, diatoms, and fecal matter.

海雪是從海洋高處涓涓流下的微粒物質，由腐爛的甲殼類動物、浮游動物、幼蟲房舍、硅藻和糞便組成。

The vampire squid has four arm pairs with finger-like tendrils called ciri, plus two long retractable filaments.

吸血烏賊有四對手臂，手臂上有被稱為卷鬚的指狀卷鬚，另外還有兩條可伸縮的長絲。

It sits practically motionless around depths of 600 to 900 meters, slowly collecting marine snow on its mucus-laden filaments and slurping it down.

它在 600 到 900 米深的海底幾乎一動不動，慢慢地用粘液絲收集海雪，然後啜飲下去。

Scientists were surprised to discover that marine snow has a pretty high nutritional value, but the vampire squid still doesn't have a whole lot of energy to expend.

科學家們驚訝地發現，海雪的營養價值相當高，但吸血烏賊仍然沒有太多的能量消耗。

They get by thanks to having a suppressed metabolism much, much lower than any other cephalopod of a comparable size.

它們的新陳代謝受到抑制，比其他同等大小的頭足類動物低得多。

But as you descend deeper, the cephalopods become even more terrifying.

但隨著你越下越深，頭足類動物就會變得更加可怕。

The genus Magnapina, or the bigfin squid, are thought to be the deepest-occurring squid genus, with sightings as deep as 6,212 meters.

據認為，大鰭魷魚屬（Magnapina）是出現在最深海域的魷魚屬，曾在 6212 米深處發現過這種魷魚。

This makes the bigfin squid the only known squid to occupy the hadal zone, the deepest region of the ocean.

這使得大鰭魷魚成為目前已知的唯一一種佔據海洋最深區域--哈達爾區的魷魚。

Their arms and tentacles can be up to 8 meters long and are usually held at disconcerting right angles, the squid giving itself the appearance of having elbows.

它們的手臂和觸手可長達 8 米，通常呈令人不安的直角，烏賊看起來就像有肘一樣。

And its translucent, shimmering mantle makes the creature seem completely otherworldly.

它那半透明、閃閃發光的鱗甲讓這個生物看起來完全恍如隔世。

Little is known about the feeding behavior of these squids.

人們對這些魷魚的覓食行為知之甚少。

Scientists have speculated that they might use their long arms by dragging them along the seafloor and grabbing whatever edible organisms that they can.

科學家推測，它們可能利用長臂在海底拖動，抓取任何可食用的生物。

Alternatively, the arms might passively grab food such as zooplankton or bits of marine snow.

另外，手臂也可能被動地抓取浮游動物或海洋雪屑等食物。

But in an environment without any plant life to form the base of the food chain, being a detrivore is far from the only strategy.

但是，在一個沒有任何植物構成食物鏈基礎的環境中，成為 "螻蟻 "並不是唯一的策略。

In fact, a number of organisms that are herbivores or filter feeders in shallower parts of the ocean become carnivores in the deep sea.

事實上，許多生物在海洋較淺的地方是食草動物或濾食動物，到了深海就變成了食肉動物。

That's the case with the predatory tunicate.

It belongs to the ascidian family who are also known as sea squirts, a class of colorful stationary filter feeders that generally live in shallow water.

它屬於海鞘科，也被稱為海鞘，是一類色彩斑斕的固定濾食動物，通常生活在淺水中。

But the predatory tunicate lives much deeper, anywhere from 600 to 1,100 meters and perhaps even deeper.

但這種掠食性鱗櫛水母生活在更深的地方，從 600 米到 1100 米不等，甚至可能更深。

These tunicates are perhaps less terrifying than the bigfin squid, but just as strange.

這些鱗櫛水母也許沒有大鰭烏賊那麼可怕，但也同樣奇特。

They look almost like an eyeless sock puppet with its mouth open.

它們看起來就像張著嘴的沒有眼睛的襪子木偶。

But this odd design has an important purpose, to help them catch prey.

但這種奇特的設計有一個重要目的，那就是幫助它們捕捉獵物。

As small invertebrates and crustaceans swim by, they sometimes drift into the predatory tunicate's open mouth.

當小型無脊椎動物和甲殼類動物遊過時，它們有時會漂到捕食性櫛水母張開的嘴裡。

That mouth quickly snaps shut and the prey is trapped, facing a slow death by digestion.

它的嘴很快就會閉上，獵物就會被困住，慢慢地被消化而死。

This is also the case with a whole family of organisms known as carnivorous sponges.

被稱為肉食性海綿的整個生物家族也是如此。

They generally start appearing at 200 meters, become fairly common at 400 to 500 meters, and remain dominant all the way down to the hadal zone, below 6,000 meters.

它們一般在 200 米處開始出現，在 400 至 500 米處變得相當常見，並在 6000 米以下的哈達爾區一直占主導地位。

Shallow water sponge species are filter feeders like sea squirts, living on bacteria and phytoplankton.

淺水海綿物種與海鞘一樣是濾食性動物，以細菌和浮游植物為生。

They're even harvested as shower loofahs, their porous bodies being a good mechanism to hold and form soap bubbles.

它們甚至還被用作淋浴絲瓜，其多孔的身體是容納和形成肥皂泡的良好機制。

But you most definitely do not want to wash yourself with a carnivorous sponge.

但是，你絕對不想用食肉海綿來清洗自己。

And that's because they're covered in tiny spears and hooks, used to passively trap small swimming creatures.

這是因為它們身上佈滿了細小的矛和鉤，用來被動地捕捉小型游泳生物。

Whether it's the harp sponge with its long rows of spines, or the ping pong tree sponge with its bulbous spheres, these stationary organisms are highly effective predators.

無論是長滿長排刺的豎琴海綿，還是球狀的乒乓球海綿，這些固定生物都是非常有效的捕食者。

They just wait for the ocean currents to sweep creatures into their spines, and then they feast.

它們只等著洋流把生物捲進刺裡，然後大快朵頤。

Despite this abundance of passive carnivores, there are plenty of hunters in the deep sea as well.

儘管有大量的被動食肉動物，深海中也有很多獵手。

One such startling specimen is the gulper eel, found at depths over 1,800 meters in the midnight zone.

其中一個令人驚歎的標本是在午夜區 1800 多米深處發現的大口鰻。

Its mouth is larger than the rest of its entire body, and is loosely hinged so that it can swallow animals much larger than itself.

它的嘴比整個身體的其他部分都大，而且有鬆弛的鉸鏈，是以可以吞下比自己大得多的動物。

Its proportions may be off-putting, but in an environment with limited food, being able to gorge on a massive meal when you have the chance is crucial.

它的比例可能會令人不快，但在食物有限的環境中，有機會大快朵頤是至關重要的。

Its massive mouth can also be used to make itself look intimidating by ballooning up to a hilarious degree.

它的大嘴也可以通過膨脹到令人捧腹的程度來讓自己看起來很嚇人。

But most infamous among the deep sea hunters might be the anglerfish, most of which live below 300 meters.

不過，深海獵手中最臭名昭著的可能要數鮟鱇魚了，它們大多生活在 300 米以下。

But some can be found down to the abyssopelagic zone, all the way at 6,000 meters.

不過，在深海區，甚至在 6000 米深處也能找到一些。

There are hundreds of species that fall under the catch-all term of anglerfish, which comes from the way they generally hunt, with a lure attached to their heads to attract prey.

有數百種魚類被統稱為鮟鱇魚。"鮟鱇魚 "一詞來源於它們通常的捕食方式，即在頭部安裝誘餌以吸引獵物。

This is comprised of an elysium, the modified dorsal spine that acts as a fishing rod, and an eska, the bulbous bioluminescent fishing lure which gets its glow from symbiotic bacteria.

這包括一個 "lysium "和一個 "eska"。"lysium "是經過改良的背脊，可以充當魚竿，而 "eska "則是球狀的生物發光釣餌，它的光芒來自共生細菌。

And by using these lures, anglerfish attract a variety of prey species to their gaping mouths, and they've been known to consume absurd quantities of food all at once.

通過使用這些誘餌，鮟鱇魚吸引了各種獵物到它們張開的大嘴前，據說它們會一次性吃掉大量的食物。

Researchers once captured a black sea devil that weighed 8.8 grams, but its stomach held 12.3 grams worth of eels.

研究人員曾經捕獲過一隻黑海魔鬼，它的體重只有 8.8 克，但胃裡卻裝著價值 12.3 克的鰻魚。

In other words, its stomach alone managed to hold one and a half times its body weight in food.

換句話說，僅它的胃就能容納其體重 1.5 倍的食物。

To be able to consume whatever they come across, anglerfish have highly flexible jaws and generally have teeth that point inward, meaning that whenever they trap their prey, there's little chance of the creature escaping.

為了能夠吃掉它們遇到的任何東西，鮟鱇魚的下頜非常靈活，而且牙齒通常向內，這意味著每當它們捕獲獵物時，幾乎沒有機會逃脫。

And just like the gulper eel, their strategy of gorging themselves whenever they can get a meal is a huge advantage in an environment where food is scarce.

就像大口鰻一樣，在食物稀缺的環境中，只要能吃到食物，它們就會大快朵頤，這是它們的一大優勢。

While some creatures use bioluminescence for predation, others use it to disguise themselves, a strategy called counter-illumination.

有些生物利用生物發光來捕食，有些則利用生物發光來偽裝自己，這種策略被稱為反發光。

The lights on their bellies helps obscure their outline against the very faint patches of light coming from above.

它們肚皮上的燈光有助於遮住它們的輪廓，使它們無法看到從上方射來的非常微弱的光斑。

But there are some predators who have found ways to see their prey camouflaging in this way.

不過，有些捕食者已經找到了看到獵物這樣偽裝的方法。

And perhaps the most incredible of these is Macropinna microstoma, or the Pacific barreleye fish, arguably the craziest looking fish in the entire ocean.

其中最令人難以置信的也許是太平洋巴氏魚（Macropinna microstoma），它可以說是整個海洋中長相最瘋狂的魚類。

These fish have enormous tubular eyes that are directed upward, allowing them to see prey swimming overhead.

這些魚有巨大的管狀眼睛，眼睛朝上，可以看到頭頂上游動的獵物。

And these eyes are encased inside their head, closed in by a transparent shield.

這些眼睛被包裹在腦袋裡，由透明的防護罩封閉著。

Their vision is so good that they can not only pick out the silhouettes of their prey, even if it's using bioluminescence, but also gauge the depth they're swimming at and therefore their distance from them.

它們的視力非常好，不僅能分辨出獵物的輪廓（即使是使用生物發光的獵物），還能判斷出獵物遊動的深度，從而確定與獵物的距離。

But initially, scientists were confused about how it could effectively hunt when its tiny mouth points in a different direction than its eyes.

但最初，科學家們對它的小嘴與眼睛指向不同方向時如何有效捕食感到困惑。

They wouldn't be able to keep their eyes on the prey while moving their mouth to eat it.

在移動嘴巴吃獵物時，它們的眼睛不可能一直盯著獵物。

But the scientists were shocked to discover that the eyes can roll forward and see through the front of their heads as well as the top, for a maximum arc of 75 degrees.

但科學家們震驚地發現，眼睛可以向前滾動，透過頭頂看到前方，最大弧度可達 75 度。

For comparison, humans can only move our eyes about 45 degrees at most.

相比之下，人類的眼睛最多隻能移動 45 度左右。

For us to do what barreleye fish do, we would essentially be able to look directly up at our brains.

如果我們要像巴氏魚那樣做，我們基本上就能直接仰視自己的大腦。

This strange adaptation allows barreleye fish to keep their prey in view at all times, even as it snaps its body vertically to snatch the food swimming above it.

這種奇特的適應能力讓巴氏魚始終保持在獵物的視線範圍內，甚至當它垂直扭動身體搶奪游到它上方的食物時也是如此。

But barreleye fish live in the twilight zone, where there's still a tiny bit of light available for them to make use of.

但是，巴氏魚生活在黃昏地帶，那裡還有微弱的光線可供它們利用。

What about fish that are even deeper, down in the bathypelagic or even abyssopelagic, all the way down to 6,000 meters?

那麼，在更深的水層，甚至深海水層，一直到 6000 米深處的魚類呢？

With no sunlight penetrating these depths and with little need to detect bioluminescence, some deep-sea creatures forgo vision altogether, like the tripod fish.

由於深海中沒有陽光照射，也不需要探測生物發光，一些深海生物完全放棄了視覺，比如三腳架魚。

Instead of it relying on sight, they balance on the seafloor like little tripods, waiting for other creatures to swim by.

它們不依靠視覺，而是像小三腳架一樣在海底保持平衡，等待其他生物遊過。

Their elongated pelvic fins stretch down to the ground, holding them motionless and upright, while they use their pectoral fins like hands reaching forward.

它們拉長的盆鰭向下伸展到地面，使它們一動不動地直立著，而它們的胸鰭則像手一樣向前伸展。

These fins are filled with enlarged spinal nerves, which helps them sense the water currents and whatever objects might float their way, from small crustaceans to fish.

這些鰭上佈滿了增大的脊神經，這有助於它們感知水流和任何可能漂浮的物體，從小型甲殼動物到魚類。

In this way, they're essentially able to sit tight and wait for food to come to them, even though they can't see it.

這樣，儘管它們看不到食物，但基本上都能坐等食物上門。

And while these fish are certainly deep, they are by no means the deepest ones.

雖然這些魚確實很深，但它們絕不是最深的魚。

Recently, scientists exploring a marine trench near Japan were stunned to find a fish living 8,336 meters below the surface, the deepest fish anyone has ever found and is likely to ever find.

最近，科學家們在探索日本附近的一條海溝時，驚奇地發現了一種生活在海面以下 8336 米深處的魚類，這是迄今為止人們發現的最深的魚類，也很有可能是迄今為止人們發現的最深的魚類。

What they found is a type of hadal snailfish, a translucent, scaleless, tadpole-shaped creature.

他們發現的是一種哈達爾螺魚，一種半透明、無鱗、蝌蚪狀的生物。

Little is known about this ghostly, ethereal fish that thrives in a place named after Hades itself.

人們對這種在以哈迪斯命名的地方繁衍生息的幽靈般、虛無縹緲的魚類知之甚少。

這種最深的魚是最令人毛骨悚然的嗎？

Maybe not, though it's certainly not winning any beauty contests.

也許不是，但它肯定不會贏得任何選美比賽。

But from the beginning of the ocean depths, just as sunlight disappears, down to the crushing depths of the deepest trenches, there's no denying that the creatures who live here seem like characters out of the darkest corners of our imagination.

但不可否認的是，從陽光剛剛消失的海洋深處開始，一直到最深的海溝深處，生活在這裡的生物就像是我們想象中最黑暗角落裡的人物。