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  • This video is brought to you by Nebula, where you can watch the extended interviews from this video and other behind-the-scenes real science content.

    本視頻由星雲為您帶來,您可以觀看本視頻中的擴展訪談和其他幕後真實科學內容。

  • When you observe a praying mantis, its swiveling head and its following eyes give a creepy sense that you are being watched.

    當你觀察螳螂時,它轉動的頭部和緊盯著你的眼睛會給人一種毛骨悚然的感覺,彷彿你正在被監視著。

  • Before making this video, I knew praying mantises were kinda cool and kinda creepy.

    在製作這段視頻之前,我知道螳螂有點酷,也有點嚇人。

  • When I found one while camping in Texas, I made my boyfriend, now husband, help me take pictures of it for like an hour.

    我在得克薩斯露營時發現了一個,我讓我的男朋友,也就是現在的丈夫,幫我拍了大概一個小時的照片。

  • Literally an hour before I was going to export this video, by an amazing coincidence, I found one patrolling my zucchini plants.

    就在我準備輸出這段視頻的前一個小時,一個驚人的巧合讓我發現了一隻正在我的西葫蘆植株上巡邏的小鳥。

  • For being such a small insect, its behavior was rather bold.

    作為一隻小昆蟲,它的行為相當大膽。

  • It climbed on me, hopped on my phone, and stared deep into my soul.

    它爬到我身上,跳到我的手機上,深深地凝視著我的靈魂。

  • I freaking love these bugs.

    我太喜歡這些蟲子了。

  • I love the way that they seem so aware of their surroundings.

    我喜歡它們對周圍環境如此瞭解的樣子。

  • I've always known they had this penetrating gaze and amazing raptorial claws.

    我一直都知道它們有這種穿透力極強的目光和驚人的猛禽爪子。

  • What I didn't know is that they eat birds.

    我不知道的是,它們還吃鳥。

  • And frogs.

    還有青蛙

  • And they seem to do it more than we ever realized.

    他們似乎比我們意識到的做得更多。

  • This little fact only feeds into what is their already creepy reputation.

    這個小事實只會讓他們本來就令人毛骨悚然的名聲更加響亮。

  • If you know anything about praying mantids, you probably know that the females eat the males after mating.

    如果你對螳螂有所瞭解,你可能知道雌螳螂在交配後會吃掉雄螳螂。

  • And because of this and their unsettling gaze, many people straight up hate praying mantids or think that they're evil.

    正因為如此,再加上它們令人不安的目光,很多人直接就討厭螳螂,或者認為它們是邪惡的。

  • Just look at the comments of the video of the praying mantis eating the hummingbird.

    看看螳螂吃蜂鳥視頻的評論就知道了。

  • But even though they do eat birds and they do eat their boyfriends, praying mantids are so much more than creepy little freaks.

    不過,儘管螳螂會吃鳥,也會吃自己的男朋友,但它們可不僅僅是令人毛骨悚然的小怪獸。

  • Their hunting style, while sometimes shocking, is incredibly impressive.

    它們的狩獵風格雖然有時令人震驚,但卻令人難以置信。

  • With no venom and no stinger.

    沒有毒液,也沒有毒刺。

  • How is it possible that this relatively small invertebrate takes down things much bigger than itself?

    這種相對較小的無脊椎動物怎麼可能打倒比自己大得多的東西呢?

  • And on top of this, some praying mantises take their ambush hunting to the next level, operating under an incredible disguise.

    除此之外,一些螳螂還把伏擊狩獵提高到了一個新的水準,它們的偽裝令人難以置信。

  • And unlike many other insect predators who use chemoreception and mechanoreception for hunting, the praying mantis finds its prey visually.

    與其他許多利用化學感知和機械感知捕食的昆蟲捕食者不同,螳螂是通過視覺來發現獵物的。

  • And their eyes are some of the most sophisticated in the insect world.

    它們的眼睛是昆蟲世界中最複雜的。

  • They are the only known insect to see in 3D.

    它們是唯一能看到 3D 效果的已知昆蟲。

  • Their vision is so unique and so powerful that researchers think it could hold the answer to computer vision in certain small robots.

    它們的視覺如此獨特和強大,以至於研究人員認為它可以解決某些小型機器人的計算機視覺問題。

  • And when it comes to eating their boyfriends, it's not just because they're ruthless man-haters.

    說到吃掉自己的男朋友,不僅僅是因為她們是無情的男人殺手。

  • They have a pretty compelling reason for this unusual behavior.

    他們有一個非常令人信服的理由來解釋這種不尋常的行為。

  • Praying mantises are so incredible, researchers put them in a category of their own among insects, comparing them more closely to vertebrates than their insect counterparts.

    螳螂是如此不可思議,研究人員把它們歸為昆蟲中的一類,把它們與脊椎動物相比較,更接近於昆蟲的同類。

  • There is nothing else like them.

    沒有什麼能與它們媲美。

  • How are praying mantises able to kill prey so much larger than they are?

    螳螂為什麼能殺死比自己大得多的獵物?

  • What makes them such accurate assassins?

    是什麼讓他們成為如此精準的刺客?

  • And why do they eat their boyfriends?

    她們為什麼要吃掉自己的男朋友?

  • When you think of a praying mantis, this charismatic green insect probably comes to mind.

    說到螳螂,您可能會想到這種充滿魅力的綠色昆蟲。

  • But there are so many different species of mantis.

    但是,螳螂的種類太多了。

  • Mantises are an order of insects that contain over 2,400 species in about 460 genera in 33 families.

    螳螂是一種昆蟲,共有 33 科 460 屬 2400 多個物種。

  • The closest relatives they have are cockroaches and termites, but even then they aren't that close.

    它們的近親是蟑螂和白蟻,但即便如此,它們之間的關係也不是那麼密切。

  • They diverged from a common ancestor around 300 million years ago.

    它們是在大約 3 億年前從共同祖先那裡分化出來的。

  • With thousands of praying mantis species in the world, the anatomy between them inevitably varies quite a bit.

    世界上有成千上萬種螳螂,它們之間的解剖結構難免會有很大差異。

  • The smallest mantis is the Bulbae pygmaea, which is about one centimeter long when fully grown.

    最小的螳螂是Bulbae pygmaea,完全長成後大約有一釐米長。

  • The heaviest species of praying mantis is the West African megamantis, with the female sometimes weighing over 13 grams.

    最重的螳螂是西非巨螳螂,雌螳螂有時重達 13 克以上。

  • And the longest is the giant stick mantis from northern Africa, measuring over 17 centimeters in length.

    最長的是非洲北部的巨棒螳螂,身長超過 17 釐米。

  • And among all these species of praying mantis are some of the most fascinating examples of crypsis and mimicry in the animal kingdom.

    在所有這些螳螂物種中,有一些是動物王國中最迷人的隱身和模仿例子。

  • The life of a praying mantis begins as it hatches from its egg sac, as it joins hundreds of its siblings and oozes down to the branches below.

    螳螂的生命從卵囊孵化開始,它與數百隻同胞一起,滲到下面的樹枝上。

  • These are orchid mantis nymphs, and from day one, they are already an evolutionary wonder.

    這些是蘭花螳螂若蟲,從第一天起,它們就已經是進化的奇蹟。

  • These small insects mimic a type of assassin bug, a foul-tasting insect with an incredibly painful stab from its proboscis.

    這些小昆蟲模仿一種刺客蟲,這種昆蟲味道惡臭,長鼻會刺得人疼痛難忍。

  • Cloaked in their disguise, these small nymphs will traverse the landscape of leaves and branches, hunting all that they can, snatching sizable prey.

    這些小若蟲披著偽裝,在樹葉和樹枝間穿行,捕食一切可以捕食的東西,攫取體型較大的獵物。

  • They are also trying to evade confrontation with any predator.

    它們還試圖躲避任何捕食者的攻擊。

  • But if they do come across a hungry foe, they have a surprising tactic up their sleeve.

    但如果遇到飢餓的敵人,他們也有出奇制勝的辦法。

  • This kung fu stance makes the nymph look bigger and more threatening, and is often enough to keep predators away.

    這種功夫姿勢讓若蟲看起來更大、更有威脅性,往往足以讓捕食者望而卻步。

  • And if they evade their many predators, they will turn into one of the most dazzling insects known to man, the orchid mantis.

    如果它們躲過了眾多天敵,就會變成人類已知的最耀眼的昆蟲之一--蘭花螳螂。

  • But only if they're one of the lucky ones.

    但前提是他們是幸運兒之一。

  • Orchid mantises are elusive animals that live in tropical forests of Southeast Asia, and the females look remarkably like the petals of orchid flowers.

    蘭花螳螂是一種生活在東南亞熱帶森林中的難以捉摸的動物,雌螳螂的外形非常像蘭花的花瓣。

  • And yes, sometimes they eat their babies.

    是的,有時它們會吃掉自己的孩子。

  • They will even move with a swaying motion, as if being blown in the breeze.

    它們甚至會搖擺移動,就像被微風吹動一樣。

  • Their deceptive appearance helps to conceal themselves from predators, but also to aid in ambush hunting.

    它們具有欺騙性的外表有助於躲避捕食者,也有助於伏擊捕獵。

  • They hide themselves in plain view, their flowery appearance luring in pollinating insects.

    它們把自己藏在顯眼的地方,花朵般的外表吸引著授粉昆蟲。

  • And then, before the pollinator knows what's happening, the mantis snatches it with blinding speed.

    然後,在授粉者還沒反應過來的時候,螳螂就以迅雷不及掩耳之勢把它叼走了。

  • Field experiments show that orchid mantises attract wild pollinators at a rate even higher than real flowers.

    實地實驗表明,蘭花螳螂吸引野生授粉者的比率甚至高於真正的花朵。

  • Because their camouflage is used for hunting, and not just hiding from predators, this mimicry is sometimes called aggressive mimicry.

    由於它們的偽裝是為了狩獵,而不僅僅是為了躲避捕食者,這種模仿有時被稱為攻擊性模仿。

  • And it's so effective that the orchid mantis has to be evolutionarily careful.

    這種方法非常有效,以至於蘭花螳螂在進化過程中不得不小心翼翼。

  • If these mantids become too abundant, over-predation on pollinating insects could hurt the very thing they mimic.

    如果這些螳螂數量過多,對授粉昆蟲的過度捕食可能會傷害它們所模仿的昆蟲。

  • And if the real orchids disappear, then the schtick is up.

    如果真正的蘭花消失了,那就沒戲唱了。

  • Thus, the fact that orchid mantids are so rare and elusive may be a critical aspect of their success.

    是以,蘭螳螂如此稀少和難以捉摸可能是其成功的一個關鍵因素。

  • Their rarity may also ensure that the chances of pollinators encountering multiple orchid mantises are low, thus reducing the likelihood that pollinators will learn to distinguish deceptive orchid mantises from the real flowers.

    它們的稀有性還可能確保傳粉昆蟲遇到多隻蘭花螳螂的機率很低,從而降低傳粉昆蟲學會分辨欺騙性蘭花螳螂和真正花朵的可能性。

  • This incredible mimicry is an example of adaptive resemblance, where the insects have evolved to look like a specific object.

    這種令人難以置信的擬態是適應性相似的一個例子,即昆蟲已經進化得像一個特定的物體。

  • This is different from the more commonplace crypsis, where animals evolve to simply blend in to their background.

    這不同於更常見的隱性進化,在隱性進化中,動物只需與背景融為一體即可。

  • This is common in praying mantids, too.

    這種情況在螳螂身上也很常見。

  • Many species are colored green or brown to blend into the vegetation.

    許多物種被染成綠色或棕色,與植被融為一體。

  • Or there's the bark mantis that looks just like tree bark, or the desert mantis that looks just like sand.

    或者是長得像樹皮的樹皮螳螂,或者是長得像沙子的沙漠螳螂。

  • But if you take a cryptic insect like this and put it on a plain background, it would still look like an insect.

    但是,如果你把這樣一隻隱蔽的昆蟲放在一個普通的背景上,它看起來仍然像一隻昆蟲。

  • But if you take a mantis that has specialized its resemblance and put it on a plain background, that mantis would still look like an orchid.

    但是,如果你把一隻長得很像的螳螂放在一個普通的背景上,這隻螳螂看起來還是會像蘭花。

  • Other mantids in this category look just like green leaves, or others look indistinguishable from a twig.

    這一類中的其他螳螂看起來就像綠葉,或者其他螳螂看起來與樹枝無異。

  • This type of mimicry is so precise that researchers think some mantids evolved directly in parallel with the things they replicate.

    這種模仿是如此精確,以至於研究人員認為有些螳螂是直接與它們所模仿的東西同步進化的。

  • But not all mantids resemble harmless sticks or flowers.

    但並不是所有的螳螂都像無害的樹枝或花朵。

  • Many mantids resemble less than palatable things, or even things that are downright scary for their would-be predators.

    許多螳螂的外形並不討人喜歡,甚至會讓捕食者感到害怕。

  • The orchid mantis nymphs, as we already discussed, mimic the dangerous assassin bug.

    我們已經討論過,蘭花螳螂若蟲會模仿危險的刺客蟲。

  • The ant mantis, one of the smallest mantids, resembles a black ant in its juvenile stage.

    蟻螳螂是最小的螳螂之一,幼年時期像一隻黑螞蟻。

  • Predators like birds and other large insects tend to avoid ants as prey because they can be aggressive, taste unpleasant, bite, or sting.

    鳥類和其他大型昆蟲等捕食者往往會避免將螞蟻作為獵物,因為它們可能具有攻擊性、味道難聞、會咬人或蜇人。

  • But there's one mantis that punches above its weight when it comes to what it mimics.

    不過,有一種螳螂在模仿的東西上卻出類拔萃。

  • This is the iris oratoria, also known as the Mediterranean mantis.

    這是鳶尾花,又名地中海螳螂。

  • At first glance, it looks like a fairly regular-looking mantis.

    乍一看,它就像一隻外形相當普通的螳螂。

  • But when threatened, it lifts its forelegs, stares straight at the threat, and lifts its eyes in a striking eyespot.

    但當受到威脅時,它會抬起前腿,直盯著威脅,並抬起眼睛,形成一個引人注目的眼斑。

  • Even in flight, researchers think this mimicry continues to work, the eyespots resembling the eyes of a flying owl.

    研究人員認為,即使在飛行過程中,這種模仿也能繼續發揮作用,眼點就像飛行貓頭鷹的眼睛。

  • But for all of the many camouflaging mantids out there, there's one difficult evolutionary question they face.

    但是,對於所有這些會偽裝的螳螂來說,它們面臨著一個棘手的進化問題。

  • What happens if the leaves or flowers they mimic shrivel and die?

    如果它們模仿的葉子或花朵枯萎死亡,會發生什麼情況?

  • What happens if the green grass they hide within turns brown in a drought?

    如果它們藏身的綠草在乾旱時變成褐色,會發生什麼?

  • As I said before, if the orchids disappear, the orchid mantids are in serious trouble.

    正如我之前所說,如果蘭花消失,蘭螳螂就會有大麻煩。

  • But for other mantids, if their habitat suddenly changes, it's not always so dire.

    但對於其他螳螂來說,如果它們的棲息地突然發生變化,情況並不總是那麼糟糕。

  • Because some mantids have a surprising trick that they can implement, a trick where they can change colors.

    因為有些螳螂有一個令人驚訝的小把戲,那就是變色。

  • The Egyptian praying mantis lives in the savannas of Africa, where it lives on grass, doing its best to blend in.

    埃及螳螂生活在非洲的熱帶稀樹草原上,以草為生,盡力融入大自然。

  • But here, grass can change from brown to green within a few days following rain.

    但在這裡,雨後幾天內,草地就能從棕色變成綠色。

  • However, researchers noticed that when the grass was green, the mantids were green.

    不過,研究人員注意到,當草是綠色的時候,螳螂也是綠色的。

  • But when the grass was brown, the mantids were brown.

    但當草是棕色的時候,螳螂也是棕色的。

  • How can this be?

    這怎麼可能?

  • As far as we know, mantids can't change color like an octopus or chameleon, where the color change happens in seconds or minutes, triggered by hormones or neurons.

    據我們所知,螳螂不能像章魚或變色龍那樣通過激素或神經元的觸發,在幾秒或幾分鐘內改變顏色。

  • However, they can change color when they molt.

    不過,它們在蛻皮時會改變顏色。

  • In this species, color change during molting is triggered by the relative humidity around them.

    在該物種中,蛻皮時的顏色變化是由周圍的相對溼度引發的。

  • When the relative humidity is low, the nymphs become brown at the next molt.

    相對溼度低時,若蟲在下一次蛻皮時會變成褐色。

  • When the relative humidity is high, they become green.

    相對溼度高時,它們會變成綠色。

  • And they are not the only species to do this.

    它們並不是唯一這樣做的物種。

  • Other mantids can change color based on other stimuli.

    其他螳螂會根據其他刺激改變顏色。

  • For some species, the change is triggered by the light intensity around them.

    對於某些物種來說,這種變化是由周圍的光照強度引發的。

  • High intensity light causes nymphs to change from green to brown.

    高強度的光線會使若蟲從綠色變成棕色。

  • To them, more light could indicate that the leaves of their hiding spot are shriveling and falling off due to drought, and their green color would not be of much help.

    對它們來說,更多的光線可能表明它們藏身之處的樹葉因乾旱而萎縮、脫落,而它們的綠色也幫不上什麼忙。

  • Other species of mantids in Africa even turn from green to black at the end of the dry season when most fires occur, a coloration known as fire melanism.

    非洲其他種類的螳螂甚至會在火災多發的旱季結束時由綠色變為黑色,這種變色現象被稱為 "火黑化病"。

  • And other flower mantids can change color when moved from one coloration of flower to another.

    其他花螳螂在從一種顏色的花朵移到另一種顏色的花朵時也會變色。

  • All of this color changing in response to their habitat is called environmental polymorphism.

    所有這些因棲息地而發生的顏色變化都被稱為環境多態性。

  • Mimicry in crypsis has been described as one of the most influential and illustrative examples of natural selection since the concept of evolution was discovered.

    隱翅蟲的擬態被描述為自發現進化概念以來最有影響力和最能說明自然選擇的例子之一。

  • And the many different ways that praying mantis species use deception may be the most impressive that exist.

    而螳螂物種使用欺騙的多種不同方式可能是最令人印象深刻的。

  • While looking at all of this visual deception, there's one more thing to consider with the praying mantis.

    在看這些視覺欺騙的同時,螳螂還有一件事要考慮。

  • Human researchers are inevitably biased to look for crypsis and mimicry that we can see, since humans are primarily visual creatures.

    人類研究人員不可避免地偏向於尋找我們能看到的隱身和擬態,因為人類主要是視覺動物。

  • But so much that happens in the insect world is auditory, chemical, or tactile.

    但是,昆蟲世界裡發生的很多事情都是聽覺、化學或觸覺的。

  • As masters of deception, it's entirely possible that praying mantids are also audio mimics, or chemical ones for that matter.

    作為欺騙大師,螳螂完全有可能也是聲音模仿者,或者是化學模仿者。

  • After all, how does the orchid mantis attract more pollinators than real flowers?

    畢竟,蘭花螳螂是如何比真正的花朵吸引更多的傳粉者的呢?

  • Scent cues are important for pollinators to detect flowers.

    氣味線索對於傳粉昆蟲發現花朵非常重要。

  • So it's entirely plausible that mantises also mimic the smell of the flowers they visually emulate.

    是以,螳螂也模仿它們視覺上所模仿的花朵的氣味是完全有可能的。

  • It's an area of research that's largely unexplored, and would be mind-blowing if we could prove it to be true.

    這個研究領域在很大程度上還未被探索,如果我們能證明它是真的,那將會是令人震撼的。

  • But that's just a bit of fun speculation.

    但這只是一種有趣的猜測。

  • But beyond blending in to trick potential prey, how does a mantis execute its kills?

    但是,螳螂除了混在潛在獵物中欺騙它們之外,它是如何實施捕殺的呢?

  • And how does it hunt prey so much bigger than itself?

    它又是如何捕食比自己大得多的獵物的呢?

  • Mantises can be loosely categorized as being long-winged, short-winged, or vestigial-winged.

    螳螂大致可分為長翅、短翅和殘翅。

  • The outer wings are usually narrow and leathery.

    外翼通常很窄,呈革質。

  • They function as camouflage, and as a shield for the hind wings, which are much more delicate.

    它們的作用是偽裝和保護後翅,因為後翅要脆弱得多。

  • When not in use, the wings are held close together over their body, giving them a streamlined appearance.

    不使用時,翅膀緊貼在身體上,給人一種流線型的感覺。

  • Whether a praying mantis can fly depends greatly on the species.

    螳螂能否飛行在很大程度上取決於其種類。

  • Praying mantises primarily use their wings for short bursts of flight or gliding while hunting or escaping predators.

    螳螂在捕食或躲避捕食者時,主要利用翅膀進行短距離飛行或滑翔。

  • They can also use their wings as a defense mechanism, by spreading them out suddenly and making loud noises that startle potential threats.

    它們還可以利用翅膀作為一種防禦機制,突然張開翅膀併發出巨大的聲響,嚇唬潛在的威脅。

  • However, not all praying mantids have wings.

    不過,並非所有螳螂都有翅膀。

  • Some are wingless.

    有些沒有翅膀。

  • And mantids like this get around through incredibly accurate jumping.

    而像這樣的螳螂是通過令人難以置信的準確跳躍來四處遊蕩的。

  • Researchers found that wingless, juvenile thorny-armed praying mantises can jump from a horizontal surface to a vertical one, two body lengths away, with nearly 100% accuracy.

    研究人員發現,沒有翅膀的幼年荊棘臂螳螂可以從水平面跳到兩個身長的垂直面,準確率幾乎達到 100%。

  • The high level of accuracy here is enabled by the rotation of their abdomen about the thorax.

    由於腹部圍繞胸部旋轉,是以準確度很高。

  • Once airborne, they then transfer angular momentum to the other parts of their body and make a precise landing.

    一旦升空,它們就會將角動量傳遞到身體的其他部位,然後準確著陸。

  • Researchers discovered just how important the transfer of angular momentum is for their jump by gluing a mantid's abdominal parts together so it couldn't properly rotate.

    研究人員通過將螳螂的腹部粘在一起,使其無法正常旋轉,發現角動量的傳遞對它們的跳躍有多麼重要。

  • The accuracy of the jump itself wasn't really impeded.

    跳躍本身的準確性並沒有受到什麼影響。

  • The mantises still reached their target, but couldn't rotate their bodies into the correct position, so crashed face-first into it.

    螳螂們仍然到達了目標,但無法將身體旋轉到正確的位置,所以臉朝下撞了上去。

  • But winged or wingless, big or small, all mantids have greatly enlarged forelegs adapted for catching and gripping prey.

    但是,無論有翅還是無翅,無論體型大小,所有螳螂的前肢都非常粗大,適於捕捉和抓住獵物。

  • When stationary, these legs remain folded at the front of their bodies, giving them the name praying mantis.

    靜止時,這些腿摺疊在身體前部,是以得名螳螂。

  • Also known as raptorial claws, these front legs are highly specialized for grasping onto prey.

    這些前肢也被稱為猛禽爪,具有抓取獵物的高度特化功能。

  • They're made up of five segments.

    它們由五個部分組成。

  • In praying mantids, the coxa is unusually long for an insect leg and is covered in spines.

    螳螂的跗關節對於昆蟲腿來說異常長,而且佈滿了刺。

  • The femur and tibia are similarly covered in tubercles.

    股骨和脛骨上同樣佈滿了小瘤。

  • These spines and tubercles enable the mantis to grab onto prey.

    這些刺和小瘤使螳螂能夠抓住獵物。

  • They are stiff yet lightweight, and once a prey animal is within their grasp, it is very hard for them to escape.

    它們身體堅硬但重量很輕,一旦獵物被它們抓住,就很難逃脫。

  • The strike of a praying mantis has two phases.

    螳螂的攻擊分為兩個階段。

  • The first is the approach phase, where a mantis extends its arms up and outward.

    第一個階段是接近階段,螳螂會向上並向外伸展雙臂。

  • Then there is the sweep phase, where the mantis scoops the prey out of the air and pulls it in to eat.

    然後是 "掃蕩 "階段,螳螂會從空中抓起獵物,然後把它拉過來吃掉。

  • These strikes happen in less than a tenth of a second.

    這些撞擊發生的時間不到十分之一秒。

  • To understand more about praying mantis prey capture, I talked to Christopher Ophiro, professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at Towson University.

    為了進一步瞭解螳螂捕捉獵物的情況,我採訪了陶森大學生物科學系教授克里斯托弗-奧菲羅。

  • I come from a vertebrate world originally, and comparing it to other organisms, there's not many that are throwing their arms out into the air to try and grab prey.

    我最初來自脊椎動物世界,與其他生物相比,沒有多少生物會把手臂伸向空中試圖抓住獵物。

  • You know, you think about vertebrates that have tongues like chameleons and salamanders, or fish that use suction, or snakes that use their whole body, like here's these organisms that are using, you know, segmented forelegs to be able to capture prey in midair.

    你知道,你可以想想那些有舌頭的脊椎動物,比如變色龍和蠑螈,或者使用吸力的魚類,或者使用整個身體的蛇類,比如這些生物使用分節的前肢在半空中捕捉獵物。

  • And because they are sit-and-wait predators, for a long time, scientists thought that their attacks were stereotypical, meaning that each praying mantis strike would always be the in the same direction, at the same angle, at the same speed.

    由於螳螂是一種坐以待斃的捕食者,是以長期以來,科學家們認為螳螂的攻擊是千篇一律的,也就是說,螳螂的每次攻擊都是以同樣的方向、角度和速度進行的。

  • But as experiments revealed, this is very much not the case.

    但實驗表明,情況並非如此。

  • They're pretty versatile in their prey capture.

    它們捕捉獵物的手段相當多樣。

  • I mean, if you think about their forelegs, there's three segments that they're moving to capture the prey, but there's a lot of potential versatility in how they move that, how fast, how much.

    我的意思是,如果你想想它們的前肢 它們有三段前肢是用來捕捉獵物的 但在如何移動、移動速度和移動幅度上 有很多潛在的多功能性

  • They can catch prey when it's above their head or below their feet, on the ground or in the air, far to their left or to their right, and they can eat a shocking variety of prey, from small insects to large ones, to frogs, lizards, and even birds.

    無論獵物在頭頂還是腳下,在地面還是空中,在左側還是右側,它們都能捕捉到獵物,而且它們能吃的獵物種類多得驚人,小到昆蟲,大到青蛙、蜥蜴,甚至鳥類。

  • They have no regard for the rules of the food chain.

    它們完全無視食物鏈的規則。

  • Praying mantids can often be seen perched on hummingbird feeders, watching carefully as a hummingbird hovers near the sugary water.

    人們經常可以看到螳螂棲息在蜂鳥餵食器上,仔細觀察蜂鳥在糖水附近徘徊。

  • When a bird comes within strike distance, usually 5 to 10 centimeters, the mantis quickly strikes with its two raptorial front legs while holding onto its perch with its other four legs.

    當鳥兒接近螳螂的攻擊距離(通常為 5 到 10 釐米)時,螳螂會迅速用兩條猛禽般的前腿進行攻擊,同時用另外四條腿抓住棲木。

  • The hummingbird may resist, but once the spines of its raptorial claws have locked in, there is no escape.

    蜂鳥可能會反抗,但一旦被猛禽的爪刺鎖定,就再也無法逃脫。

  • And like in this photo, it's common for the mantis to hold the bird by its skull and feed on its brain.

    就像這張照片中一樣,螳螂通常會抓住鳥的頭骨,以其大腦為食。

  • I think they're very opportunistic predators.

    我認為它們是很會投機取巧的捕食者。

  • And if they think they can grab onto it and eat it, they're going to do that.

    如果他們認為可以抓住它並吃掉它,他們就會這麼做。

  • But it does suggest that they likely are producing some amount of force, a significant amount of force, as they sort of close those tibia on those femurs to be able to hold onto this prey and eat it basically alive.

    但這確實表明,它們很可能產生了一定的力量,相當大的力量,因為它們將脛骨與股骨合攏,以便能夠抓住獵物,並將其生吞活剝。

  • The fact that they are eating organisms bigger than themselves and have to be able to handle that organism while it's still alive suggests that they are producing some amount of force to be able to do that.

    事實上,它們正在吃比自己大的生物,而且必須能夠在生物還活著的時候處理它,這表明它們正在產生一定的力量,以便能夠做到這一點。

  • But how does a mantis break through bone so easily?

    但是,螳螂是如何輕而易舉地突破骨頭的呢?

  • The secret is in their strong jaws, or mandibles, which work like scissors, slicing through their prey with ease.

    祕訣在於它們強壯的下顎,就像剪刀一樣,可以輕鬆地切開獵物。

  • The slicing incisors are located beneath the palps, the four parts that look like mouth feelers.

    切割門牙位於顎的下方,顎的四個部分看起來像嘴巴的感覺器。

  • They are specifically adapted to cut through tough exoskeletons and bone.

    它們特別適合切割堅硬的外骨骼和骨頭。

  • They're holding onto these prey for a significant amount of time and using their mandibles to shear off pieces and eat it.

    它們會在這些獵物上停留很長時間,然後用下顎剪下獵物的碎片吃掉。

  • And so this is a new project we haven't published on yet, but we're looking at ingestion rate.

    是以,這是一個我們尚未發表的新項目,但我們正在研究攝取率。

  • How long does it take them to consume a prey, and does that differ between different predator sizes and or prey sizes?

    它們吃掉一個獵物需要多長時間,不同體型的捕食者和不同體型的獵物吃掉獵物的時間是否不同?

  • And so we use the time lapse so we don't have to sit there and watch them eat.

    是以,我們使用延時拍攝,這樣就不用坐在那裡看著它們吃東西了。

  • We can set up little cameras, record it, and then get a better estimate of that time.

    我們可以架設小型攝影機,將其記錄下來,然後更好地估算時間。

  • It lends itself to some pretty cool and kind of freaky footage.

    它可以拍出一些很酷、有點怪異的鏡頭。

  • With such strength and such speed, it's easy to see how a praying mantis kills its prey.

    有了這樣的力量和速度,就不難理解螳螂是如何殺死獵物的了。

  • However, what is less clear is how it's so accurate in its strikes.

    然而,不太清楚的是,它的打擊為何如此準確。

  • The animals the mantis hunts are fast, and yet with relative ease, such prey can be snatched out of midair.

    螳螂捕食的動物速度很快,但也能相對輕鬆地從半空中抓走這些獵物。

  • How does a mantis know when the exact right moment to strike is?

    螳螂如何知道何時才是出擊的最佳時機?

  • One possibility scientists investigated was their hearing.

    科學家們調查的一種可能性是他們的聽力。

  • The praying mantis has just one ear located right where you'd expect it, on its belly, or rather in the ventral midline of the thorax.

    螳螂只有一隻耳朵,它的耳朵就在你期望的地方,在腹部,或者說在胸部的腹中線上。

  • It is sometimes called a cyclopsian ear, and it can hear only ultrasonic frequencies, generally between 25 and 50 kilohertz.

    它有時也被稱為旋耳,只能聽到超音波頻率,一般在 25 到 50 千赫茲之間。

  • This wouldn't necessarily be useful in catching prey.

    這在捕捉獵物時不一定有用。

  • The flapping of many insect wings, like bumblebees, flies, or cicadas, make sound at around 270 hertz.

    許多昆蟲,如大黃蜂、蒼蠅或蟬,拍打翅膀發出的聲音大約為 270 赫茲。

  • The praying mantis wouldn't be able to hear this.

    螳螂是聽不到的。

  • Instead, researchers think this ultrasonic hearing could be used in predatory evasion.

    相反,研究人員認為這種超音波聽覺可用於捕食躲避。

  • And more specifically, in evading bats.

    更具體地說,就是躲避蝙蝠。

  • The most common biological source of ultrasound in the environment is echolocating bats using sonar to locate and capture flying insect prey.

    環境中最常見的超音波生物源是使用聲納定位和捕捉飛行昆蟲獵物的回聲定位蝙蝠。

  • The most sensitive hearing range for mantids corresponds exactly to the echolocation frequencies bats most commonly use.

    螳螂最靈敏的聽覺範圍正好與蝙蝠最常用的回聲定位頻率一致。

  • So if the ears of the mantis are not how it detects its prey, it must come down to its other main sensory organ, its eyes.

    是以,如果螳螂的耳朵不是它發現獵物的方式,那就必須依靠它的另一個主要感覺器官--眼睛。

  • The praying mantis has five eyes.

    螳螂有五隻眼睛。

  • The three simple eyes, positioned on its forehead in the shape of an isosceles triangle, detect light intensity.

    三隻簡單的眼睛位於前額,呈等腰三角形,用於探測光線強度。

  • And their two big, mesmerizing compound eyes can detect color and movement.

    它們的兩隻大而迷人的複眼可以探測顏色和運動。

  • These forward-facing eyes have an extensive binocular field, with 70 degrees binocular overlap.

    這些朝前的眼睛有很大的雙眼視野,雙眼重疊度為 70 度。

  • This, combined with the fact that some species of mantis can rotate their heads nearly 180 degrees, means that mantises can easily scan their surroundings while their bodies remain stationary.

    再加上某些種類的螳螂可以將頭部旋轉近 180 度,這意味著螳螂可以在身體保持靜止的情況下輕鬆地掃描周圍環境。

  • And if you get close to a mantis, you might notice a small black spot on its eye that looks like a pupil that follows your every move.

    如果你靠近一隻螳螂,你可能會發現它的眼睛上有一個小黑點,看起來就像一個瞳孔,會跟隨你的一舉一動。

  • No matter what direction you look at their eyes, the black dot appears to track you.

    無論你從哪個方向看他們的眼睛,黑點都會出現在你的視線中。

  • This is known as a pseudopupil, and is in part why the praying mantis has a reputation for being so eerie.

    這就是所謂的假瞳孔,也是螳螂以陰森恐怖著稱的部分原因。

  • But the praying mantis is not doing this on purpose.

    但螳螂並不是故意這樣做的。

  • In fact, it can't control it at all.

    事實上,它根本無法控制它。

  • It's a passive, optical phenomenon.

    這是一種被動的光學現象。

  • It occurs because the omatidia that one observes head-on absorb the incident light, while those to the side reflect it.

    出現這種現象的原因是,正面觀察到的 omatidia 會吸收入射光,而側面觀察到的 omatidia 則會反射入射光。

  • Imagine trying to look through a few straws that are against a dark background.

    試想一下,在黑暗的背景下,你想透過幾根吸管來觀察。

  • The middle ones would look dark, while the ones further away from the center would look like whatever color the straws are.

    中間的看起來是深色的,而離中心較遠的看起來就像吸管的顏色。

  • This is because you're looking down through the middle straws, but you can't see all the way through the rest.

    這是因為你通過中間的吸管向下看,但你無法看到其餘的吸管。

  • But just because this part of the mantis' watchful gaze is a bit of an optical illusion doesn't mean it isn't watching.

    不過,螳螂的這部分注視只是一種視覺錯覺,並不意味著它沒有在注視。

  • The eyesight of a praying mantis is so good that it can perfectly locate its prey in 3D space for a successful hit.

    螳螂的視力非常好,可以在三維空間中完美地找到獵物的位置,從而一擊得手。

  • Researchers wondered, could the praying mantis really have true 3D vision, akin to human vision?

    研究人員不禁要問,螳螂真的能擁有類似人類視覺的真正 3D 視覺嗎?

  • All sighted animals face the problem of deriving information about a 3D world from 2D retinal images.

    所有視力正常的動物都面臨著從二維視網膜影像中獲取三維世界資訊的問題。

  • How do animals tell what is small versus what is far away?

    動物如何分辨遠近?

  • 2D images contain a range of depth cues that can be used to derive information about 3D space.

    二維影像包含一系列深度線索,可用於獲取三維空間資訊。

  • One type of depth cue, for example, can be pictorial.

    例如,一種深度線索可以是影像線索。

  • When looking at objects in the world, certain things occlude others, implying that they are the closer object.

    在觀察世界上的物體時,某些物體會遮住其他物體,這意味著它們是較近的物體。

  • However, this relies on assumptions and is not fully reliable.

    然而,這依賴於假設,並不完全可靠。

  • What are much more reliable are triangulation depth cues.

    更可靠的是三角測量深度線索。

  • These are based on comparing views of an object from multiple locations, aka from two different eyes.

    這些都是基於對一個物體從多個位置(又稱從兩隻不同的眼睛)的視圖進行比較。

  • These positional differences are referred to as horizontal disparities.

    這些位置差異被稱為水準差異。

  • Stereoscopic vision, or 3D vision, is the ability to take these disparities and triangulate distance from them.

    立體視覺或三維視覺就是利用這些差異,並從中三角測量距離的能力。

  • And comparing these different images in one's brain is called cross-correlation.

    而比較大腦中的這些不同影像則被稱為交叉相關。

  • Almost all machine vision algorithms, and also biological stereovision that we know about in vertebrates, seems to work basically by doing cross-correlations.

    幾乎所有的機器視覺算法,以及我們所知的脊椎動物的生物立體視覺,似乎基本上都是通過交叉相關來工作的。

  • Jenny Reid is a professor of vision science at Newcastle University and studies all aspects of stereovision.

    珍妮-裡德是紐卡斯爾大學視覺科學教授,研究立體視覺的方方面面。

  • You take the two eyes' images and you imagine sliding them across one another until you get the best match.

    您可以將兩隻眼睛的影像相互滑動,直到獲得最佳匹配。

  • And you say, OK, now the correlation is at its peak and that's where the images match And with that offset, I can say the left eye matches the right eye and now I can figure out how far away something is.

    然後你會說,好的,現在相關性達到了頂峰,這就是圖像匹配的地方,有了這個偏移,我就可以說左眼和右眼匹配,現在我就可以算出某個東西有多遠了。

  • This is a particularly reliable means of depth perception because it depends only on geometry rather than on assumptions.

    這是一種特別可靠的深度感知方法,因為它只依賴於幾何而不是假設。

  • When it was first described, scientists believed only primates and other mammals with large brains and front-facing eyes were capable of it, since it requires a lot of brain power.

    當它首次被描述出來時,科學家們認為只有靈長類動物和其他擁有大腦袋和前置眼睛的哺乳動物才能做到,因為這需要大量的腦力。

  • But it turns out that many animals that have some overlap of visual fields are capable of stereopsis, including cats, owls, cuttlefish, and even toads.

    但事實證明,許多視場重疊的動物都有立體視能力,包括貓、貓頭鷹、墨魚甚至蟾蜍。

  • But what about insects?

    但昆蟲呢?

  • They aren't exactly known for their brain power, but scientists thought there might be an exception to this.

    它們並不以腦力見長,但科學家們認為這可能是個例外。

  • The praying mantis.

    螳螂

  • They have an extensive binocular visual field and a lot of neurons that receive input from both eyes and are sensitive to movement.

    它們擁有廣闊的雙眼視野和大量神經元,這些神經元接收來自雙眼的輸入,並對運動十分敏感。

  • Could this be enough to impart 3D vision?

    這是否足以傳授 3D 視覺?

  • In 1983, scientists set up an ingenious experiment to find out.

    1983 年,科學家們做了一個巧妙的實驗來找出答案。

  • They secured a praying mantis to a platform and secured a blowfly, one of its favorite snacks, to a post a few centimeters in front of it.

    他們把一隻螳螂固定在一個平臺上,並把它最喜歡的零食之一--吹蠅固定在它前面幾釐米處的一根柱子上。

  • The researchers waited for the mantis to notice the fly, then would slowly move the fly closer to the mantis until it struck out with its reptorial claws to catch it.

    研究人員等待螳螂注意到蒼蠅,然後慢慢地將蒼蠅靠近螳螂,直到螳螂用爬行動物的爪子抓住蒼蠅。

  • This striking distance was noted.

    我們注意到了這一引人注目的距離。

  • Next the researchers fixed two prisms in front of the mantis' eyes.

    接下來,研究人員在螳螂的眼睛前固定了兩個稜鏡。

  • These prisms increased the horizontal disparity between the eyes, meaning they shifted the view of each of them a little bit inward, artificially placing the fly closer to the mantis in 3D space.

    這些稜鏡增加了兩隻眼睛之間的水準差距,這意味著它們將每隻眼睛的視線向內移動了一點,人為地將蒼蠅置於三維空間中更靠近螳螂的位置。

  • Thus, if the mantis was indeed using binocular triangulation to locate and capture its prey, and not just other references like motion parallax or size of the prey, then it should strike short of the actual target.

    是以,如果螳螂確實是利用雙目三角測量法來定位和捕捉獵物的,而不僅僅是利用運動視差或獵物大小等其他參照物,那麼它就應該在實際目標附近進行攻擊。

  • And sure enough, that's exactly what happened.

    果然,事情就是這樣。

  • And they found that the stronger the prism and more distortion, the shorter the striking distance.

    他們發現,稜鏡越強、變形越大,打擊距離就越短。

  • The researchers had found the first case of an insect using 3D vision.

    研究人員發現了第一例使用 3D 視覺的昆蟲。

  • But is mantis vision like our own?

    但是,螳螂的視力和我們一樣嗎?

  • Do they compute 3D in the same way that we do, where they compare the differences between two images in what we call cross-correlation?

    它們計算 3D 的方式是否與我們相同,即通過我們所說的交叉相關來比較兩幅影像之間的差異?

  • My assumption was mantids are probably doing this as well, but we should test it.

    我的假設是螳螂可能也會這樣做,但我們應該測試一下。

  • To find out, Jenny and her team set up one of the more stylish experiments ever done.

    為了找出答案,珍妮和她的團隊設置了有史以來最時尚的實驗之一。

  • They gave the praying mantis special 3D glasses and put it in a mantis cinema.

    他們給螳螂戴上了特製的 3D 眼鏡,把它放進了螳螂電影院。

  • We didn't use red-blue 3D glasses like the old-style ones you get for humans because insects typically don't see red light, so we used blue and green light.

    我們沒有使用像人類戴的老式紅藍 3D 眼鏡,因為昆蟲通常看不到紅光,所以我們使用了藍光和綠光。

  • In this mantis cinema, they showed the mantis a movie of prey, black and white dots hovering right in front of the mantis, where each eye saw a slightly shifted version from the other eye due to the 3D glasses.

    在這個螳螂電影院裡,他們向螳螂放映了一部獵物電影,黑白相間的小點在螳螂面前盤旋,由於戴著 3D 眼鏡,每隻眼睛看到的都是另一隻眼睛看到的略有偏移的版本。

  • And we did that with mantids, and sure enough, we could show that they could perceive the depth implied by the shift because they would try and catch those objects.

    我們用螳螂做了這個實驗,果然,我們可以證明,螳螂可以感知到移動所暗示的深度,因為它們會試圖抓住這些物體。

  • Great.

    好極了

  • Are they doing that with correlation?

    他們這樣做有關聯性嗎?

  • To test that, you now want to flip the black and white dots in one of the eyes.

    為了測試這一點,您現在要翻轉其中一隻眼睛中的黑白點。

  • So you've got a black dot in the left eye, it now matches a white dot in the right eye, and vice versa.

    左眼的黑點與右眼的白點相匹配,反之亦然。

  • So if you create an image like that, it's called anti-correlated.

    是以,如果你創建了這樣一個影像,它就叫做反相關影像。

  • It's obviously completely artificial.

    這顯然完全是人為的。

  • It's like nothing that you would ever see in real life.

    它就像你在現實生活中從未見過的一樣。

  • And if you do that to human observers, it completely destroys their stereo depth perception.

    如果對人類觀察者這樣做,就會完全破壞他們的立體深度知覺。

  • And then you say, aha, that's because their visual system was using cross-correlation, and I've now messed with cross-correlation, so now they can't do it anymore.

    然後你會說,啊哈,那是因為他們的視覺系統使用的是交叉相關技術,而我現在把交叉相關技術搞亂了,所以現在他們再也做不到了。

  • So we thought we'd do that in mantises.

    是以,我們想用螳螂來做這件事。

  • But to our great surprise, they could still do the task just fine.

    但讓我們大吃一驚的是,他們仍然可以很好地完成任務。

  • They weren't fazed at all by the anti-correlation.

    他們絲毫沒有被反相關性所嚇倒。

  • How could this be?

    怎麼會這樣?

  • Jenny and her team got a hint when they realized one thing, that the mantis could only continue to see the dots if the dots were moving.

    珍妮和她的團隊發現了一個提示,那就是隻有當點在移動時,螳螂才能繼續看到這些點。

  • When the dots stayed still in any of the experimental setups, the mantises didn't try to catch it.

    在任何一種實驗設置中,當圓點靜止不動時,螳螂都不會去抓它。

  • We realized that the inputs to their stereo visual system aren't the pattern of black and white dots at all, it's the pattern of movement.

    我們意識到,輸入它們立體視覺系統的根本不是黑白點的圖案,而是運動的圖案。

  • This experiment thus showed that mantis stereopsis doesn't work for static images, but it works extremely well to help them discriminate depth in targets that are perfectly camouflaged apart from their motion.

    是以,該實驗表明,螳螂的立體視覺對靜態影像不起作用,但對幫助它們辨別除運動外完全偽裝的目標的深度卻非常有效。

  • In these situations, the mantises were actually better than humans at discriminating depth of a moving camouflaged object.

    在這種情況下,螳螂實際上比人類更善於辨別移動偽裝物體的深度。

  • And this makes a lot of sense when you think about the hunting strategy of a praying mantis.

    想想螳螂的狩獵策略,這就很有道理了。

  • Their prey is often highly camouflaged, so being able to quickly identify just their movements in 3D space is an efficient and effective way to grab their next meal.

    它們的獵物通常都有很強的偽裝能力,是以能夠快速識別獵物在三維空間中的運動軌跡,是抓住下一頓獵物的有效方法。

  • It's as if they have a different algorithm running in their brains to interpret 3D vision than ours, one that's simpler and more efficient.

    就好像他們的大腦中運行著一種與我們不同的算法來解釋 3D 視覺,這種算法更簡單、更高效。

  • And it could be a game-changer in the world of computer vision.

    它可能會改變計算機視覺領域的遊戲規則。

  • As we learned more about how mantis vision works, it really blew my mind because it was completely different from human vision, right, which just depends on motion.

    當我們進一步瞭解螳螂的視力如何工作時,我真的大吃一驚,因為它與人類的視力完全不同,對吧,人類的視力只取決於運動。

  • I think in machine vision, we're always using the human as a gold standard, and like, can my computer algorithm reproduce the abilities of human stereoscopic vision, which may be very appropriate, but it may be massively over-engineered for what you need.

    我認為,在機器視覺領域,我們總是把人類作為黃金標準,比如,我的計算機算法能否再現人類立體視覺的能力,這可能非常合適,但對於你的需求來說,這可能是過度設計了。

  • But just because mantis stereopsis is simpler and requires less brainpower doesn't mean that the mantis brain is unimpressive.

    但是,螳螂的立體視更簡單,需要的腦力更少,這並不意味著螳螂的大腦不令人印象深刻。

  • Despite their tiny size, mantis brains contain a surprising number of neurons that enable this 3D vision.

    儘管體型微小,但螳螂大腦中的神經元數量卻令人吃驚,這些神經元能夠實現這種三維視覺。

  • They're also pretty smart.

    他們也很聰明。

  • Do you think it speaks at all to a certain level of intelligence in these bugs?

    你認為這是否說明這些蟲子的智力達到了一定水準?

  • Intelligence is a tricky question.

    智力是一個棘手的問題。

  • They're likely making decisions, right, not to anthropomorphize, but like a decision based upon when to try and capture that prey.

    它們很可能在做決定,對吧,不是擬人化,而是根據何時嘗試捕捉獵物來做決定。

  • And some of that is based upon their vision, like there's great research showing that with their depth perception, they are more prone to try to capture prey when they're at a certain distance, right?

    其中一些是基於它們的視覺,比如有大量研究表明,它們的深度知覺在一定距離內更容易捕捉獵物,對嗎?

  • So how you view that in the lens of intelligence is tricky because they're not just going after anything, right?

    是以,如何從情報學的角度來看待這一點很棘手,因為他們並不只是為了什麼,對嗎?

  • They are making decisions based upon some threshold in their central nervous system says, okay, now we try to capture that, right?

    他們是根據中樞神經系統中的某個閾值做出決定的,好吧,現在我們試著捕捉這個閾值,對嗎?

  • You know, they're not having full on conversations, intelligence, but they're not just doing the same thing over and over without adjusting.

    你知道,他們沒有進行全面的對話,沒有智力,但他們也沒有重複做同樣的事情而不做調整。

  • And they've been seen to take their impressive predatory ability and adapt it in novel ways when put in new situations.

    人們看到,當把它們放到新的環境中時,它們會利用自己令人印象深刻的捕食能力,並以新穎的方式加以調整。

  • Recently a scientist observed a mantis fishing guppies out of a fountain, a never before seen behavior.

    最近,一位科學家觀察到一隻螳螂從噴泉中釣起了河豚,這是一種從未見過的行為。

  • Their ability to adapt to new situations on the fly makes researchers think that they're much more clever than we even realize.

    它們快速適應新環境的能力讓研究人員認為,它們比我們想象的要聰明得多。

  • But there's one more aspect of their behavior that gets them their uncanny reputation.

    但是,他們的行為還有一個方面讓他們獲得了不可思議的聲譽。

  • And that's their appetite for their boyfriends.

    這就是她們對男朋友的胃口。

  • If you knew anything about praying mantids before this video, it was probably that the females eat their mates.

    如果你在觀看這段視頻之前對螳螂有所瞭解,那你可能會知道雌螳螂會吃掉自己的配偶。

  • Maybe you heard that the females decapitate the males while still copulating with their But death by cannibalism is not inevitable for the males.

    也許你聽說過,雌性動物在與雄性動物交配時會砍掉雄性動物的頭,但對於雄性動物來說,吃人致死並非不可避免。

  • Scientists estimate it only happens in 13 to 28% of encounters in the wild, but it largely depends on the species and also the condition of the females.

    科學家估計,這種情況在野外只發生在 13% 到 28% 的情況下,但這主要取決於物種和雌性的狀況。

  • One study investigated the motivation behind these boyfriend eating events and how it relates to the female's condition.

    一項研究調查了這些男友進食事件背後的動機,以及它與女性病情的關係。

  • They started by dividing female mantises into four feeding regimes.

    他們首先將雌螳螂分為四種餵養方式。

  • Good, medium, poor, and very poor.

    良好、中等、較差和極差。

  • The good group getting the best diet, with the very poor getting the worst.

    好的群體得到最好的飲食,而非常貧窮的群體得到最差的飲食。

  • The females got these diets for six weeks and then were placed in proximity to males.

    雌性動物吃了六週的這些食物,然後被放在雄性動物附近。

  • The females then attract the males by signaling with pheromones.

    然後,雌性通過資訊素髮出信號吸引雄性。

  • And the researchers found that there was a clear line between the number of males who fed they were.

    研究人員發現,餵養他們的男性人數之間有明顯的界限。

  • Those from the good group got the most, those from the poor group got the least, possibly because the poor group had the least energy to emit pheromones.

    優秀組的人得到的資訊素最多,貧窮組的人得到的資訊素最少,這可能是因為貧窮組散發資訊素的能量最少。

  • But something interesting happened with the very poor group of females.

    但有趣的事情發生在那群非常貧窮的女性身上。

  • Even more males approached them than the females with the good diet.

    甚至有更多的雄性靠近它們,而不是吃得好的雌性。

  • And when the males came over, they ate them.

    當雄性過來時,它們就把它們吃掉。

  • The study author hypothesized that this was because the females who were effectively starving put all of their energy towards pheromones so that they would attract the males and then get a chance to eat them.

    研究報告的作者假設,這是因為雌性動物實際上已經餓得不行了,它們把所有的精力都放在了資訊素上,以便吸引雄性動物,然後有機會吃掉它們。

  • And this strategy really worked out in the case of the study subject, the false garden mantis.

    而這一策略在研究對象--假花螳螂--身上果然奏效。

  • The females who ate a male had a 33% improvement in body condition and a 40% increase in fecundity.

    吃了雄性動物的雌性動物身體狀況改善了 33%,繁殖力提高了 40%。

  • And this is critical, because the females have to do a lot of work to produce eggs.

    這一點非常重要,因為雌性要做大量的工作才能產卵。

  • Praying mantis females produce what's called an ootheca.

    雌螳螂會產生一種叫做 "卵巢 "的東西。

  • It's basically an egg case with a protective outer shell that contains hundreds of eggs.

    它基本上是一個雞蛋盒,有一個保護外殼,裡面裝有數百個雞蛋。

  • And these things can be huge, weighing 30-50% of the female's body mass.

    這些東西可能非常巨大,重量佔女性體重的 30%-50%。

  • It would be like an average human giving birth to a 75 pound baby.

    這就好比一個普通人生下一個 75 磅重的嬰兒。

  • And just like with humans, the male mantises don't have to invest hardly any energy into reproduction.

    就像人類一樣,雄螳螂幾乎不用為繁殖投入任何精力。

  • They can also mate with multiple females so long as they don't get eaten.

    只要不被吃掉,它們還能與多隻雌性交配。

  • The males will generally approach very slowly, probably nervously, often mounting the female from behind, and copulation can take anywhere from 2 hours to 40.

    雄性通常會非常緩慢地靠近,可能會很緊張,經常會從後面騎上雌性,交配時間從 2 小時到 40 小時不等。

  • Which gives the female a lot of time to attack if she's feeling snacky.

    這就給了雌性動物很多時間,如果它想吃零食,就可以發動攻擊。

  • So calories really seem to be the main motivator for the females, although scientists speculate that sometimes the females attack because they're not yet sexually mature when the males approach them, which is a tactic I think humans should employ too.

    是以,卡路里似乎真的是雌性的主要動機,不過科學家推測,有時雌性會攻擊雄性,因為當雄性接近它們時,它們還沒有性成熟,我認為人類也應該採用這種策略。

  • Mainly though, it's because they're hungry.

    不過,主要是因為它們餓了。

  • In the Chinese mantis, one study estimated that males made up 63% of the diet for females.

    據一項研究估計,在中國螳螂的食物中,雄性佔雌性的 63%。

  • And the females aren't necessarily losing their chance to mate, since the males can be literally cut in half and still use the bottom half of their bodies to pass the sperm onto the females.

    雌性並不一定會失去交配的機會,因為雄性可以被切成兩半,但仍然可以用下半身把精子傳給雌性。

  • But the system seems highly rigged in favor of the females.

    但這一制度似乎對女性非常有利。

  • Is getting eaten just a cost that the males have to be willing to pay?

    被吃掉只是雄性必須願意付出的代價嗎?

  • It turns out that even when the males do get eaten, there is a slight upside for them.

    事實證明,即使雄性被吃掉,對它們來說也有一點好處。

  • Researchers found that the amino acids from the male's digested body goes into the female's eggs, and the female tends to produce more eggs after she's eaten a male.

    研究人員發現,雄性動物消化後體內的氨基酸會進入雌性動物的卵中,而雌性動物吃了雄性動物後往往會產生更多的卵。

  • So at least the genetic material of the cannibalized male gets passed on more effectively.

    是以,至少被吃掉的雄性的遺傳物質能更有效地遺傳下去。

  • After immersing myself in the world of praying mantids for weeks, what's the final verdict you may ask?

    在沉浸於螳螂的世界數週之後,你可能會問,最後的結論是什麼?

  • Are they still creepy little freaks, or dazzling displays of evolution?

    它們還是令人毛骨悚然的小怪胎,還是令人眼花繚亂的進化展示?

  • I think the answer is both.

    我認為答案是兩者都有。

  • People always have their different takes on life, right?

    人們對生活總有不同的看法,不是嗎?

  • This is just nature, right?

    這就是自然,對嗎?

  • Some people may think they're creepy, but they're pretty fascinating when you really get to observe them more closely.

    有些人可能覺得它們令人毛骨悚然,但當你真正仔細觀察它們時,就會發現它們非常迷人。

  • To people who find praying mantids creepy, I always say, I'm 100% with you.

    對於那些覺得螳螂令人毛骨悚然的人,我總是說,我百分百支持你。

  • They're very sinister.

    他們非常陰險。

  • I think that the way they tend to lock on to a prey item and track it, you can always hear, there's a target acquired.

    我認為,它們鎖定並追蹤獵物的方式,總能讓你聽到 "有目標被捕獲 "的聲音。

  • And so as you handle them, they lock onto you, and they'll track you as you move.

    是以,當你操控它們時,它們會鎖定你,並在你移動時跟蹤你。

  • And I always thought, thank God I'm massively bigger than this tiny insect, and it can't actually attack me and eat me.

    我一直在想,感謝上帝,我比這隻小蟲子大得多,它不可能真的攻擊我,吃掉我。

  • So yes, definitely both.

    所以,是的,肯定都有。

  • Luckily, getting the opinions of both Chris and Jenny helped me see a fuller picture of the praying mantis, an insect I've loved from a distance for a long time, but one that they've dedicated years of their life to understanding.

    幸運的是,克里斯和珍妮的意見讓我對螳螂有了更全面的瞭解,我一直對這種昆蟲敬而遠之,但她們卻花了多年時間來了解它。

  • To watch the full-length interviews with the two scientists featured in this video, head over to Nebula, where you can watch them under the Field Notes channel.

    要觀看本視頻中兩位科學家的完整訪談,請訪問星雲網站,在 Field Notes 頻道下觀看。

  • This is a Nebula channel where I upload extras, extended interviews, and behind-the-scenes content.

    這是我上傳花絮、擴展訪談和幕後內容的星雲頻道。

  • Before I get into how great Nebula is, I know so many of you are sick of being asked to sign up to yet another subscription service.

    在我介紹星雲有多棒之前,我知道你們中的許多人已經厭倦了被要求註冊另一項訂閱服務。

  • I know I'm actively trying to drop recurring monthly charges.

    我知道我正在積極努力減少每月的經常性費用。

  • But if you do want to support this channel and get lifelong access to all of Nebula's exclusive content without a monthly charge, we're offering lifetime memberships for a limited time for $300.

    但如果您確實想支持本頻道,並終身訪問星雲的所有獨家內容而無需每月付費,我們將在有限的時間內以 300 美元的價格提供終身會員資格。

  • Unlike other subscriptions, you can buy once and never pay again.

    與其他訂閱方式不同的是,您只需購買一次,無需再次付費。

  • This helps fund original series like Archaeology Quest, where I went out into the woods with my friend and co-writer Lorraine, where we put ourselves to the test trying to compete in tasks to survive the Paleolithic.

    這有助於為《考古探險》等原創系列提供資金,我和我的朋友兼聯合編劇洛林一起走進森林,在那裡我們接受考驗,努力在舊石器時代的任務中競爭生存。

  • We made stone tools and ceramic bowls, threw spears and collected mushrooms, all to try to see if we would have what it takes to live in ancient times.

    我們製作石器和陶碗,投擲長矛,採集蘑菇,所有這些都是為了驗證我們是否具備在古代生活的能力。

  • This series is a mix of fun gameplay, hilarious failures, and in-depth archaeology education about technology from 10,000 years ago.

    該系列融合了有趣的遊戲、令人捧腹的失敗以及有關一萬年前科技的深入考古教育。

  • This is a series that wouldn't have worked on real science on YouTube because it's just too different from what I normally do.

    這個系列在 YouTube 上的真正科學節目中是行不通的,因為它與我通常做的事情太不一樣了。

  • But I wanted to make something interactive and funny.

    但我想做一些互動和有趣的東西。

  • I wanted to practice being on camera, and so when I pitched this show to Nebula, they helped make it happen.

    我想練習上鏡,所以當我向星雲公司推薦這個節目時,他們幫助我實現了這個願望。

  • Nebula is the platform where creators can experiment like this, with Nebula original content that breaks the mold or is too risky for YouTube.

    在星雲這個平臺上,創作者們可以進行這樣的嘗試,通過星雲原創內容來打破YouTube的固有模式,或者進行過於冒險的嘗試。

  • And if the lifetime membership isn't for you, for less than the price of a cup of coffee per month, you can get access to all of Nebula's original content along with our entire catalog without any ads.

    如果終身會員資格不適合您,每月只需支付不到一杯咖啡的價格,您就可以訪問星雲的所有原創內容以及我們的全部目錄,而且沒有任何廣告。

  • You can also easily download videos to watch on the go, all for just $2.50 a month.

    您還可以輕鬆下載視頻,隨時隨地觀看,每月僅需 2.50 美元。

  • This channel depends on the funding Nebula provides us.

    這一管道取決於星雲為我們提供的資金。

  • The video you just watched is long, has lots of animations, and took me a long time to make.

    您剛才觀看的視頻很長,有很多動畫,我花了很長時間才製作完成。

  • To be able to make longer, in-depth videos like this one, I have to slow down upload pace.

    為了能製作像本視頻這樣更長、更深入的視頻,我必須放慢上傳速度。

  • I simply can't make these videos as fast as the YouTube algorithm wants me to.

    我製作這些視頻的速度根本達不到 YouTube 算法的要求。

  • Even getting this done in a month was difficult.

    即使在一個月內完成這項工作也很困難。

  • A two-week upload pace nearly kills me, and those videos are shorter and not as detailed.

    兩週上傳一次的速度幾乎要了我的命,而且這些視頻比較短,也不詳細。

  • It's such a tricky balance on YouTube, the quantity versus quality debate, and unfortunately taking the time to slow down and create longer, better videos is a financial risk.

    在 YouTube 上,數量與品質的爭論是一個棘手的平衡問題,不幸的是,花時間慢下來製作更長、更好的視頻是要冒經濟風險的。

  • YouTube is a volatile platform, and we depend on the whims of advertisers.

    YouTube 是一個不穩定的平臺,我們依賴於廣告商的奇思妙想。

  • All of the pressure tells YouTube creators to speed up and crank out more content, not slow down.

    所有的壓力都要求 YouTube 創作者加快速度,製作更多的內容,而不是放慢速度。

  • But it's so important to me to bring you all the depth these stories deserve.

    但對我來說,為你們呈現這些故事應有的深度非常重要。

  • And Nebula is our life raft to make that possible.

    而星雲就是我們的救生筏,讓這一切成為可能。

  • Nebula helps remove the financial uncertainty that forces us to rush projects, and allows us to focus on science journalism rather than stressing over YouTube analytics.

    星雲有助於消除迫使我們匆忙開展項目的財務不確定性,使我們能夠專注於科學新聞報道,而不是為YouTube的分析而緊張。

  • Signing up to Nebula is the best way to support this channel for that reason.

    是以,註冊星雲是支持本頻道的最佳方式。

  • So to get access to all of Nebula's incredible content, and support thoughtful, educational content, go to nebula.tv slash real science, or click on the link in the description to get 40% off a yearly subscription for the incredibly low price of $2.50 per month.

    是以,要訪問星雲所有令人難以置信的內容,並支持有思想、有教育意義的內容,請訪問 nebula.tv slash real science,或點擊描述中的鏈接,以每月 2.50 美元的超低價格訂閱全年節目,可享受 40% 的折扣。

This video is brought to you by Nebula, where you can watch the extended interviews from this video and other behind-the-scenes real science content.

本視頻由星雲為您帶來,您可以觀看本視頻中的擴展訪談和其他幕後真實科學內容。

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