They can spend up to half their waking hours grooming.

牠們可以花上一半的清醒時間來清潔自己。

Their tongue is covered in tiny spines.

牠們的舌頭覆蓋著小尖刺。

They're what makes the tongue feel so 'sandpapery.'

這些小尖刺就是他們舌頭有砂紙般觸感的原因。

These spines, called papilla, are made of keratin, just like their claws and our fingernails.

這些尖刺叫做乳突，由角蛋白所構成，如同牠們的爪子和我們的指甲。

The papilla even look like miniature cat claws.

這些乳突甚至看起來像縮小版的貓爪。

They do an impeccable job of detangling their fur.

它們用來梳毛最好用。

Researchers at Georgia Tech made a 3D model of a cat's tongue to test how it works.

Georgia Tech 的研究者做了一個貓舌的立體模型，來看它如何運作。

See how the fur just peels off?

看到這些毛有多輕易就脫落了嗎？

It's because the spines are all angled in the same direction.

這是因為這些尖刺都朝同一個方向傾斜。

With a typical hairbrush, you'd have to pick the fur out from between the bristles.

用一般的梳子時，你得揀起卡在刷毛裡頭的毛髮。

So, why are cats so preoccupied with grooming?

所以，為什麼貓咪那麼專注於清潔自己？

For them, it's about more than just vanity.

對貓而言，這一切並不只是虛榮而已。

For one thing, it's a way to show affection－to build bonds.

其中一點，這是一種親密的展現，用來產生情感連結。

That's why they appreciate us petting them.

這也是牠們喜歡被我們撫摸的原因。

And it spreads out oils produced by the cats' skin that gives their fur some water resistance.

貓的皮膚也會分泌一些油脂，這讓牠們的毛髮稍微能夠防水。

But when it really comes down to it, for cats, staying clean is a matter of life and death.

但真要一言以蔽之，對貓咪而言，保持乾淨潔可是攸關生死大事。

Cats are carnivores, ambush predators.

貓咪是食肉動物，埋伏突襲掠食者。

They hide and sneak up on their unsuspecting prey.

牠們會躲藏，然後突襲毫無防備的獵物。

One whiff of the wrong odor could give the cat away.

一絲不對的氣味，都可能暴露貓咪的行蹤。

But when they pounce, it's their bite that finishes the job.

當牠們猛撲時，正是牠們的噬咬會完成狩獵工作。

Cats have extra wide mouths so they can get their teeth around their prey's neck.

貓嘴非常寬，所以牠們能咬住獵物的整圈脖子。

It would be like having the corners of your mouth go all the way back by your ears.

就像是你的嘴角一路延伸到耳朵。

But there's a trade-off that comes with that big bite.

但有大嘴也有個缺點。

Those wide mouths mean their lips can't come together to form a good seal.

嘴巴很寬代表牠們的嘴唇無法湊攏以形成良好的密合。

They can't create suction to drink the way we do.

牠們無法像我們人類一樣用吸的來喝水。

So they flick the surface of the water with the tip of their tongue.

所以牠們會用舌頭的尖端舔水的表面。

Researchers at MIT made a model using a glass disc,

麻省理工學院的研究者用玻璃盤作為模組，來看貓咪是如何幾乎只碰到水的表面就能喝水的。

to show how cats get a drink by just barely touching the water's surface.

The water sticks to the disc and to itself.

水會和盤子還有彼此連接在一起。

Lift the disc at the right speed and it pulls the water up into a column.

在正確的速度下，盤中的水會形成水柱。

Then, the cat bites it at precisely the right moment to get as much water as possible.

然後，貓咪會在最精準的時間咬住那些水，來盡可能獲得多的水分。

And all of this happens four times per second!

以上這些程序，一秒會發生四次。

It's a complicated way to take a drink, but it's just one of the prices cats pay to be the expert predators they are.

這是種複雜的喝水法，但這只是貓咪作爲頂尖掠食者所要付的代價。

Hey guys, it's Lauren.

嗨，我是 Lauren。

You know you love fuzzy critters.

你知道你喜歡毛絨絨的小動物。

So check out our other episodes like this one.

那就來看看我們其他的影片，像這支。

See what you can learn about a squirrel's mood just by looking at its tail.

你可以從松鼠的尾巴來得知牠的心情。

Or how the fuzziness of owl feathers makes them such stealthy hunters.

或是為什麼毛絨絨的貓頭鷹羽毛，讓牠們成為神秘的獵人。

And if you like the show, share us!

喜歡的話，記得分享！

Thanks for watching.

感謝收看。