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Gangsters of the Bird World 偷天换日的鸟界黑帮

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For most animal species, the natural stage after giving birth is taking care of their young. Not so for the ___1___ cuckoo. Exhibiting behavior called “brood parasitism,” the cuckoo leaves this time-consuming task to an entirely different species.

对多数动物来说，分娩之后自然会步入照顾幼儿的阶段，但对于懒惰的杜鹃鸟来说并非如此。杜鹃有「巢寄生」（托卵寄生）的行为，将育儿这项耗时的任务留给完全不同的鸟类。

The European cuckoo, for example, only lays its eggs in other birds’ nests, leaving these “host” parents to rear ___2___ young. The cuckoo’s egg usually looks similar to those of the host bird, and the female cuckoo will remove an egg from the nest to prevent suspicion. Once ___3___, the young cuckoo often pushes the remaining eggs over the edge, leaving the host parents the single, exhausting task of feeding a bird that often grows considerably larger than them.

比如说，欧洲杜鹃鸟只将蛋产在别种鸟类的巢里，让这些「寄宿」父母帮牠养育幼鸟。杜鹃鸟的蛋通常和寄宿主所产的蛋看起来很像，而且杜鹃母鸟会把巢中的一颗蛋给移走，以免寄宿主起疑心。一旦孵化之后，杜鹃幼鸟通常会把剩下的鸟蛋顶出巢外，让寄宿父母担下专心喂养牠的繁重工作，这只鸟养到后来，往往长得比牠们还要大上许多。

The question is, if host birds can tell that an egg is different, or that one of its offspring differs significantly from the rest, why do they continue to ___4___ it? Scientists gained insights from studies of ___5___ parasite, the American cowbird. Finding supported the so-called “Mafia hypothesis.” If a warbler rejected the cowbird’s egg, the cowbird would ___6___ the warbler’s nest and eggs. Such violent retaliation is similar to how gangsters behave. Once the victims rebuilt their nest, the cowbird would simply plant another egg. The cowbirds ___7___ intimidate the warblers into “an evolutionary state of acceptance;” ultimately, it is just simpler and more productive to comply with the cowbirds’ demands!

问题是，如果寄宿主能够辨别出有颗蛋不一样，或是其中一只幼鸟与其他幼鸟长得截然不同，为什么还要继续照顾呢？科学家从另一种寄生鸟类美国牛鹂的研究中获得一些领悟。研究结果支持所谓的「黑手党假说」，也就是如果柳莺排拒牛鹂的蛋，牛鹂便会捣毁柳莺的巢和蛋，这种暴力的报复手段近似帮派份子的行为。一旦受害者重新筑巢，这些牛鹂又会在新巢中产下另一颗蛋。牛鹂胁迫柳莺得逞，让牠们演变成只能逆来顺受。说到底，对柳莺而言，顺从牛鹂的要求实际上要来得更简单，也更有效率。

−by Claire Tyrrel

Vocabulary

单词发音

gangster [ˋgæŋstɚ] n. 歹徒，匪盗，流氓

time-consuming [ˋtaɪmkən͵sjumɪŋ] adj. 费时的；旷日持久的

considerably [kənˋsɪdərəblɪ] adv. 相当，非常

intimidate [ɪnˋtɪmə͵det] v. 威吓；胁迫

comply [kəmˋplaɪ] v. 顺从，遵从[（+with）]

More Information

单词发音

cuckoo [ˋkʊku] n.【鸟】杜鹃，布谷鸟

brood [brud] n.〔尤指雏鸟的〕一窝

parasitism [ˋpærəsaɪt͵ɪzm] n. 寄生状态

host [host] n.【生】寄主，宿主

suspicion [səˋspɪʃən] n. 疑心，猜疑

exhausting [ɪgˋzɔstɪŋ] adj. 使人精疲力竭的

offspring [ˋɔf͵sprɪŋ] n. 子孙；后代

insight [ˋɪn͵saɪt] n. 洞悉；深刻的理解

cowbird [ˋkaʊ͵bɝd] n. 北美燕八哥；牛鹂

Mafia [ˋmɑfɪ͵ɑ] n.【义】黑手党

hypothesis [haɪˋpɑθəsɪs] n. 假说；前提

warbler [ˋwɔrblɚ] n. 莺

retaliation [rɪ͵tælɪˋeʃən] n. 报复

look after  照顾, 照看  to take care of

take care 小心; 当心; 注意  to be careful

Natural World Cuckoo

Answer