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Spinning the Story of Spiders 蜘蛛物语：八脚怪传奇

 

课文朗读

 

课文讲解

 

繁體中文譯本

 

For many people, they’re the stuff of nightmares or horror movies: fierce, many-legged predators with beady eyes and huge fangs. But they aren’t creatures from science fiction. They live right here on Earth, and some are probably even hiding in your home. They’re spiders, and they’re really fascinating than scary.

对许多人来说，牠们是恶梦或是恐怖电影的要素：拥有珠子般的眼睛、巨大的毒牙，还有很多只脚的凶猛掠食者。不过牠们并不是科幻小说中的生物。牠们就居住在地球上，有些甚至可能躲在你家里。牠们是蜘蛛，与其说牠们可怕，倒不如说牠们很迷人。

 

The first thing to understand about spiders is that they’re not insects as many people assume. Spiders have eight legs, while insects have six, and spiders have four pairs of eyes rather than just one. Certain spiders possess large, sharp fangs for piercing the bodies of prey and delivering venom, and unlike insects, they breathe by means of either one or two pairs of lungs.

关于蜘蛛，我们首先必须了解的是，牠们其实并不属于多数人认为的昆虫类。蜘蛛有八只脚，昆虫只有六只脚，且蜘蛛的眼睛有四对，不是一对。某些蜘蛛有又大又尖的毒牙，用以刺穿猎物的身体并注入毒液。蜘蛛还有另一点与昆虫不同，蜘蛛是靠一对或两对的肺来呼吸。

 

All spiders are predators, and many, but not all, use cobwebs to catch prey. Silk for the webs is produced by the spiders’ silk glands. The silk starts as a liquid, but hardens when it is exposed to the air. In addition to snaring flies and other unsuspecting victims, the web can serve as a nest for the spider’s young. Spiders that are not web-builders may use silk to line their underground tunnels, where they wait for prey to pass by or where they hide their offspring.

所有的蜘蛛都是掠食者，其中有许多会用蜘蛛网来捕捉猎物，但非全部如此。结网用的丝是由蜘蛛的丝腺所制造。刚吐出来的丝是液态的，但暴露在空气中后就会变硬。除了用来捕捉苍蝇及其他毫无防备的受害者之外，蜘蛛网还可以充当幼蛛的巢。而不筑网的蜘蛛则可能在其居住的地下洞穴口结丝，等待猎物经过，或者让后代有藏身之处。

 

While many spiders are quite small, as tiny as one-third of a millimeter across, the imaginations – and fears – of most people are stirred by the bigger varieties. The biggest, the goliath bird-eating spider, can measure as much as 21 inches across!

尽管很多蜘蛛的体型相当小，体长可以小到只有三分之一公厘，但能激起大多数人的想象及恐惧的，则非较大的品种莫属。其中体型最庞大的巨型食鸟蜘蛛，体长可达21英寸！

 

Vocabulary

单词发音

 

nightmare [ˋnaɪt͵mɛr] n. 梦魇；恶梦

predator [ˋprɛdətɚ] n. 食肉动物；掠夺者

assume [əˋsjum] v. 以为；假定为；（想当然地）认为

possess [pəˋzɛs] v. 拥有，持有

pierce [pɪrs] v. 刺穿，刺破

prey [pre] n. 被捕食的动物

liquid [ˋlɪkwɪd] n. 液体

harden [ˋhɑrdn] v. 使变硬

expose [ɪkˋspoz] v. 使暴露于；使接触到[O][（+to）]

snare [snɛr] v. （用陷阱等）捕捉

serve as  当作...用

offspring [ˋɔf͵sprɪŋ] n. 子孙；后代

variety [vəˋraɪətɪ] n. 种类

measure [ˋmɛʒɚ] v. 有……长（或阔，高等）

 

More Information

单词发音

 

fierce [fɪrs] adj. 凶猛的；残酷的

beady [ˋbidɪ] n. 像珠子的

fang [fæŋ] n. 尖牙; 毒牙

venom [ˋvɛnəm] n.（蛇、蜘蛛等的）毒液

cobweb [ˋkɑb͵wɛb] n. 蜘蛛网；蜘蛛丝

gland [glænd] n. 【解】腺

unsuspecting [͵ʌnsəˋspɛktɪŋ] adj. 不怀疑的﹐无疑心的

tunnel [ˋtʌn!] n.（动物的）洞穴

millimeter [ˋmɪlə͵mitɚ] n. 公厘，毫米

stir [stɝ] v. 激起

goliath [gəˋlaɪəθ] n. 巨人；大亨；庞然大物

 

 

 

课文朗读

 

课文讲解

 

Although most spiders feed on insects, surprising new research has revealed that some varieties supplement their diet with pollen. This certainly runs counter to spiders’ fearsome image. Apparently, one species of jumping spider in Center America gets 97 percent of its food from pollen that it steals from ants!

虽然大多数的蜘蛛皆以昆虫为食，但出乎意料的最新研究显示，某些品种会以花粉补充其饮食。这无疑与蜘蛛令人生畏的外表大相径庭。据知，中美洲某种跳蛛有百分之九十七的食物都是跟蚂蚁偷来的花粉。

 

The mating behavior of some spider species is quite famous – or, to be precise, notorious. In the mating process of the black widow, the most well-known example, the male spider is lucky if he escapes being eaten by the female immediately after the act. In some species, the female’s meal may begin even before mating is finished! To live to mate again, the male obviously needs quick reflexes to escape in time.

某些种类蜘蛛的交配习性非常出名，或者更确切地说，是恶名昭彰。最广为人知的例子就是黑寡妇的交配过程，公蜘蛛若在交配后能逃走，而不马上被母蜘蛛吃掉就算走运了。某些品种的母蜘蛛甚至在交配结束前就开始大快朵颐。为了要活到下一次交配，公蜘蛛很显然地必须拥有极快的反射动作，才能及时逃命。

 

Despite people’s fears, most spiders are not only harmless to humans, but are actually beneficial. They help rid our homes and gardens of insect pests such as cockroaches and mosquitoes. Scientists are even investigating spider silk for its possible use by humans. Its amazing strength and flexibility make it a seemingly ideal material for products ranging from bulletproof vests to bandages and parachutes. However, as it would take 400 spiders to produce one square yard of cloth, it’s not really practical. Scientists see more potential in artificially copying the silk’s structure in synthetic form.

尽管人们对蜘蛛相当恐惧，但对人类而言，大多数的蜘蛛其实是有益无害。牠们会帮我们除去家中和庭院里像蟑螂、蚊子之类的害虫。科学家甚至开始研究蜘蛛丝对人类而言可能的用处。蜘蛛丝有极佳的韧性与弹性，看样子可作为从防弹背心、绷带到降落伞之类产品的理想材料。然而，因为生产1平方码的布料就需要400只蜘蛛，所以其实很不切实际。科学家认为，以合成方式复制蜘蛛丝的结构来制作人造蜘蛛丝，这种做法似乎更具潜力。

 

Scary as they seem, spiders are in fact among our best allies in the animal kingdom. So, think twice next time you move to squash one of our creepy, eight-eyed friends.

虽然蜘蛛看起来很恐怖，但牠们其实是人类在动物王国中的最佳伙伴之一。所以，下次想踩扁这些令人发毛的八眼朋友前，请先三思。

 

−by Barry Hall

 

Vocabulary

单词发音

 

supplement [ˋsʌpləmənt] v. 补充

fearsome [ˋfɪrsəm] adj.〔看上去〕可怕的﹐吓人的

image [ˋɪmɪdʒ] n.（心目中的）形象；印象

behavior [bɪˋhevjɚ] n. 行为，举止

to be precise 确切地说

notorious [noˋtorɪəs] adj. 恶名昭彰的，声名狼藉的

obviously [ˋɑbvɪəslɪ] adv. 明显地；显然地

pest [pɛst] n. 有害的动物，害虫

investigate [ɪnˋvɛstə͵get] v 调查，研究

flexibility [͵flɛksəˋbɪlətɪ] n. 弹性

bulletproof [ˋbʊlɪt͵pruf] adj. 防弹的

potential [pəˋtɛnʃəl] n. 可能性；潜力; 潜能

ally [ˋælaɪ] n. 盟友，同志，同伴

squash [skwɑʃ] v. 把……压扁（压碎）；

 

More Information

单词发音

 

feed on something 靠...为食 to eat something

pollen [ˋpɑlən] n.【植】花粉

run counter 与…相抵触, 违背, 与…背道而驰 to be the opposite of something

widow [ˋwɪdo] n. 寡妇

reflex [ˋriflɛks] n. 反射（作用）; 本能的反应

cockroach [ˋkɑk͵rotʃ] n. 蟑螂；油虫

bandage [ˋbændɪdʒ] n. 绷带

parachute [ˋpærə͵ʃut] n. 降落伞

synthetic [sɪnˋθɛtɪk] adj. 合成的，人造的

 

 

Reading Questions 

 

1. According to the article, which of the following is true?

A. All species use webs to catch prey.

B. Spiders are annoying house and garden pests.

C. Insects are the main food of most spiders.

D. Spider silk is widely used in making products.

 

2. Which word is closest in meaning to the word notorious?

A. infamous

B. celebrated

C. frightening

D. seductive

 

3. Why is it surprising that some spiders eat pollen?

A. Because pollen has no nutritional value.

B. Because pollen is not easily caught in spiders’ webs.

C. Because pollen is usually eaten by ants.

D. Because it doesn’t fit sipders’ scary reputation.

 

4. What does the article imply?

A. Spider webs have been known to stop bullets.

B. Spider silk widely used in the fashion industry.

C. Synthetic spider silk might be widely used in the future.

D. Synthetic spider silk is stronger and more flexible than natural spider silk.

 

 

Goliath bird-eating spider - Expedition Guyana - BBC

 

Spiders Jump with Deadly Accuracy in Green Light

 

 

Deadly Mates: Black Widow Spider

 

 

Answer

1. ( C )

2. ( A )

3. ( D )

4. ( C)