侏羅紀搏擊俱樂部 第109期:千萬別去惹迅猛龍

Along with its deadly claws, Utahraptor relied on its teeth as an effective means of killing its prey.

除了其致命的爪子外，猶他盜龍憑借它的牙齒作為一個殺死獵物的有效工具。

And to ensure it always had a fresh set, Utahraptor had a special adaptation.

為了保證總有滿口鋒利牙齒，猶他盜龍有一種特殊的適應力。

When we are looking at the jaw of something like Utahraptor, really, many of the predatory dinosaurs, we see that all the teeth aren't really at the same level, but rather they seem to be, some are really poking out a lot, some are just a little bit.

我們觀察猶他盜龍這類恐龍頜骨時，其實很多掠食恐龍都這樣，我們看到的牙齒不是真的在同一個水平的，相反的是它們似乎，有些真的支出來很多，有些則露出來一點點

What that is actually reflecting are the ways that the teeth are replaced.So they actually grow at different rates and at different times.

那實際上反映了的這些牙齒的更替方式。所以其實它們在不同的時間以不同的速度生長。

These reptiles, like Utahraptor, are actually replacing teeth throughout their life, so they've got teeth, they are actually at different stages of their growth and different stage of eruption where they are in the jaw at different parts of their life.

像猶他盜龍這樣的爬行動物，一生之中都在不斷地更換牙齒，所以它們的牙齒實際上處于不同的生長階段，在它們生命的不同部分從頜上冒出來的狀態(tài)也不一樣。

This is actually a very wonderful strategy because these animals are actually breaking teeth.

這其實是一種非常奇妙的策略，因為這些動物其實是在破壞牙齒。

Their life style of actually biting into other animals is pretty tough on their teeth.

它們靠撕咬其它動物的生活方式對其牙齒是嚴峻考驗。

And as a result, they are breaking teeth and wearing them down, yet there is always one in replacement, so they are always equiped with a series of these dagger-like teeth.

結果就是，它們在破壞牙齒或者磨損它們，但總有一個替補，所以它們一直都裝備著滿口匕首一般的利齒。

Along with its sharp claws and replaceable teeth, the Utahraptor was a master strategist.

除了擁有鋒利的爪子和可更新的牙齒，猶他盜龍還是策略高手。

We do CAT scanning of Raptor skulls.

我們對迅猛龍顱骨進行CAT掃描。

We can see that these Raptors like Utahraptor had really fairly expanded brains.

我們能看見像猶他盜龍這樣的迅猛龍有相當膨脹的腦部。

So we see expansion of the higher centers of the brain, the parts of the brain that are associated with maybe even some cognitive capabilities - the abilities to solve problems.

我們看到腦部的高級功能區(qū)的擴大，這部分的大腦可能與認知能力有關，就是解決問題的能力。

These guys had a pretty doglike advanced brain, very much like living birds of today, very smart smart animals.

這些家伙有跟狗非常像的先進大腦，跟如今的鳥類非常相似，它們是很聰明的動物。

Don't mess with the Raptor, you're gonna lose.

別去惹迅猛龍，你會輸?shù)摹?/p>

Being smarter than your prey is an excellent way to remain a top predator.

比你的獵物更加聰明是保持頂級掠食者王座的妙招。

But the ability to adapt to environmental changes is what makes any dinosaur successful.

不過適應環(huán)境變化的能力才是恐龍成功的關鍵。

And in Utahraptor's time, the environment was going through some very dramatic changes indeed.

在猶他盜龍時期，環(huán)境確實正在經(jīng)歷著一些劇烈的改變。

Over the next several million years, the earth continued to cool and seasons became more extreme.

接下來的幾百萬年，地球繼續(xù)變冷，季節(jié)越來越極端。

Plants became increasingly diverse to adapt to the changing seasons.

為了適應季節(jié)的變化，植物的分化愈發(fā)明顯。

Herbivores ranged far and wide to find suitable food and the Utahraptor adapted its hunting strategies to take advantage.

植食動物長途跋涉來尋找合適的食物，猶他盜龍調(diào)整其狩獵策略來占便宜。

When you are a predator and your environment changes, you need to adjust your hunting methods accordingly.

如果你是一個掠食者而你周圍的環(huán)境改變了，你就得相應地調(diào)整狩獵方法。

If you are used to hunting in dense forest and then the forest is replaced by smaller bushes and open country, then you'd better be prepared to tweak your hunting methods.

如果你適應在密林里捕獵，然后森林變成了灌叢或開闊地，那你得準備好改變你的狩獵方法。

And Utahraptor was an expert in doing just that.

猶他盜龍就是個中高手。