Saber-tooth died out, but another big cat survived.
剑齿虎灭绝了,但是另一种大型猫科动物幸存了下来。
The puma may have been more able to adapt because its diet is more varied and includes small prey. The grizzly bear also lived through the post Ice Age changes and now thrives in North America. Once again, a varied diet of meat and plants made it a versatile survivor.
美洲狮或许有更强的适应能力,这是因为他们的饮食多种多样,它们同样捕食一些小体型猎物。灰熊也在同样在冰河时代后期的巨变中幸存了下来,现在在北美洲代代繁衍。同样,不挑剔的饮食习惯使它们幸存了下来。
The moose is now the largest browser on the continent. During the last Ice Age, moose were restricted to the far north, but after the ice melted, they spread south. They took the place of mastodons and the larger stag-moose, both of which became extinct.
目前,驼鹿是这片大陆体型最大的食草动物,在冰河时代后期,他们只能在遥远的北方生存,然而在冰雪融化后,他们开始向南方迁徙。他们取代了乳齿象和体型较大的牡鹿,这两种动物已经灭绝了。
Bison, too, were to benefit from the post Ice Age changes. They managed to survive the draught, eventually expanding in number to replace the horse as dominant grazer. As ruminants with multi-chambered stomachs, bison can extract more nutrients from grass and this may help explain why they survived when other grazers such as the wild horses did not.
美洲野牛也从冰河时代后期的巨变中获益。他们从干旱存活了下来,并最终在数量上超过了马,成为了最大的食草群体。正是由于野牛是反刍动物,它们由多个储存食物的消化器官,因此能够从草中吸收更多的营养,这也许能够解释为什么他们能够幸存下来,而像野马一样的食草动物却已经灭绝。
While all these creatures were adapting to their changing landscape, another animal was just beginning to make North America its home. It’s thought the dog arrived with early people and its descendents are still with us today. The Carolina dog lives in the woods of South Carolina.
而正当这些生物正在适应变化的地貌时,另一种动物在北美大陆的生活则如家中舒适。狗被认为是随着早起的人类一同来到北美大陆的,他们的后代至今仍和我们同存。卡罗来纳犬就生存在卡罗莱纳州南部的森林里。
Like most primitive dogs, it makes its den in the ground or in hollow tree trunks. The Carolina dog is often called the American dingo. It does look like its Australian relative, but links between the two may go deeper than that. Genetic analysis of the Carolina dogs suggests they are closely related to primitive wild dogs like the dingo.
和大多数的野犬一样,它们把洞穴建在地下或者树洞中,卡罗来纳犬经常被称做美国澳洲野犬,它们的相貌于澳洲野犬十分相似,但是两者之间的联系可能更加密切,卡罗莱纳犬的遗传基因表明,它们和澳洲野狗一样与原始野狗有着密切的联系。
英文文本来自普特英语,译文属可可原创,仅供学习交流使用,未经许可不得转载。