侏羅紀搏擊俱樂部 第35期:地面驚現(xiàn)黑色骨頭

Fast forward 115 million years to the town of Bridgerin south-central Montana.

推進到一億一千五百萬年前，在蒙大拿州中南部的布瑞杰鎮(zhèn)。

It was paleontologist John Ostrum's last day of asummer searching for fossils.

正是古生物學家約翰.奧斯特倫姆夏季搜尋化石的最后一天。

He had no idea that he was about to make asignificant discovery in dinosaur carnage.

他并不知道自己就要做出與恐龍大屠殺相關的重要發(fā)現(xiàn)。

He spotted several shiny black bones protruding from the ground.

他忽然看到幾根突出地面的黑色骨頭。

Taking advantage of what little light remained, he and an assistant began to remove as manybones as they could.

利用夕陽的余暉，他和助手盡最大努力去挖出骨頭。

They find one that was unusual.

他們發(fā)現(xiàn)了一個奇怪的骨頭。

Among the fossils was a deeply curved, sickle shaped claw.

這塊化石上有一個很彎的鐮刀型爪子。

The bones were from a predator.

這根骨頭來自于掠食者。

Ostrum continued to unearth more bones.

奧斯特倫姆繼續(xù)挖掘出更多骨頭。

With each one he realized he'd found the remains of a Deinonychus - a Raptor!

隨著出土的每根骨頭，他意識到自己找到的是恐爪龍——迅猛龍!

Deinonychus belongs to a group of dinosaurs we nickname the Raptors. The scientific name isDromaeosaurs.

恐爪龍是一類被我們叫做迅猛龍的恐龍。學名為馳龍。

Raptors have a couple of different features that make them different from other predators.

迅猛龍有幾個特別之處讓它區(qū)別于其它的掠食者。

Number one, it was the design of their tail.

其一就是它尾部的構造。

Their tail is held stiff by a series of interconnecting bony rods that sort of locked the vertebra inplace.

它們的尾巴很硬實，一些列互相緊扣的骨棒讓尾部的脊椎骨緊連在一起。

This stiff tail acted like a balancing pole.

這種硬實的尾巴像是一根平衡桿。

The dinosaur was able to change directions quickly, he could jump, he could leap into the air,He was an incredible animal.

這種恐龍可以迅速改變方向，它可以跳躍，甚至能騰空而起，是一種了不起的動物。

But the most distinguishing feature of a Raptor was the killing claw on its foot.

但迅猛龍最顯著的特點是它腳上的獵殺爪。

It's an oversize claw on the second digit of each foot that was held upright when the Raptorwas walking.

迅猛龍腳上最大的第二根腳趾在它們走路時會豎起來。

But when he spotted his prey and he leaped on top of it, that claw sort of acted like amousetrap.

不過當它們發(fā)現(xiàn)獵物時它們會縱身而起，那根爪子就像捕鼠器一樣。

It would swing forward, and this dinosaur could slice you open while he's hanging onto you.

它能向前方戳刺，這種恐龍可以掛在獵物身上把獵物撕開。

I think if we tried to look at Deinonychus in terms of living animals, we couldn't really come upwith a match.

我想如果要在現(xiàn)在找到類似恐爪龍的動物，恐怕是沒有與之匹配的。

However, if we combined the characteristics of the Tasmanian Devil and the wolverine and aferocious eagle, I think we might have a general glimpse of what it must've been like.

但如果我們綜合塔斯馬尼亞袋貛，狼獾和以及雄鷹的特點，就大概能看到恐爪龍的影子了。