与巨兽同行（2005）

经过几亿年进化
After millions of years of evolution,
our distant ancestors have filled the oceans
我们的远亲成了两栖动物
and crawled out onto land.
它们逃过沼泽的巨型生物
They have survived the giant insects of the swamps
进化成长有尖牙的爬虫
and mushroomed into massive reptiles, armed to the teeth.
但到这时期,亦只停留于…
But now the war they've waged so long
is much more than a battle between predator and prey.
猎食者和捕食者之间的战事
不久,整个行星将陷入另一种危机
The whole planet is entering a different kind of crisis,
它会杀死大部份巨型怪物
one that will destroy most of these monster reptiles
并将地球上九♥成♥生物歼灭
and wipe out 90 per cent of life on earth.
这时,地球上的陆地连成一遍
All the continents on earth have now drifted together
to create on giant land mass called Pangaea.
成为盘♥古♥大♥陆♥
中心点是地球史上最大遍的沙漠
And at its centre lies the largest desert the world has ever seen.
只有强悍生物
It's a brutal world where animals have to be especially tough.
才能在这地域上生存
Perfect for reptiles.
对爬虫动物尤其合适
这是重一顿的西伯尼亚杯龙
This is a one-ton Siberian Scutosaurus,
是龟的远亲
a distant ancestor of turtles.
虽然它没有壳,但背部非常坚硬
Although he has no shell, his back is covered in hard, bony plates.
长有骨板
同时间,这沙堆上有可怕的猎人
And just as well: these sand dunes hide a fearsome predator.
杯龙通常群体出没
Scutosaurus normally travel in herds.
但这年老的雄性赶不上它们
But this old male's got left behind, and his keen nose senses danger.
它敏锐的鼻子嗅到危险
只要感到疲累,它就会受到攻击
Once he tires, he's vulnerable.
袭击它的是食肉的Gorgonopsid
His attacker is a carnivorous Gorgonopsid.
它速度快,有力
She's fast, powerful, and equipped
而且具备前所未有的杀人武器
with deadly weapons no hunter has had before.
老杯龙既疲累,又被困
Exhausted, trapped and weakened by his wound,
the old Scutosaurus has no fight left.
注定难逃一劫
它只能等候对方作出攻击
All he can do is wait for the killer blow.
Gorgonopsid的颚有十二厘米尖牙
The Gorgonopsid's huge jaws hold a pair of fangs 12 centimetres long.
它进化出世上最早的犬齿
She has evolved the world's first sabre teeth -
是后世哺乳动物选用的狩猎工具
a lethal weapon some mammal predators will later use.
这荒凉的地域上
In this harsh landscape,
爬虫世界的大战即将展开
the reptile's biggest battle is now with the elements.
火山活动令气温上升至最高点
A massive surge in volcanic activity is beginning to superheat the atmosphere,
creating the highest temperature life on earth has ever known.
沙漠每年不断扩张
Each year the deserts spread.
就连离赤道最北面的西伯尼亚
Even here in Siberia, far north of the equator,
就算小动物
animals are forced to cluster around any lasting source of water,
都要为寻找食水而奔波
no matter how small.
这巨型的Gorgonopsid吃过杯龙后
The huge female Gorgonopsid has come looking for a drink to wash down the Scutosaurus,
要寻找水源
就连小Gorgonopsid都要让路
and even smaller Gorgonopsids will do well to keep out of her way.
它从鼻至尾巴有五米长
Five metres long from nose to tail,
是地球上最顶尖的猎食者
she's the top predator on earth.
它将会在地球雄霸三千年
There'll be nothing to rival her
until the dinosaurs evolve in 30 million years' time.
直至恐龙出现才告终
跟恐龙不同的是这早期的爬虫
But unlike the dinosaurs,
these early reptiles are more closely linked to our ancestors,
相较起蜥蜴和鳄鱼
mammals, than to lizards and crocodiles.
更接近我们的祖先,即是哺乳动物
它们没有毛皮
They don't have fur,
但表皮已进化出气味腺
but they've already evolved scent glands in their skin.
所以其他动物会察觉它走近
This way, everyone can tell when the giant Gorgonopsid is around.
尽管有这巨型怪兽徘徊
Despite the presence of these heavyweights,
但周围的水坑仍有小生物出没
smaller creatures also eke out a living around the waterhole.
只有半米长的
Diictodon, a hardly little burrower, just half a metre long.
挖掘地洞专家Diictodon
它们一对对的住在地洞
They live as pairs in spiral burrows which remain cool even in the desert heat.
那里是沙漠唯一较清凉的地方
Diictodon跟大型猎食者一样
Like the large predators outside,
Diictodon are distant reptile relatives of mammals,
是哺乳动物的爬虫远亲
虽然离第一只哺乳动物出现
and although it will be 30 million years before the first true mammals appear,
还有三千年时间
但它们两者已有某些相似之处
there are already family resemblances.
而它的听觉与下颚
In particular, his hearing is linked to tiny bones in his lower jaw.
更以小型骨骼相连
这结构更会进化成人类的中耳骨
One day these will evolve into our middle ear bones,
这是爬虫动物所没有的
something no reptile has.
几对Diictodon在附近的水坑居住
Several pairs of Diictodon live around the waterhole,
但它们不是一个集群
but this is not a colony,
它们在稀疏的草园互相争夺食物
they compete furiously for the sparse vegetation that is their food.
最终导致一场纠纷
This frequently leads to confrontation.
这解释了何以雄性
These clashes are one reason
why both males and females sport a pair of short tusks.
和雌性都长有长牙
住在人群中,有一个好处
There is, however, one big advantage to living in a crowd:
因为只要有一人发现危险
if a neighbour spots danger, everyone soon knows about it.
消息就能迅速流传
Gorgonopsid来调查一番
A Gorgonopsid has come to investigate.
只要它们合上双颚
A single snap of those enormous jaws would crush Diictodon -
就可将Diictodon弄至粉碎
但它要先抓住它们
if they could get a grip.
不过体型不是永远控制一切
But it's not always size that counts.
这小鬼头比想像中麻烦得多
These tiny mouthfuls are more trouble than they're worth.
Gorgonopsid知道在水坑附近
The Gorgonopsid knows that if she hangs around the waterhole for long enough,
逗留愈久
eventually larger prey will come to her.
就愈会吸引另一些狩猎者注意
这水坑有另一只隐居生物
There is another, unseen, resident of this waterhole.
比起爬虫,这怪物并不适合这地方
A monster much less suited than the reptiles to the changing climate.
它生于沙漠世界
A fugitive from when this desert world was lush and green.
当时还是一片绿色的年代
它爱在水底潜伏,就如一条鳄鱼
It lies in ambush underwater, like a crocodile.
它是巨型的两栖动物-迷龙
A giant amphibian Labyrinthodont.
但这条雌性却选错了对象
But pound for pound, this female's picked the wrong target.
两栖动物通常都要失望而回
The amphibian's ambush attempt was probably driven by sheer desperation.
多个世代以来
For generations this waterhole has supported a wide range of animals,
水坑供养了无数动物
包括另外几条迷龙
including several other Labyrinthodonts.
但这已是最后一条
But this one is the last,
只要水坑消失,它就会被困住
and as the water she depends on disappears, she's trapped.
The wet season arrives, but there's no rain.
雨季来临,但雨水并未随之而来
With life under such pressure,
这为生命注入压力
species are dying out at a rate
很多品种消失
要到二亿五千万年后
that won't be matched until humans evolve in 250 million years' time.
人类出现,才再有这情况发生
水坑现在只剩下大泥潭
The waterhole is now no more than a large puddle.
Diictodon最能够适应这情况
Diictodon are more adaptable than most.
为了逃过热力,它们挖进深处
They can dig deeper to escape the heat,
在石地里,挖出一条隧♥道♥
carving out tunnels in the rock-hard mud.
但巨型的两栖动物却遇上麻烦
But the giant amphibian is in big trouble,
and as she grows weaker, her enemy watches and waits.
它愈来愈虚弱
它的敌人在旁边伺机而动
这是个猫捉老鼠的游戏
It's a deadly game of cat and mouse.
但生命却静静转变,影响着所有生物
But life here is about to change for everyone.
杯龙嗅出这个水坑
A migrating herd of Scutosaurus has sniffed out the waterhole.
水源的气味可能来自几公里外
It's possible the smelt the water several miles away,
这已是它们近六个月来首次喝水
and this could well be the first drink they've had in six months.
沙漠的植物亦能提供到少量养份
The desert plants are a poor source of nutrients,
but these large reptiles are designed to squeeze out every ounce,
但这些巨型爬虫却能善用它们
尽管它们没有牙齿
although they cannot chew.
它们的大型胃部能存放沙砾
Their huge stomachs hold stones they've picked up from the desert.
藉以磨碎植物
These help grind the vegetation so their digestive juices can get to work.
再让消化液完成整个消化过程
强悍细小Diictodon要时刻保持警觉
The tough little Diictodons are used to dodging danger.
Gorgonopsid就在附近
But the Gorgonopsid now keeps her distance.
不过连它也担心攻击这么大的族群
Even she dare not attack such a large armoured herd.
今次打成平手
It's a standoff.
逐渐杯龙比猎食者
It turns out the Scutosaurus are a bigger threat to life
对生命构成更严重的威胁
around the waterhole than the predators.
Within a few days they have drunk it dry.
因为不消几天,它们就将水坑喝光
并再一次上路,寻找食物
And moved on once again in their eternal search for food.
它们揭示了寄居盘♥古♥大♥陆♥的苦况
They represent the plight of all creatures on the continent of Pangaea.
旱灾破坏了几亿年的进化过程
The global drought is now obliterating millions of years of evolution.
生命危在旦夕
Life everywhere is on the brink.
对不会迁徙的动物而言
For animals that do not migrate,
危机更一触即发
the situation's reaching a crisis point.
饥饿驱使Gorgonopsid
Hunger drives the Gorgonopsid back to the Diictodon -
再次走近Diictodon
and this time she tries to dig them out.