科學美國人60秒英文文本
This is Scientific American — 60-Second Science. I'm Jason Goldman.
Got a minute?
River otters, like other social animals, have to carefully weigh the costs and benefits of hanging out in large groups. A big group makes it easier to catch fish, which seems like a good deal, but there's a downside to social life too. More otters means more chances for disease transmission, for example, or for aggressive conflict. So they balance these pressures by living in what researchers call a "fission-fusion society."
"There's this constant dynamic of splitting and joining into larger groups."
University of Wyoming ecologist Adi Barocas. To understand the factors that drive these social dynamics, Barocas's team, from the University of Wyoming and the Alaska Department of Fish & Game, has spent decades spying on the coastal river otters of Alaska near Prince William Sound. To do it, they use motion-activated camera traps as well as implanted radio trackers.
"The latrines, which are pretty much communal toilets that the river otters use, they seem to have an important function in the life of river otters."
水獺.jpg
That's right: river otter society is organized around the bathroom. It makes good sense. By investigating a latrine, an otter can sniff out just how many otters there are in the area, and who they might be.
The researchers found that the otters performed more signaling behaviors like sniffing, body rubbing, or urinating, than social behaviors, like grooming or play, at what they called crossover latrines, which were located at the junctions of water bodies.
Thanks to all that communicative signaling, these crossover latrines were also more likely to host fusion events, resulting in large aggregations of up to eighteen otters. In other words, the otters see latrines as a place to exchange information, a sort of central marketplace.
Because the location of crossover latrines was determined by the physical landscape, this suggests that the complexity of the physical environment plays an important role in determining their social behavior.
Next, the researchers want to see just how and what the otters communicate at latrines.
"We often see the river otters sniffing at the latrines and also defecating, and before defecating they do a little ritualized behavior that we termed 'the poop dance.'"
What scents are they trying to sniff out? Which olfactory compounds are at play? Can the otters control the scents they leave behind? Who's watching the poop dance?
And most importantly, why doesn't anybody ever remember to flush?
Thanks for the minute for Scientific American — 60-Second Science Science. I'm Jason Goldman.
科學美國人60秒中文翻譯：
This is Scientific American — 60-Second Science. I'm Jason Goldman. 這里是科學美國人——60秒科學。我是杰森·古德曼。
Got a minute? 有一分鐘時間嗎?
River otters, like other social animals, have to carefully weigh the costs and benefits of hanging out in large groups. 水獺和其他群居動物一樣，必須仔細權(quán)衡一下群居的利與弊。
A big group makes it easier to catch fish, which seems like a good deal, but there's a downside to social life too. 群居生活使捕魚更加容易，這似乎很不錯，但是群居對社交生活也有壞處。
More otters means more chances for disease transmission, for example, or for aggressive conflict. 更多的水獺意味著疾病傳染的幾率也就越大，也可能會引發(fā)更多的矛盾沖突。
So they balance these pressures by living in what researchers call a "fission-fusion society." 所以，他們會通過在“聚散型群體”中的生活來平衡壓力。
"There's this constant dynamic of splitting and joining into larger groups." “這其實就是不斷地分散，然后融入到更大的群體中。”
University of Wyoming ecologist Adi Barocas. 阿迪·巴羅卡斯是美國懷俄明大學的生態(tài)學家。
To understand the factors that drive these social dynamics, 為了了解導(dǎo)致這種社交動態(tài)的原因，
Barocas's team, from the University of Wyoming and the Alaska Department of Fish & Game, 由懷俄明大學和阿拉斯加漁業(yè)和捕獵部門組成的巴羅卡斯的團隊，
has spent decades spying on the coastal river otters of Alaska near Prince William Sound. 花費數(shù)十年的時間對威廉王子灣附近阿拉斯加地區(qū)的海岸水獺進行監(jiān)測。
To do it, they use motion-activated camera traps as well as implanted radio trackers. 為了進行觀察，他們使用了動態(tài)感應(yīng)照相機捕捉技術(shù)以及無線電追蹤技術(shù)。
"The latrines, which are pretty much communal toilets that the river otters use, “這相當于水獺使用的公共廁所，
they seem to have an important function in the life of river otters." 看起來它們在水獺的生活中發(fā)揮了重要的作用?！?BR> That's right: river otter society is organized around the bathroom. It makes good sense. 的確，水獺群是圍繞廁所形成的。這很容易理解。
By investigating a latrine, an otter can sniff out just how many otters there are in the area, and who they might be. 通過調(diào)查公共廁所，一只水獺就可以嗅出還有多少只水獺在這個區(qū)域，以及有哪些水獺在這里。
The researchers found that the otters performed more signaling behaviors like sniffing, body rubbing, or urinating, than social behaviors, like grooming or play, 研究人員發(fā)現(xiàn)，與打扮、玩耍等社交行為相比，水獺會做出更多的信號行為，比如，嗅探、身體摩擦或小便，
at what they called crossover latrines, which were located at the junctions of water bodies. 這些行為發(fā)生在他們稱為交叉公廁的地方，通常這些地方位于水域的匯合處。
Thanks to all that communicative signaling, these crossover latrines were also more likely to host fusion events, 得益于所有的交際性信號，這些交叉公廁更有可能舉辦融合活動，
resulting in large aggregations of up to eighteen otters. 終使多達18只水獺聚集起來。
In other words, the otters see latrines as a place to exchange information, a sort of central marketplace. 換句話說，水獺把公廁視為一個交流信息的地方，就像是集市中心一樣。
Because the location of crossover latrines was determined by the physical landscape, 因為公廁地點是跟據(jù)物理地形確定的，
this suggests that the complexity of the physical environment plays an important role in determining their social behavior. 所以物理環(huán)境的復(fù)雜性在決定水獺社交行為上發(fā)揮著重要作用。
Next, the researchers want to see just how and what the otters communicate at latrines. 接下來，研究人員想知道水獺在公廁的交流方法及交流內(nèi)容。
"We often see the river otters sniffing at the latrines and also defecating, “我們常常發(fā)現(xiàn)水獺在公廁嗅來嗅去，同時它們也會排泄，
and before defecating they do a little ritualized behavior that we termed 'the poop dance.'" 而在排泄前，它們會做一些儀式化的行為，我們稱之為‘排泄之舞'。”
What scents are they trying to sniff out? Which olfactory compounds are at play? 它們試圖嗅到什么氣味呢?哪種嗅覺器官在起作用?
Can the otters control the scents they leave behind? Who's watching the poop dance? 水獺能控制它們留下的氣味嗎?誰會觀看這種排泄之舞?
And most importantly, why doesn't anybody ever remember to flush? 重要的是，為什么沒有一只水獺想著沖廁所呢?
Thanks for the minute for Scientific American — 60-Second Science Science. I'm Jason Goldman. 謝謝大家收聽科學美國人——60秒科學。我是杰森·古德曼。