時(shí)差N小時(shí):吃蜘蛛的蒼蠅
近來吧，到我的客廳來，蜘蛛對蒼蠅說道。
At least that's usually the way it goes. In mostshowdowns between spiders and flies, the oddsweigh heavily in the spider's favor. Today, however,we'll look at a few species of fly that manage to turnthe tables on their eight legged foes.
至少這種情形經(jīng)常發(fā)生。在蜘蛛與蒼蠅的較量中，蜘蛛的勝算占多數(shù)。今天，我們將會(huì)觀察幾種蒼蠅，看它們是如何成功反擊，打敗那八條腿的敵人?
When many spiders capture a fly, they don't eat it right away. Instead, they poison the flyand wrap it in silk. They leave this silk-wrapped package for later consumption, just the way youstore food in your pantry instead of eating it all right there at the supermarket.
許多蜘蛛捕獲到一只蒼蠅時(shí)，并不立即把它吃掉。相反它們會(huì)給蒼蠅注射毒液，吐出蛛絲將其團(tuán)團(tuán)圍住。它們留著蒼蠅包裹晚點(diǎn)再享用。正如你逛完超市后把食品儲(chǔ)存在食品柜里，而不是立刻就吃掉一樣。
Imagine yourself as a fly passing a web full of these wrapped-up dead flies. You mightimagine you'd be frightened by the spectacle of your comrades, wrapped up like so manyHostess Twinkies. Not so for the Microphorus crassipes. This fly species sees a spider's larderas a golden opportunity. Indeed, it gets most of its food by stealing these silk-wrappedpackages--very carefully of course--from spiders.
假想自己是一只蒼蠅，正飛過掛滿這種死蒼蠅包裹的蛛網(wǎng)。你也許會(huì)被同伴們壯烈的慘象嚇到。但是對Microphorus crassipes而言，卻并不會(huì)如此。這種蒼蠅視蜘蛛的儲(chǔ)物柜為絕好的機(jī)會(huì)。確實(shí)，它通過偷取這些包裹來獲取大部分食物，當(dāng)然它也會(huì)十分小心地提防蜘蛛。
Another type of fly found worldwide, called Robber Flies, take this thieving concept onestep further. Instead of just stealing the spider's food, certain robber flies go after the spideritself. Robber flies have been seen snatching a spider off of the ground, carrying it away, andeating it.
世界上另一種蒼蠅——食蟲虻，更進(jìn)一步地發(fā)揚(yáng)了這種偷盜概念。它不僅偷取蛛網(wǎng)上的食物，還跟蹤蜘蛛。有人見過食蟲虻將蜘蛛打翻在地，將其拖走食之。
Even worse news for spiders: There's a whole family of flies--the Small Headed flies--whoselarvae actually develop inside a spider's body. These fly larvae burrow into a passing spider,then proceed to eat the spider from the inside out. Spider or fly, fly or spider. Betting on thespider isn't always a sure thing.
還有更令人發(fā)指的消息：有一種小頭蒼蠅，它們整個(gè)家族的幼蟲都是在蜘蛛體內(nèi)發(fā)育成熟的。這種幼蟲趁蜘蛛走過時(shí)鉆入其體內(nèi)，接著就一點(diǎn)點(diǎn)由內(nèi)到外吃掉蜘蛛。蜘蛛還是蒼蠅，蒼蠅還是蜘蛛，賭蜘蛛贏也不見得總是對的。
