時差N小時:為什么會有那么多死蛇在路上?

It's a familiar sight: you're driving along one of thoselong, dry stretches of highway in any of thesouthwestern states, and you keep coming acrosssnakes that have been run over by cars. Why shouldsnakes have worse luck with cars than any otherdesert animal does?

很熟悉的一幕：當(dāng)你駕車在西南各州沿著其中一條又長又干燥的高速公路行駛時，你會不斷遇到被汽車碾壓過的蛇。為什么蛇比其它野生動物更加不幸得成為了車輪的犧牲品呢?

One reason is that snakes are cold-blooded—that is,their body temperature isn't maintained internallythe way ours is, but fluctuates with the temperature of their environment.

原因之一是蛇是冷血動物，這就意味著它的體溫不會像人類一樣保持恒溫，而是隨著環(huán)境的溫度變化而變化。

If you are cold-blooded and you live in the desert, you will find yourself getting very chilly atnight, because sandy terrain does not hold heat very long after sunset. To get around this,snakes will often "bask" on warm rocks; and they also seek hot places to help aid in theirdigestion. This, in fact, is true of any snake, no matter what part of the country you find themin.

如果你是冷血動物，并且也住在荒漠，你會發(fā)現(xiàn)夜晚你的身體變得異常冰冷。因為日落后沙地不會長時間保持熱度。為了解決這個問題，蛇類經(jīng)常在溫暖的巖石上“曬太陽”;它們也會尋找炎熱的地方幫助消化。實際上任何蛇都是這樣，不論是在國內(nèi)哪個地方，都能找見它們。

The deserts just make a particularly clear case exactly because they do get cold so fast at night,and snakes can't hide out in wooded or grassy areas. Now you can probably see the problemthat comes when human beings enter into the picture. When we move into deserts, we buildthose long roads out of asphalt and other materials that retain heat long after the sun has gonedown. Desert snakes come out to bask away the cold hours on these convenient stretches ofwarmth. And, well...that turns out to be a mistake.

沙漠讓情形變得更加特殊，因為在夜里蛇的體溫降低過快，而且不能藏在樹林或者草地里。現(xiàn)在你能想象到當(dāng)人類進入荒漠會引起什么麻煩。人類進入荒漠，用瀝青和其它可以在日落后長久保溫的材料鋪路?；哪锏纳吲艹鰜碓谶@塊溫暖的樂土上消磨寒冷的時光。然而，事實證明這是錯誤的選擇。