巴西发现的化石揭示鸟类大脑发育过程
📖 逐句对照翻译
The brains of today's birds show a level of intelligence and behavioral complexity rivaled only by mammals.
今天鸟类的大脑所展现出的智力水平和行为复杂性，只有哺乳动物能与之匹敌。
But scientists do not fully understand how bird brains have changed over millions of years from the form they had as dinosaurs.
但科学家们并不完全了解鸟类的大脑在数百万年间是如何从恐龙时期的形态演变而来的。
That understanding is now growing thanks to a fossil discovery in Brazil.
由于在巴西的一项化石发现，这种认识正在不断增强。
Researchers unearthed the remains, or fossil, of a head bone, or skull, of a bird species not known before.
研究人员发掘出一种以前未知鸟类物种的头骨遗骸，即化石。
It has been named Navaornis hestiae.
它被命名为Navaornis hestiae。
The fossil was in such good condition that scientists were able to create a computer image of its brain and inner ear structures.
这块化石保存得非常好，科学家们得以制作出它大脑和内耳结构的计算机图像。
It lived in a dry area about 80 million years ago during the Cretaceous Period, near the end of the age of dinosaurs.
它生活在约8000万年前的白垩纪时期，那是一片干燥的地区，当时正值恐龙时代的末期。
One of a kind
独一无二的
"This finding is one-of-a-kind," said University of Cambridge fossil expert Guillermo Navalón, a lead researcher of the study.
剑桥大学化石专家、该研究首席研究员吉列尔莫·纳瓦隆表示：“这一发现独一无二。”
It appeared this month in the publication Nature.
它于本月发表在《自然》杂志上。
Birds developed from small, feathered dinosaurs during the Jurassic Period.
鸟类是在侏罗纪时期由小型、有羽毛的恐龙进化而来的。
The Navaornis discovery filled in a 70-million-year gap in the understanding of the development of the bird, dating back to the earliest-known bird Archaeopteryx.
纳瓦鸟的发现填补了人们对鸟类演化认知中长达7000万年的空白，这一空白可追溯至已知最早的鸟类——始祖鸟。
It lived about 150 million years ago in what is now Europe.
它大约生活在1.5亿年前，地点是如今的欧洲。
The researchers said the Navaornis skull has a bill and eye shape like modern birds.
研究人员表示，纳瓦ornis的头骨具有像现代鸟类一样的喙和眼睛形状。
Its brain shows both modern and ancient elements, and some that are in between.
它的大脑既显示出近代特征，也显示出古老特征，还有一些介于两者之间的特征。
Well-preserved example
保存完好的例子
Luis Chiappe is a fossil scientist at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County in California and a co-writer of the study.
路易斯·恰佩是加利福尼亚州洛杉矶县自然历史博物馆的化石科学家，也是这项研究的合著者。
He said scientists rarely find such skulls of early birds, “and this one is the best preserved ever.
他说，科学家很少能找到早期鸟类的这类头骨，“而这是迄今为止保存最完好的一个。”
"
“
Daniel Field is a fossil scientist at the University of Cambridge and the study’s lead writer.
丹尼尔·菲尔德是剑桥大学的化石科学家，也是这项研究的主要作者。
He said scientists have long struggled to understand how and when the brains and intelligence of birds developed.
他说，科学家们长期以来一直难以理解鸟类的大脑和智力是如何以及何时发展起来的。
“The field has been awaiting the discovery of a fossil exactly like this one," he said.
他说：“该领域一直期待着发现一块与此完全相同的化石。”
The Navaornis brain - measuring about 10 millimeters across - is smaller, relative to skull size, than that of modern birds.
纳瓦鸟的大脑宽约10毫米，相对于头骨尺寸而言，比现代鸟类的大脑要小。
But the skull is larger and more complex than that of Archaeopteryx.
但这块头骨比始祖鸟的头骨更大、更复杂。
Its cerebellum, a brain structure that in living birds helps with motor control during flight, was smaller than in today's bird species and more like Archaeopteryx's.
它的 小脑 ——这一 脑部 结构 在 现生 鸟类 中 有助 于 飞行 时 的 运动 控制——比 当今 鸟类 物种 的 小脑 更小，更 像 始祖鸟 的 小脑。
But its brain was connected to the spinal cord in a way similar to modern birds, as well as humans.
但它的大脑与脊髓的连接方式与现代鸟类以及人类相似。
It was unlike Archaeopteryx and the dinosaurs from which birds evolved.
它与始祖鸟以及鸟类所演化的恐龙不同。
Navaornis also had something special – its inner ear organ for balance is larger than in any other known bird.
纳瓦鸟还有一个特别之处——其内耳中负责平衡的器官比任何已知鸟类都要大。
The fossil included 80 percent of the bird’s bone structure, or skeleton.
该化石包含了这只鸟80%的骨骼结构，即骨架。
The scientists say they believe the bird could fly well based on their examination of the remains.
科学家们表示，根据他们对遗骸的检查，他们认为这只鸟能够很好地飞行。
Its name means "Nava's bird," named for William Nava, the scientist who discovered the fossil in 2016 in the southeastern Brazilian state of Sao Paulo.
它的名字意为“纳瓦的鸟”，以2016年在巴西东南部圣保罗州发现该化石的科学家威廉·纳瓦命名。
No direct line to today's birds
与今天的鸟类没有直接联系
Navaornis lived during the Cretaceous period, but none of these birds survived the asteroid strike that took place 66 million years ago.
纳瓦鸟生活在白垩纪时期，但这些鸟类都没能在那场6600万年前的小行星撞击中幸存下来。
That means there is no direct line from Navaornis to today's birds, and its modern-looking abilities and appearance developed separately from theirs.
这意味着纳瓦鸟与今天的鸟类之间没有直接的血统关系，它那看似现代的能力和外观是独立于现代鸟类演化出来的。
The researchers said the bird ate insects and seeds it could take in whole.
研究人员表示，这种鸟吃的是它能整只吞下的昆虫和种子。
It lived side-by-side with huge, long-necked plant-eating dinosaurs and large meat-eating dinosaurs.
它与体型巨大、长颈的植食性恐龙以及大型肉食性恐龙并肩生活。
Field said if you gave it a quick look you might think it was like a living bird.
菲尔德说，如果你快速看一眼，可能会觉得它像一只活鸟。
But a closer look would show you some important differences – like claws coming out of its wings.
但仔细观察，你会发现一些重要的差异——比如从翅膀上伸出的爪子。
I’m Jill Robbins.
我是吉尔·罗宾斯。
Will Dunham reported this story for Reuters.
威尔·邓纳姆为路透社报道了这则新闻。
The images are licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-08114-4#rightslink).
这些图像根据知识共享署名4.0国际许可协议（https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-08114-4#rightslink）授权。
Jill Robbins adapted the report for Learning English.
吉尔·罗宾斯为《学习英语》改编了这篇报道。
