“咸魚(yú)”華麗轉(zhuǎn)身：一口吃掉一條鯊魚(yú)

“咸魚(yú)”華麗轉(zhuǎn)身：一口吃掉一條鯊魚(yú)

You may not have heard of the peculiar denizens of the deep known as wreckfish. Despite their daunting dimensions — they can weigh up to 220 pounds and stretch six-and-a-half feet — they mostly swim under the radar.

你可能沒(méi)有聽(tīng)說(shuō)過(guò)深海里被稱(chēng)為沉船魚(yú)的物種。盡管體型龐大，令人望而生畏——它們體重可達(dá)220磅，伸展能力可達(dá)6.5英尺——但它們大多在雷達(dá)的監(jiān)視下出沒(méi)。

Among the savvier citizens of the sea, they live as long as 70 years, probably by keeping to themselves. They frequent the deepest depths of the western Atlantic Ocean between Newfoundland and Argentina. Their name comes from their haunting habit of lurking in caves and shipwrecks.

在精明的海洋生物中，它們可以活到70歲，這可能是由于它們不愿與人交往。它們經(jīng)常出沒(méi)于紐芬蘭和阿根廷之間的西大西洋最深處。它們的名字來(lái)自于它們潛伏在洞穴和沉船中這一令人難以忘懷的習(xí)性。

But recently, one took a star-making turn — by devouring an entire shark in one gulp.

但最近，一只鯊魚(yú)開(kāi)始了造星之旅——一口氣吃掉一整條鯊魚(yú)。

At least 11 dogfish were feasting on the remains of a swordfish n the ocean floor. (Photo: NOAA)

A research team from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) just happened to be combing the depths just off South Carolina with a remotely operated vehicle. They were searching for a frigate sunk by German submarinesduring World War II.

美國(guó)國(guó)家海洋和大氣管理局(NOAA)的一個(gè)研究小組恰好在南卡羅萊納附近用一個(gè)遙控飛行器搜索海底深處。他們正在尋找一艘二戰(zhàn)期間被德國(guó)潛艇擊沉的護(hù)衛(wèi)艦。

The team came across a shark feeding frenzy. They ended up capturing a "once-in-a-lifetime event."

這個(gè)團(tuán)隊(duì)遇到了瘋狂的鯊魚(yú)捕食。他們最終捕捉到了一個(gè)“一生一次的事件”。

One shark then became the breakfast of wreckfish.

一條鯊魚(yú)成了沉船魚(yú)的早餐。

Granted the shark in question was no great white, but rather a dogfish — a bottom-dweller that feeds mostly on things that are already dead, and typically doesn't stretch more than a couple of feet. This particular dogfish, as a juvenile, was even smaller. Still those trademark spurs on its back might have caused any other potential predator to at least to re-think his dining choice.

當(dāng)然，我們討論的鯊魚(yú)并不是大白鯊，而是一種角鯊——一種生活在海底的動(dòng)物，主要以已經(jīng)死亡的東西為食，伸展后通常不超過(guò)兩英尺。這種特殊的角鯊，幼年時(shí)甚至更小。不過(guò)，它背上那些標(biāo)志性的刺，可能至少會(huì)讓其他潛在的捕食者重新考慮自己的就餐選擇。

All that remained of the shark was a telltale tail. (Photo: NOAA)

But not the wreckfish. In one terrifying gulp, the shark disappears, leaving only its tail dangling from the creature's mouth — a moment that produces a loud response from the voices. (You'll note they refer to it as a grouper, a similar fish.)

但不會(huì)嚇退沉船魚(yú)。在一次可怕的吞咽之后，鯊魚(yú)消失了，只留下它的尾巴懸在嘴里——這一時(shí)刻，它的聲音產(chǎn)生了巨大的反應(yīng)。(你會(huì)注意到它們是一種與石斑魚(yú)類(lèi)似的魚(yú)。)

Researchers can't quite explain why the wreckfish diverted from its typical diet of squid and octopus with crustaceans on the side.

研究人員不能很好地解釋為什么沉船魚(yú)改變了它的典型飲食-烏賊和章魚(yú)等甲殼類(lèi)。

"This rare and startling event leaves us with more questions than answers," Auster writes. "But such is the nature of scientific exploration."

奧斯特寫(xiě)道:“這一罕見(jiàn)而令人震驚的事件留給我們的問(wèn)題多于答案。”“但這就是科學(xué)探索的本質(zhì)。