[E314]Greater than the sum of its parts【经济学人】
本文为《经济学人》2015年度十大最受欢迎文章No.1
It is rare for a new animal species to emerge in front of scientists’ eyes. But this seems to be happening in eastern North America.
October 3rd | Science and technology
LIKE some people who might rather not admit it, wolves faced with a scarcity of potential sexual partners are not beneath lowering their standards. It was desperation[绝望;不顾一切,拼命] of this sort, biologists reckon, that led dwindling wolf populations in southern Ontario to begin, a century or two ago, breeding[生育;繁殖;孕育;导致] widely with dogs and coyotes[kaɪˈoʊti][郊狼;丛林狼;草原狼]. The clearance of forests for farming, together with the deliberate[故意的;蓄意的] persecution which wolves often suffer at the hand of man, had made life tough for the species. That same forest clearance, though, both permitted coyotes to spread from their prairie[大草原,大牧场;草原地带] homeland into areas hitherto exclusively[专有地; 排外地] lupine[狼], and brought the dogs that accompanied the farmers into the mix.
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▷ scarcity [ˈskersəti]
n. 不足，缺乏; 稀少; 萧条
a time of scarcity
物资短缺时期
▷ beneath [bɪˈniθ]
prep.在…的下方; （表示等级）低于;
（表示状态）在…掩饰之下; （表示环境）在…影响之下
Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity.
烙牛肉饼并不有损你的尊严。
▷ reckon [ˈrɛkən]
vt. 测算，估计; 认为; 计算; 评定，断定;
vi. 计算; 估计; 猜想; 料想;
Don't reckon upon your relatives to help you out of trouble.
不要指望你的亲戚会帮助你摆脱困境.
▷ dwindle [ˈdwɪndl]
vi. 减少，变小，缩小; 衰落，变坏，退化
The number of people going to the cinema seems to dwindle steadily.
看电影的人数似乎在逐渐下降.
▷ persecution [ˌpə:sɪˈkjuʃən]
n. 迫害或受迫害，烦扰; 苛求，困扰
It is worthwhile to note that both suffered persecution.
值得注意的是,双方都受到过迫害.
▷ hitherto [ˌhɪðərˈtu:]
adv. 到目前为止; 迄今; 至今
a hitherto unknown species of moth
迄今仍属未知种类的蛾
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Interbreeding[异种交配;杂交] between animal species usually leads to offspring[后代;崽;幼苗] less vigorous[有力的; 精力充沛的] than either parent—if they survive at all. But the combination of wolf, coyote and dog DNA that resulted from this reproductive[生殖的; 再生产的; 复制的] necessity[必要（性）; （迫切）需要; 必需品; 自然规律] generated an exception[出现例外]. The consequence has been booming numbers of an extraordinarily fit new animal (see picture) spreading through the eastern part of North America.
Some call this creature[生物，动物] the eastern coyote. Others, though, have dubbed it the “coywolf”. Whatever name it goes by, Roland Kays of North Carolina State University[北卡州立大学], in Raleigh, reckons it now numbers in the millions.
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▷ dub [dʌb]
vt. （以剑触肩）封…为爵士; 授予称号; 起绰号; 配音
Mulligan will dub me a new name: the bullockbefriending bard.
穆利根会给我起个新外号:阉牛之友派“大诗人”.
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The mixing of genes that has created the coywolf has been more rapid, pervasive and transformational[转换的，转换生成的] than many once thought. Javier Monzón, who worked until recently at Stony Brook University in New York state (he is now at Pepperdine University, in California) studied the genetic make-up of 437 of the animals, in ten north-eastern states plus Ontario. He worked out that, though coyote DNA dominates[支配,主导;影响;占有优势], a tenth of[十分之一] the average coywolf’s genetic material[遗传物质] is dog and a quarter[四分之一] is wolf.
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▷ pervasive [pərˈveɪsɪv]
adj. 普遍的; 扩大的; 渗透的; 弥漫的;
adv. 无处不在地; 遍布地
She lives with a pervasive sense of guilt.
她生活在深深的愧疚之中。
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The DNA from both wolves and dogs (the latter mostly large breeds, like Doberman Pinschers[杜宾犬] and German Shepherds[德国牧羊犬]), brings big advantages, says Dr Kays. At 25kg or more, many coywolves have twice the heft of purebred coyotes. With larger jaws, more muscle and faster legs, individual coywolves can take down small deer. A pack of them can even kill a moose[大角麋，驼鹿].
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▷ heft [heft]
n. 重量，体积;
vt. 举…以掂重量; 举起
Melly couldn't even heft that sword!
媚兰连那刀子也举不起来呢!
▷ purebred [ˈpjʊrˈbrɛd]
adj. 纯血统的;
n. 纯血统的动物（或植物）
We have lots of valuable and purebred pets for sale.
我们销售许多宝贵的纯种宠物.
▷ jaw [dʒɔ]
n. 下巴; 颌
His jaw was broken after he was hit on the head.
他的头部受重击之后下颌骨折了。
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Coyotes dislike hunting in forests. Wolves prefer it. Interbreeding has produced an animal skilled at catching prey[捕捉猎物] in both open terrain[开阔地形] and densely wooded areas[密林地区], says Dr Kays. And even their cries[喊，叫] blend those of their ancestors. The first part of a howl[嚎叫，咆哮] resembles[像,类似于] a wolf’s (with a deep pitch[最高点; 音高]), but this then turns into a higher-pitched, coyote-like yipping[犬吠，叫喊].
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▷ blend [blɛnd]
vi. 掺杂; 结合; 相配，相称
She felt she would blend in nicely.
她觉得自己可以很好地融入进来。
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The animal’s range has encompassed America’s entire north-east, urban areas included, for at least a decade, and is continuing to expand in the south-east following coywolves’ arrival there half a century ago. This is astonishing[惊人的]. Purebred coyotes never managed to establish themselves east of the prairies[大草原,大牧场;草原地带]. Wolves were killed off in eastern forests long ago. But by combining their DNA, the two have given rise to an animal that is able to spread into a vast and otherwise uninhabitable territory[不适于居住的领地]. Indeed, coywolves are now living even in large cities, like Boston, Washington and New York. According to Chris Nagy of the Gotham Coyote Project, which studies them in New York, the Big Apple[纽约城] already has about 20, and numbers are rising.
大苹果城即Big Apple，是美国纽约市的别称。
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▷ encompass [ɛnˈkʌmpəs]
vt. 围绕，包围; 包含或包括某事物; 完成
The sounds of life encompass his path.
他在路上只听得四面八方都是人声.
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Even wilier
Some speculate that this adaptability[适应性; 合用性] to city life is because coywolves’ dog DNA has made them more tolerant of people and noise, perhaps counteracting the genetic material from wolves—an animal that dislikes humans. And interbreeding may have helped coywolves urbanise[使都市化，使文雅] in another way, too, by broadening the animals’ diet. Having versatile tastes is handy for city living. Coywolves eat pumpkins[南瓜], watermelons[西瓜] and other garden produce[农作物], as well as discarded food. They also eat rodents[啮齿目动物] and other smallish[有点小的，短小的] mammals[哺乳动物]. Many lawns and parks are kept clear of thick underbrush[灌木丛; 林下灌丛], so catching squirrels[松鼠] and pets is easy. Cats are typically eaten skull[颅骨，头盖骨; 脑袋; 脑子] and all, with clues left only in the droppings[排泄物; 滴下物; 动物粪便].
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▷ wily [ˈwaɪli]
adj. 狡诈的，狡猾的; 足智多谋的; 诡计多端的
He's a wily old fox.
他是个诡计多端的老狐狸。
▷ speculate [ˈspɛkjəˌlet]
vt. 思索，猜测，推测;
vi. 投机; 推测; 思索;
It's always hard to speculate about the future.
未来一向很难预测。
▷ counteracting [ˌkaʊntɚˈækt]
vt. 抵消; 阻碍; 中和
This event will counteract such trends.
这一事件将会削弱此类趋势。
▷ versatile [ˈvɜ:rsətl]
adj. （指工具、机器等）多用途的;多才多艺的;有多种学问、技能或职业的;
He is sparkling and versatile in front of the camera.
镜头前的他光彩照人，多才多艺。
▷ discard [dɪsˈkɑ:rd]
vt. 丢弃，抛弃; 解雇; 出牌;
We should discard old beliefs.
我们应该抛弃旧观念.
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Thanks to this bounty, an urban coywolf need occupy[占领; 使用] only half the territory it would require in the countryside. And getting into town is easy. Railways provide corridors[走廊，通道] that make the trip simple for animals as well as people.
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▷ bounty [ˈbaʊnti]
n. （由政府提供的）奖金，赏金; 慷慨，大方; 赠物，赠金
We received a bounty from the government.
我们收到政府给予的一笔补助金.
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Surviving once there, though, requires a low profile. As well as having small territories, coywolves have adjusted to city life by becoming nocturnal. They have also learned the Highway Code[高速公路规则], looking both ways before they cross a road. Dr Kays marvels at this “amazing contemporary[当代的，现代的] evolution story that’s happening right underneath our nose”.
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▷ nocturnal [nɑ:kˈtɜ:rnl]
adj. 夜的，夜间的; （动物）夜间活动的
The dormouse is a shy, nocturnal creature.
榛睡鼠是一种在夜间活动的胆小动物。
▷ marvel [ˈmɑ:rvl]
vt.& vi. 惊奇，对…感到惊奇
marvel at v. 对…惊奇; 惊叹;
The tourists marvel at the beauty of the lake.
游客们惊叹这条湖的美丽.
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Whether the coywolf actually has evolved into[演变;进化;发展] a distinct species[特殊物种;新物种] is debated. Jonathan Way, who works in Massachusetts[马萨诸塞州] for the National Park Service, claims in a forthcoming paper that it has. He thinks its morphological and genetic divergence[形态和基因上的分化] from its ancestors is sufficient to qualify. But many disagree. One common definition of a species is a population that will not interbreed with outsiders. Since coywolves continue to mate with[交配] dogs and wolves, the argument goes, they are therefore not a species. But, given the way coywolves came into existence, that definition would mean wolves and coyotes should not be considered different species either—and that does not even begin to address whether domestic dogs are a species, or just an aberrant form of wolf.
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▷ morphological [ˌmɔ:fə'lɒdʒɪkl]
adj. <生><语>形态学的，形态的
Correlation of morphological factors with injury is important.
形态因素与受害的相互关系很重要.
▷ aberrant [æˈbɛrənt, ˈæbə-]
adj. <生物>异常的; 畸变的;离开正路的; 与正确（或真实情况）相背的;
I saw that the insects and spiders were displaying the same kind of aberrant behavior.
我看到昆虫和蜘蛛正在表现出相同反常的行为.
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物种，是生物分类学研究的基本单元与核心。它是一群可以交配并繁衍后代的个体， 但与其它生物却不能交配，不能性交或交配后产生的杂种不能再繁衍。——摘自百度百科
In reality, “species” is a concept invented by human beings. And, as this argument shows, that concept is not clear-cut. What the example of the coywolf does demonstrate, though, is that evolution is not the simple process of one species branching into many that the textbooks might have you believe. Indeed, recent genetic research has discovered that even Homo sapiens[智人(现代人的学名)] is partly a product of hybridisation[杂交，杂种培植，配种]. Modern Europeans carry Neanderthal genes[尼安德特人基因], and modern East Asians the genes of a newly recognised type of early man called the Denisovans[丹尼索瓦人]. Exactly how this happened is unclear. But maybe, as with the wolves of southern Ontario, it was the only way that some of the early settlers of those areas could get a date.
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▷ clear-cut [ˈklɪrˈkʌt]
adj. 轮廓鲜明的; 清晰的;
v. 清场伐木; 为开辟空地而砍伐（树木）;
There is no clear-cut answer to this question.
这个问题没有确切的答案。
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尼安德特人(Homo neanderthalensis)，常作为人类进化史中间阶段的代表性居群的通称。尼安德特人是现代欧洲人祖先的近亲，从12万年前开始，他们统治着整个欧洲、亚洲西部以及非洲北部，但在两万四千年前，这些古人类却消失了。
丹尼索瓦人(Denisovans)是生活在上一个冰河时代的人类种群，她属于一个全新的人类种群。通过对古代遗留的牙齿和指骨化石提取的DNA进行分析，科学家证明了丹尼索瓦人的存在，该研究被《科学》杂志（Science）评为2012年度十大科学突破之一。
——摘自百度百科
本文音频及原文摘自杂志The Economist《经济学人》，点击"阅读原文"查看原文链接。
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