01.09天天读图※动物世界
在斐济群岛的水域中，帝王虾和寄居蟹消失隐秘在大豹海参皮肤上豹纹中。海参用它皮肤上的粘液提供食物给这些甲壳类动物，而当它受到威胁的时候，则会把有毒污秽的胃部器官喷射出来，以保护自己。
Photograph by Tim Laman
In the waters of the Fiji Islands, an emperor shrimp and a commensal crab nearly vanish in the calico pattern of a large leopard sea cucumber. The sea cucumber provides food for the crustaceans in the form of mucus on its skin and defends itself by ejecting its toxic stomach when danger threatens
锤头鲨 Hammerhead Shark, Bahamas
外表上看起来原始，长着巨大的锤状头，就像图上这只一样的锤头鲨，实则是鲨鱼里进化最先进的种类。它的拉开式眼睛和鼻孔提供敏锐的外部感觉，嘴上细小的感受器能助它精确捕食。许多锋利的牙齿则是尽享美味的工具。
Photograph by Brian SkerrY
Primordial in appearance, great hammerheads, like this one near the Bahamas, are actually among evolution’s most advanced sharks. Wide-set eyes and nostrils provide keen peripheral senses, and tiny electroreceptors on its snout help it pinpoint prey. Dozens of serrated teeth do the rest.
螳螂 Stick Mantid, Cameroon
在大约1800种螳螂中，大多将他们的时间花在静坐和等待中，看起来犹如虔诚的祈祷者，常被称为“祈祷螳螂”。这些既像拥有高超捕获技巧的猎人又似隐秘刺客的合掌螳螂，以神秘的双重身份的让人类为之痴迷了数千年，古代希腊人最早在神秘学中使用到这个词mantis【螳螂】——预言者。
Photograph by Mark Moffett
Most of the roughly 1,800 species of mantids-often called praying mantises-spend their time sitting and waiting, seemingly at prayer. These highly skilled hunters and masters of disguise have fascinated humans for thousands of years; the ancient Greeks first used the term mantis, meaning “prophet.”
北极狐 Arctic Fox, Hudson Bay, Canada
在加拿大哈德逊湾，一只神秘的北极狐悄悄地跨越被雪覆盖的山脊。这些不比小猫大很多、看似脆弱的北方哺乳动物，自始至终都衷诚地在贫困和严寒的极北茁壮地成长。
Photograph by Norbert Rosing
A stealthy arctic fox steals across a snow-patched ridge in Canada’s Hudson Bay. Not much larger than a big housecat, these seemingly delicate northern mammals are as hearty as they come, thriving in the privation and bitter cold of the Arctic north.
孟加拉虎 Bengal Tiger, India
印度班德哈夫国家公园一只年幼的孟加拉虎在一片空地小憩，这只虎可能是斯塔的幼崽，斯塔是一只威武且产仔量高而闻名的雌虎。
Photograph by Michael Nichols
A perfectly posed young Bengal tiger rests in a clearing in India’s Bandhavgarh National Park. This individual is likely the offspring of Sita, a tigress famed in the park for her hunting prowess and prized for her prolific breeding.
海豹”打手” Harp Seal, Gulf of Saint Lawrence, Canada
在加拿大的圣劳伦斯海湾，一头年轻的海豹正在它的冰窝里警惕的东张西望。断奶后褪去一身绒毛的海豹被称为打手，因其总是在水上拍打它们的鳍状肢。它们的一身光顺完好的毛皮，是海豹猎人们的首要目标。
Photograph by Brian Skerry
A young fur seal looks warily around an icy whelping site in Canada’s Gulf of St. Lawrence. Seals that are weaned and have shed their downy fur are called beaters for the way they beat their flippers on the water. Their sleek, unmarred pelts are prime quarry for seal hunters.
西印度海牛 West Indian Manatee, Florida
海牛可长达13英尺(4米)，重达1,300磅(600公斤)。与其它许多动物一样，海牛的体型掩盖了它们在水中的优雅。它们常在沿岸的水中以每小时5到15英里(每小时8到24公里)的速度优雅的滑水。北弗罗里达的泉水常年保持72华氏度(22摄氏度)的恒温，西印度海牛常去那片水域过冬.
Photograph by Wes Skiles
Like many creatures, the manatee’s bulk-they can be as much as 13 feet (4 meters) long and 1,300 pounds (600 kilograms)-belies its aquatic grace. Also called sea cows, manatees are graceful swimmers that typically glide along coastal waters at 5 to 15 miles an hour (8 to 24 kilometers an hour). This West Indian manatee is wintering in a North Florida spring, attracted by the region’s constant 72 degrees Fahrenheit (22 degrees Celsius) waters.
非洲猎豹 Silhouette of African Cheetahs, Africa
这张惹人注目的剪影照片显现出一头走向一棵树准备午后小憩的猎豹的矫健的身影。猎豹是陆地上速度最快的动物，曾在亚非大地上大量生长，但它们的幼兽常为狮子等捕食，栖息场所也因不断增加的农庄和牧场而缩减。如今在自然资源保护者的帮助下，估计约有12,000只猎豹遍布在30个国家里。
Photograph by Chris Johns
A striking silhouette shows off the lithe form of a cheetah approaching a tree for a late afternoon slumber. The fastest land animal in the world, cheetahs once thrived in Africa and Asia, but lion predation haunts their young, and farms and ranching have reduced their habitat. Today an estimated 12,000 cheetahs live in 30 countries, helped by conservationists.
赤狐 Red Fox, Denali National Park, Alaska
在阿拉斯加的德纳里国家公园(Denali National Park)，一只赤狐正大张了嘴打着呵欠。狐狸有着很强的适应性，即使在有环境压力的情况下仍能健康成长。它们生活在森林，草原，山区，沙漠，甚至人类环境中，如农场和郊区。飞飞Asp技术乐园它们单独捕猎鼠类，兔子，鸟类等，有时也以其它的小猎物如鱼，青蛙，蚯蚓和垃圾等为食。
Photograph by Joel Sartore
In Alaska’s Denali National Park, a red fox opens wide for a yawn. Foxes are masters of adaptation, allowing them to thrive despite environmental pressures. They live in forests, grasslands, mountains, deserts, and even human environments such as farms and suburban areas. They are solitary hunters that feed on rodents, rabbits, birds, small game-even fish, frogs, worms, and garbage.
肩毛果蝠 Fruit Bats at Dusk, Zambia
在赞比亚的卢安瓜山谷里，肩毛果蝠在夕阳染成绛红色的天空下飞舞。在雨季，泛滥的卢安瓜河水将从两岸溢出，将这片炎热干燥，尘土飞扬的大地变成郁郁葱葱的野生动物天堂。届时数百万的蝙蝠来到山谷中的树上栖息，以数量剧增的水果为食。
Photograph by Frans Lanting
Epauletted fruit bats speckle a saffron-colored sky at sunset in Zambia’s Luangwa Valley. Millions of these bats come to roost in the valley’s trees and feed off the explosion of fruits during the rainy season, when the Luangwa River overflows its banks and transforms the dry, dusty landscape into an emerald wildlife paradise.
落在树叶上带斑纹的蟋蟀 Striped Cricket on Leaf, Southeast Asia
在一片东南亚的森林里，星条交汇在这张蟋蟀的夜景照片中(译注：星条指代美国国旗)。无论世界上的任何丛林里，夕阳下沉之后，树林中较常见的生物沉睡之时，罕见的生物们便纷纷出来滑行，跳跃和蜂鸣。
Photograph by Timothy Laman
Stripes meet stars in this night shot of a cricket in a Southeast Asian forest. In jungles throughout the world, the sinking sun summons a menagerie of rarely seen creatures that slither, leap, and buzz while the forest’s more familiar creatures sleep.
座头鲸（非洲南部）Humpback Whale, South Africa
在南非附近，一头有着四十吨力气的座头鲸冲出了水面。座头鲸常见于世界各地的沿岸水域，因其神奇的歌声而闻名，它们发出的一系列的呜咽声，嚎哭声，啜泣声以及其它各种声音常可持续的萦绕数小时。科学家们认为它们是在通过歌声进行交流和吸引配偶。
Photograph by David Doubilet
Forty tons of gleaming muscle, a humpback whale blasts out of the water near South Africa. Found in coastal waters worldwide, humpbacks are known for their magical songs, haunting sequences of moans, howls, cries, and other noises that often continue for hours on end. Scientists believe they communicate and attract mates through song.
盘绕(卷)的垭拉拉卡蝰蛇（巴西）Coiled Jararaca Snake, Brazil
在巴西的雨林中，一条年轻的垭拉拉卡蝰蛇正盘踞在长满苔藓的地上。这种剧毒的蝰蛇是矛头蛇的一种，在其分布地区十分常见，并在巴西，巴拉圭和阿根廷等地造成了大量的毒蛇咬伤事故。
Photograph by George Grall
A young jararaca snake lies coiled on a mossy piece of ground in the Brazilian rain forest. These venomous pit vipers, members of the lancehead, or fer-de-lance, family, are common throughout their range and are responsible for a large number of snakebites in Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina.
蜜蜂，(美国州名)缅因 Honeybees, Maine
由蜜蜂组成的群体，如图中缅因州阿普尔多尔岛上的这群，经常会对建巢的地点产生分歧。但它们一般都能选出最佳位置。蜜蜂们通过收集信息，开展独立评估以及进行某种表决来得出最后的决定。科学家们正在研究这种群体智能–如图中带有黄色和蓝色标识的蜜蜂，寻找某些相关线索，并以此推断人类应如何对复杂的系统进行操作，无论是运输路线还是军事机器人。
Photograph by Peter Essick
Swarming honeybees, like these on Maine’s Appledore Island, frequently differ about where to establish a new nest. But the group usually chooses the best site. Bees reach this decision by gathering information, conducting independent evaluations, and holding a kind of vote. Scientists are studying such swarm intelligence-note the yellow and blue identifier dots on the bees in this photo-for clues about how humans might manage complex systems, from truck routing to military robots.
哈奴曼叶猴 Monkeys at Watering Hole, India
在印度的斑德哈瓦加国家公园，一群哈奴曼叶猴趁着老虎不在，到水潭旁饮水。这些体瘦尾长的猴子的名字源于印度教中的猴神哈奴曼，分布在潮湿的森林和沼泽中，甚至在印度，巴基斯坦，孟加拉，斯里兰卡和缅甸等国的城市地区也能发现。
watering hole 海滨胜地, 水池, 池塘
Photograph by Michael Nichols
A troop of Hanuman langur monkeys drinks from a watering hole used by tigers in India’s Bandhavgarh National Park. Named after the Hindu monkey god Hanuman, these lanky, long-tailed monkeys are found in the humid forests, swamps, and even urban areas of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Myanmar (Burma).
落在叶子上的蝴蝶 Butterfly on Leaf, Borneo, Malaysia
在婆罗洲的沙巴的丹浓谷保护区中，一只蝴蝶正在夜幕的掩护下优雅的在一片叶子上合翅休息。这片170平方英里(438平方公里)的保护区是马来西亚最大的原始低地雨林，有着世界上最复杂的生态体系之一。
Photograph by Timothy Laman
Under the cover of darkness, a butterfly with folded wings rests gracefully on a leaf in the Danum Valley Conservation Area in Sabah, Borneo. The 170-square-mile (438-square-kilometer) conservation area is the largest undisturbed lowland rain forest in Malaysia, home to one of the world’s most complex ecosystems.
西印度海牛 West Indian Manatee, Florida
一头西印度海牛正在北弗罗里达州晶莹剔透的泉水里畅游。每年冬天，这种温文尔雅的大块头便成群结队的从它们的沿海栖息地迁徙到这些泉水中，享受这片保持在72华氏度(22摄氏度)的相对温暖的恒温水域。
Photograph by Wes Skiles
A West Indian manatee drifts through crystal-clear water in a North Florida spring. Hundreds of these gentle giants migrate from coastal habitats to the springs each winter to bask in their constant and comparatively balmy 72-degree Fahrenheit (22-degree Celsius) waters.
非洲野狗幼崽(博茨瓦纳) African Wild Dog Pups, Botswana
在博茨瓦纳的奥卡万戈三角洲中，三只非洲野狗的幼崽正在一处兽穴附近嬉戏。野狗被认为是野化了的家狗，曾遭到大范围捕杀计划的打击。如今野狗仅存不到5,000只，是非洲最具灭绝危险的大型食肉动物。
Photograph by Chris Johns
A trio of young African wild dog pups plays near a den in Botswana’s Okavango Delta. Thought to be domesticated dogs gone feral, wild dogs have borne the brunt of extensive extermination programs. Today there are fewer than 5,000 wild dogs alive, which make them Africa’s most endangered large carnivore.
天鹅 Swans, Edinburgh, Scotland
在苏格兰的爱丁堡， 淡紫色的天空下，一群哑天鹅在群山环绕的湖面上静静地划过。顾名思义，因其直气管所限，哑天鹅大多数时候都保持安静。不过哑天鹅偶尔会发出呼哧声，嘘声，或吼声。这种优雅的疣鼻天鹅(Cygnus olor)大多数情况下都通过肢体语言进行交流。
Photograph by Jim Richardson
Brooding skies cast a lavender glow on a flock of mute swans gliding across a crag-ringed loch in Edinburgh, Scotland. As their name suggests, mute swans are usually silent, limited by a straight trachea. However, they occasionally snort, hiss, or bark. The graceful Cygnus olor communicates mostly through visual displays and postures.
海狗(福克兰岛) Fur Seal, Falkland Islands
图中一头福克兰岛海狗正栖息在新岛外的一块礁石上，这片海产丰富的水域滋养了种类繁多的野生动物群体，有些的数量非常惊人。在19世纪初期，这里的海狗曾遭到大肆捕杀，几乎灭绝，目前海狗的数量也仅有所适当回升。
Photograph by Steven Raymer
A Falkland Islands fur seal perches on a rock outcrop off New Island, where seafood-rich waters nourish a wildlife population diverse in nature and often astonishing in number. Fur seal populations here have rebounded to merely modest levels after a hunting bloodbath in the early 19th century brought the subspecies to the brink of extinction.
阿特沃特草原鸡 Attwater’s Prairie Chick, Texas
在德州玫瑰谷的Fossil Rim野生动物中心，一只几周大的阿特沃特草原鸡正在它精致的小窝中休息。一百年前，多达上百万只的阿特沃特草原鸡曾在这里的海岸草原上徜徉。但由于过度捕猎以及生境流失，如今这种鸡在野外只剩下不到50只了。
Photograph by Joel Sartore
A weeks-old Attwater’s prairie-chicken perches in a delicate nest in Fossil Rim Wildlife Center in Glen Rose, Texas. A century ago, as many as a million Attwater’s prairie-chickens roamed coastal grasslands here. Today fewer than 50 of these chickens are left in the wild, due to overhunting and habitat loss.
笑脸蜘蛛 Spider Guarding Eggs, Maui, Hawaii
现今在瓦胡岛，莫洛凯岛，毛伊岛，夏威夷等群岛，依然能看见有快乐面蜘蛛的踪迹.这只蜘蛛在毛伊岛的一篇树叶上产卵，装点成人面和腹部来保护它们的卵,是众所周知的独特模式.科学家们相信， 这种蜘蛛已形成了鲜明的标记，以阻止鸟类在吃它。
Photograph by Darlyne Murawski
Found only on the islands of Oahu, Molokai, Maui, and Hawaii, the happy face spider, such as this one guarding its eggs on a leaf in Maui, is known for the unique patterns that decorate its pale abdomen. Scientists believe Theridion grallatormay have developed its distinctive markings to discourage birds from eating it.
长颈鹿(玛拉玛拉野生动物保护区) Grazing Giraffe, South Africa
南非的玛拉玛拉野生动物保护区里的一只长颈鹿正在品尝树叶。生物学家及探险家麦克菲称赞玛拉玛拉是“野生动物保护区中的法拉利”，因为这里有着豪华的探险风格住所，郁郁葱葱的大地，一流的管理，还有大量的野生动物–狮子，花豹，大象，犀牛，角马，羚羊和长颈鹿。
Photograph by James Blair
A giraffe samples foliage in South Africa’s Mala Mala Game Reserve. Biologist and explorer Mike Fay calls Mala Mala the “Ferrari of game reserves” for its posh, safari-retro accommodations, lush grounds, top-notch management, and abundant wildlife, including lions, leopards, elephants, rhinos, wildebeests, impalas, and giraffes.
亚约克角半岛的鳄鱼 Crocodile, Cape York Peninsula, Australia
在澳大利亚约克角半岛的谢尔本湾，一条长达七英尺(五米)凶猛残暴的咸水鳄对着相机张开了血盆大口。这种爬行动物是生活在地球上的鳄鱼中最大的一种，在澳大利亚它们被称为“咸咸(salties)”,是该地区最危险的食肉动物。它们会在毫无征兆的情况下，突然用其强有力的尾巴击打水面，然后将猎物–如水牛，猴子，鲨鱼等–拖入水底。
Photograph by Sam Abell
Seventeen feet (five meters) of brute reptilian force, a saltwater crocodile snaps at the camera in Shelburne Bay, Cape York Peninsula, Australia. Earth’s largest living crocodilians, “salties,” as they’re affectionately known in Australia, are among the area’s most dangerous predators. Without warning, they explode from the water with a thrash of their powerful tails and drag their victim-water buffalo, monkey, shark-under water.
一对(格陵兰)幼犬 Pair of Huskie Pups, Herbert Island, Greenland
这些年轻的爱犬生活在格陵兰赫伯特岛，它们会在长大后成为这个岛上的主力军，在零下温度的厚重积雪中拉着雪橇长时间的劳累生存.据说，约五千多年前它伴随着移民的人从西伯利亚来到格陵兰，这种格陵兰犬在温度接近零下70华氏度（零下57摄氏度） 能拉重量达1000磅( 450公斤）
Greenland dogs (又称雪橇犬）大约在12000年前西伯利亚的一种狼成为了今天的格陵兰犬。但是今天的人们很难从格陵兰犬身上看到狼的影子。它实在不像狼无论是外貌和体形，更主要的是格陵兰犬以完全失去了狼的本性。格陵兰犬非常温驯，因此在格陵兰地区非常受欢迎。尽管它的性格比较温顺，但生命力非常顽强，甚至可以在北极零下十几摄氏度的环境下在野外过夜。由于它确实是一种非常优秀的工作犬，因此现在不仅在格陵兰岛广为流传，现在，在瑞典和挪威等地也受到了好评。翻译：casinnaPhotograph by David McLain
These young pups on Herbert Island, Greenland, will grow up to be powerful, thick-furred sled dogs conditioned to survive long periods of exertion in subzero temperatures. A hardy breed descended from canines that accompanied immigrants who traveled from Siberia to Greenland some 5,000 years ago, Greenland dogs pull sleds that weigh upwards of a thousand pounds (450 kilograms) in temperatures near minus 70 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 57 degrees Celsius).
大白鲨 Great White Shark, Gansbaai, South Africa
在南非的干斯拜(Gansbaai)，一只大白鲨正在巡游，它有着闪亮如匕首般锋利的牙齿。在世界范围内，这种最令人生畏的鲨鱼数量正在不断减少，科学家们警告说这个物种可能会有灭绝的危险。
Photograph by David Doubilet
On the prowl in Gansbaai, South Africa, a great white shark flashes rows of teeth sharper than daggers. With its numbers declining around the world, scientists warn that this species, the most feared of all sharks, may be in danger.
刺毛虫 Slug Caterpillar, Manu River, Peru
在秘鲁的摩奴河附近，一条身上长着刷子似的吸管的刺毛虫正盘踞在一片叶子上。这种肥嘟嘟的毛虫身上颜色艳丽的毛发，或称为吸管中含有轻度毒性的毒素，以此御敌。然而，仅仅碰触这种刺毛虫就会引起毒素的传递，将导致红疹，肿胀，在某些情况下还会出现发烧和恶心等症状。
Photograph by George GrallBrushlike suckers radiate from the body of a slug caterpillar resting on a leaf near Peru’s Manu River. The stinging hairs, or suckers, of these brightly colored, fleshy caterpillars contain mildly venomous toxins used for defense purposes. However, simply touching a slug caterpillar triggers toxin transfer, which causes rashes, swelling, and in some cases, fever and nausea.
非洲大象(鸟瞰图) Aerial View of African Elephants, Kenya
在肯尼亚的安博塞利国家公园中，一群大象正在沼泽滩上前进。这座国家公园建立于1974年，占地151平方英里(392平方公里)，位于肯尼亚西南部的乞力马扎罗山下，是450多种动物的家园，包括大象，角马，鹤，以及白鹭。
Photograph by George Steinmetz
A herd of elephants makes its way through swamp grass in Kenya’s Amboseli National Park. Established as a national park in 1974, the 151-square-mile (392-square-kilometer) park at the foot of Mount Kilimanjaro in southwest Kenya is home to more than 450 animal species, including elephants, wildebeests, cranes, and egrets.
蝙蝠(光明洞) Bats in Cueva de Villa Luz, Mexico
位于墨西哥南部的露滋村的光明洞(Cueva de Villa Luz)中，蝙蝠出现在漆黑的洞穴深处。洞穴的石壁，水流和空气中充满了对人体有毒害的硫化氢，供养了多种奇特的生物。除了蝙蝠之外，这个硫磺饱和的环境下还孳生着大量的蜘蛛，螨虫，有鞭蝎以及一种富含血红蛋白的小鱼。
Photograph by Stephen Alvarez
Bats emerge from the inky depths of Cueva de Villa Luz in southern Mexico. Hydrogen sulfide, which is poisonous to humans, permeates the cave’s walls, streams, and air, sustaining a rich variety of bizarre organisms. In addition to bats, spiders, mites, amblypygids, and small, hemoglobin-rich fish thrive in the sulfur-saturated environment.
打哈欠的老虎 Yawning Tiger, India
如图中这只印度班达迦国家公园的雌老虎，在炎热的天气里老虎总是没精打采的打瞌睡，以为夜里的捕猎积蓄能量。在最近的一百多年里，捕杀以及森林的破坏使得老虎的数量由几十万只骤减到不到2,500只。如今，班达迦据称保持着国内最高的老虎密度。飞，飞Asp技术乐园
Photograph by Michael NicholsTigers, like this female in India’s Bandhavgarh National Park, spend hot days in a languorous laze, storing energy for nights of hunting. Over the last hundred years, hunting and forest destruction have reduced tiger populations from hundreds of thousands of animals to perhaps fewer than 2,500. Today Bandhavgarh claims to maintain the highest density of tigers in the country
皮卡车厢里的美洲驼 Llama in Pickup Truck, Chile
在智利月球表面似的阿塔卡马沙漠中，一辆皮卡的车厢里有一头紧张的美洲驼。艾马拉人居住在阿塔卡马的荒芜的高原上，他们饲养美洲驼以获取肉食和皮毛。
Photograph by Joel Sartore
A nervous llama lies in the back of a pickup truck amid the moonscape of Chile’s Atacama Desert. Atacama’s barren high plateaus are home to the Aymara people, who raise llamas for their meat and wool.
(肉食性波尺蛾)毛虫 Caterpillar on Fern, Hawaii
在夏威夷的瓦胡岛上,一条肉食性波尺蛾(Eupithecia)毛虫正在一片蕨叶上巡游,寻找猎物。这种食肉毛虫非常罕见，而且拥有非凡的适应性特征，如坚固的外壳，诱人的气味，和巧妙的伪装，以提高其杀伤力。
Photograph by Darlyne A. Murawski
A carnivorous Eupithecia caterpillar prowls a fern leaf in Oahu, Hawaii, in search of prey. Such predatory caterpillars are rare and possess extraordinary adaptations, such as armor shields, seductive smells, or artful camouflage, to enhance their lethality.
剪过羊毛的绵羊 Shorn Sheep, Hopland, California
在霍普兰德研究与推广中心里，几只刚剪了羊毛的绵羊正在一座小山上吃草。该中心隶属美国加州大学，主要研究领域为农业和自然资源的设施，拥有600到1,000只种用母羊。每年的四月进行剪毛。
Photograph by George F. Mobley
A handful of recently shorn sheep grazes on a hill at the Hopland Research and Extension Center. The center, one of the University of California’s principal field research facilities for agriculture and natural resources, maintains a sheep flock of 600 to 1,000 breeding ewes. Shearing time comes every April.
虾虎鱼和气泡珊瑚 Goby and Bubble Coral, Indonesia
在印尼弗洛雷斯岛外的毛梅雷海湾里，一条有着亮丽的桔黄色条纹的虾虎鱼在一些气泡珊瑚前游动。在大多数海洋中，浑浊昏暗的海水迫使生活在其中的生物不得不使用其非视觉感官，如嗅觉，味觉，触觉，和听觉。但在清澈干净，阳光照耀的珊瑚礁水域中，则有着充足的光线，视觉占主导地位，生活在这里的动物都有着鲜艳的颜色。
Photograph by Tim Laman
A goby fish with brilliant orange streaks stands out on a bit of gray bubble coral in Maumere Bay off Indonesia’s Flores Island. In most of the ocean, turbid or murky waters force creatures to use nonvisual means of communication-smell, taste, touch, and sound. But in the clear, sunlit waters of coral reefs, light abounds, vision predominates, and animals drape themselves in blazing color.
澳洲海狮 Australian Sea Lion off Adelaide
在澳大利亚阿德莱德，一头澳洲海狮正对着镜头做鬼脸。近几十年的过度捕猎，使得这些海洋动物有濒临灭种的危险。
Photograph by David Doubilet
An Australian sea lion mugs for the camera off Adelaide, Australia. These highly endangered sea mammals have been hurt by decades of overhunting.
小须鲸 Minke Whale Breaching
小须鲸有着鱼雷般的流线型外形，在水中最高时速可达20英里(32公里)每小时。它有着许多俗称，如缟鲸，梭头鲸，尖头脊鳍鲸。
Photograph by Flip Nicklin
The minke whale’s missile-sleek shape helps it speed through the water at up to 20 miles (32 kilometers) an hour. It also gives it a variety of common names, including little piked whale, pikehead, and sharp-headed finner.
阿特沃特草原鸡 Attwater’s Prairie Chickens, Texas
在Fossil Rim野生动物中心里，一群年轻的阿特沃特草原鸡正在加热灯下享受温暖。该中心设在德州的玫瑰谷(Glen Rose),为这种独特的濒危鸟类进行着了一种圈养繁殖计划。
Photograph by Joel Sartore
Young Attwater’s prairie-chickens bask under a heating lamp at Fossil Rim Wildlife Center. The center, located in Glen Rose, Texas, runs a captive-breeding program for these unique, endangered birds.
(落在蕨类植物上的)白蹼树蛙 Frog on Fern, São Paulo, Brazil
在巴西的圣保罗，栖息在一株蕨类植物上的白蹼树蛙正凝视着镜头。巴西拥有730多种两栖类动物，其中有467种该区域所特有的。
Photograph by George Grall
A white-handed tree frog stares at the camera from its perch on a fern in São Paulo, Brazil. There are more than 730 amphibian species in Brazil, 467 of which are endemic to the region.
在井壁旁(饮水)的母狮 Lioness at Borehole, South Africa
喀拉哈里大羚羊国家公园里，一头母狮子正在一个岩石围起的水塘边饮水，这个公园建在南非北部开普省的一片3,700平方英里(9,600平方米)的沙漠之中。在二十世纪之交，南非的狮子遭到大肆捕杀，几乎消失殆尽。但在十九世纪九十年代建立的首个国家动物保护区，已取得了显著的成效。
Photograph by Chris Johns
A lioness drinks from a rock-ringed borehole in Kalahari-Gemsbok National Park, a 3,700-square-mile (9,600-square-kilometer) slice of desert in South Africa’s Northern Cape Province. Lions had all but disappeared from South Africa by the turn of the 20th century due to unbridled hunting, but the seeds of a remarkable comeback were planted in the 1890s with the country’s first game reserves.
猫鼬爪子 Meerkat Paws, South Africa
这张喀拉哈里沙漠猫鼬的局部特写照片显示出其强健有力的耙子状爪子，这是其适应洞穴生活的一项重要特征。猫鼬们都是挖洞专家，它们经常挖到完全看不见的地方去寻找可能存在的食物，其包括甲虫，蝎子，昆虫幼虫和小型爬行动物等。
Photograph by Mattias Klum
A close-up of meerkat in the Kalahari Desert shows its sturdy, rakelike claws, an important adaptation for their tunneling lifestyle. Meerkats are master excavators, frequently digging themselves entirely out of sight in pursuit of potential meals, which include beetles, scorpions, insect larvae, and small reptiles.
4 楼 Date:2008-01-08 19:54:19
蓝色大闪蝶 Blue Morpho Butterfly
 飞飞,Asp技术乐园
这张蓝色大闪蝶的特写照片显示了其独一无二的梦幻色彩。这种惹人注目的昆虫产自中北美地区的热带雨林。它们的这种钴蓝色并非来自色素，而是其翅膀上成千上万的半透明鳞片，这些鳞片可以滤出可见光中的蓝光，并使之从翅膀上散发出来。
Photograph by Cary Wolinsky
A close-up of a mounted blue morpho butterfly shows its unique iridescent sheen. These mesmerizing insects, indigenous to the rain forests of Central and South America, get their cobalt hue not from pigment but from the thousands of semitransparent scales that filter blue from the visible spectrum and radiate it out from the wings.
海豹 Leopard Seal Underwater, Antarctica
一只斑海豹正在碧蓝的海水中畅游，水面上则是一大块隐现在背景中的南极浮冰。著名的1914年沙克尔顿探险队中的一名成员称斑海豹为“凶猛的帅哥”，其为南极地区的顶级食肉动物：迅猛，敏捷，贪食，并且壮硕。斑海豹身长可达12英尺(4米)，体重超过一千镑(450公斤)。
Photograph by Paul Nicklen
A leopard seal swims in turquoise waters just below the surface as a jagged Antarctic ice floe looms in the background.The leopard seal, dubbed a “fierce, handsome brute” by a member of the famed 1914 Shackleton expedition, is a top Antarctic predator: fast, agile, voracious, and large, reaching some 12 feet (4 meters) in length and weighing more than a thousand pounds (450 kilograms).
塘鹅 Cape Gannets, Malgas Island, South Africa
在南非的西海岸国家公园，马尔哈斯岛的岩石海岸上有着许多塘鹅的窝，塘鹅是一种身披白衫，头戴金冠的鸟。世界自然保护联盟已将这种美丽的海鸟登录在册。因为很容易受到外界影响，这种鸟类几乎只存在于非洲海岸。马尔哈斯岛上有将近70,000只塘鹅，一起分享着这片常有油轮经过的水域。
Photograph by Chris Johns
Dressed in snow-white plumage and golden crowns, a colony of cape gannets nests on the rocky coast of Malgas Island in South Africa’s West Coast National Park. The World Conservation Union lists these graceful shorebirds, found almost exclusively in coastal Africa, as vulnerable. The 70,000 cape gannets of Malgas Island share their waters with scores of oil tankers.
黑鹿 Sambar Deer, Madhya Pradesh, India
在印度的斑德哈瓦加国家公园，一头黑鹿正在水源边上饮水，这张照片是由遥控摄影机拍摄的。黑鹿是世界上分布最广泛的鹿类之一，遍布于东南亚的森林里。在这座以虎闻名的公园中，它常成为老虎的猎物。
Photograph by Michael Nichols
Caught in the act by a remote camera trap, a sambar deer drinks from a water source in Bandhavgarh National Park, India. One of the most widely distributed deer species in the world, sambars live in forests throughout Southeast Asia and are favorite prey of tigers, for which this park is known.
盲眼小龙虾 Albino Crayfish, Sims Sink, Florida
北弗罗里达Sims Sink漆黑的深水里，一只晶莹剔透的盲眼小龙虾正在游动。在这个无光的世界中，只有深海含水层与落水洞，犹如坠入淡水迷宫一般。这些甲壳类动物是少数几种能适应此种环境的物种，它们属于地区性生物，仅存在于少数含水层中，在世界上的其他地方都未曾发现。
Photograph by Wes C. Skiles
A blind, albino crayfish swims through the inky depths of Sims Sink in northern Florida. These colorless crustaceans are among the few creatures that have adapted to the lightless world at the bottom of the region’s aquifers, springs, and sinkholes. Many species who make their homes in these freshwater labyrinths are endemic to only a handful of aquifers and are found nowhere else in the world.
一群刺螫水母 School of Sea Nettles, Monterey, California
在加州的蒙特利湾水族馆，一群刺螫水母(sea nettles)正演绎着婀娜多姿的水下芭蕾。Chrysaora fuscescens是水母的一种，发现于阿拉斯加到加州间的沿海水域。这种无脊椎动物身后拖着长长的布满刺细胞的触角和多褶的口腕，可捕猎水中的浮游生物和小鱼。
Photograph by Peter Essick
In the midst of an underwater ballet, a school of sea nettles drifts through California’s Monterey Bay Aquarium. Chrysaora fuscescens is a type of jellyfish found in coastal waters from Alaska to California. The invertebrate hunts by trailing its long sting-cell-covered tentacles and ruffled mouth-arms through the water, combing for zooplankton and larval fishes.
“911”安慰犬 9/11 Comfort Dog, New York City
图中这只金毛是纽约那些不太出名的犬类英雄中的一员，它们帮助人们缓解“911”的恐怖袭击造成的痛苦，被称为“安慰犬”(注)。与搜救犬相仿，安慰犬常前往灾难现场以协助救援工作。据研究表明，当人们爱抚宠物的时候，可以产生降低心率和血压等生理变化。
Photograph by Ira Block
The lesser known of New York’s canine heroes, comfort dogs, such as this golden retriever, help soothe those affected by the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Similar to search-and-rescue dogs, comfort dogs travel to disaster scenes to aid relief efforts. Studies show that people experience physiological changes-such as a drop in heart rate and blood pressure-when they pet animals.
兔鼠 Viscacha, Atacama Desert, Chile
在智利的阿塔卡马沙漠，一只兔鼠正在石头上小憩，它是南美栗鼠的近亲。这些睡眼惺忪的食草动物在阿塔卡马沙漠过着幸福的生活，他们居住在沙漠里又高又干燥的地区里，这点是没有几种动物可以做到。兔鼠就靠着当地稀疏的植被与草地生活，在这片严峻的沙漠上一代代地延续下去。
Photograph by Joel Sartore
A vizcacha, close relative of the chinchilla, rests on an outcropping in Chile’s Atacama Desert. These sleepy-eyed herbivores are among few species who thrive in the higher, drier regions of the Atacama. They make their living off the sparse vegetation and grasses that manage to grow in this forbidding desert.
小北极狐 Arctic Fox Pup, Canada
在夏天青郁的加拿大苔原上，一头小北极狐刚从小憩中醒来。大多数北极狐将在冬天变成白色，以适应周围的雪地环境。有些则换上青褐色的外衣，称为蓝狐。这些看似娇弱的动物们拥有适合生存的身体特征，如短耳，短鼻，厚毛等，这些可以帮助它们承受一些地球上最恶劣的生存条件。
Photograph by Norbert Rosing
An arctic fox pup awakens from a nap on the summer-greened Canadian tundra.
Most arctic foxes turn white in winter to blend with their snowy surroundings, though some, called blue foxes, wear a brownish-blue coat. These delicate-looking mammals have adapted a host of physical attributes-short ears; a short muzzle; thick fur-to help them bear up under some of Earth’s harshest living conditions.
圣女的动物 Bête de la Vierge, Albany, California
“瓢虫被认为是农民与害虫斗争的奖赏，以及儿童娇嫩美丽的回报，在中世纪时代就为英国人所知，他们将其命名为ladybirds,意为’圣母的生灵’。而法国人则称之为 bêtes de la Vierge,意为”圣女的动物”。”
Photograph by Robert F. Sisson
“Prized for farmers for their war on pests and by children for their delicate beauty, the beetles were known to Englishmen in the Middle Ages as ladybirds, creatures of Our Lady. The French called them bêtes de la Vierge, ‘animals of the Virgin.’
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第 6 页 Do you get a kick out of watching me suffer?( 1.09 )[6]
