Lesson 5 Hot Animals Around the World

Hot Animals Around the World: Chameleons

Every few months this program will feature an animal which has caught the eye of the world’s public to become a favorite or “hot” animal. In the first of this unusual series, we will look at the chameleon, one of nature’s strangest creatures.

Perhaps no other group of animals has caught mankind’s imagination like reptiles . Among the several subclasses (or “orders” in biology) of reptiles are snakes and lizards , turtles and tortoises , crocodiles and alligators , and the tuatara , a marine lizard in New Zealand. The dinosaurs, too, belonged to the class of reptile. Was it a snake, lizard, or crocodile that caught the fancy of some Chinese in times gone by to create the dragon? A perennial theme, reptiles have been featured over the past ten years in box-office hits and bombs alike as dinosaurs (Jurassic Park and The lost World), crocodiles, and snakes (Anaconda). Though not nearly as large as these mighty reptiles, the lowly chameleon nonetheless has amazed countless generations with its special talents and skills.

What is a chameleon? Its unusual name fits this unusual animal perfectly, for it translates from the ancient Greek as "lion on the ground.’ This is unexpected, since chameleons spend most of their time in trees, and as for looking like a lion, a chameleon looks like a … well, a chameleon! No other animal in Nature’s zoo looks quite as bizarre as they do. Where do they live? True chameleons are found only in the tropical forests and jungles of the Old World, and nearly half of its species live on the African island of Madagascar.

What’s special about the chameleon? Plenty! From its tongue to its tail the chameleon offers a storehouse of specialties. The tongue of this modem-day dinosaur look-alike can be extended more than twice the length of its body. This type of tongue, also present in frogs and toads , is called an extensile tongue. The eyes of the chameleon are even more remarkable. Its eyes are turreted and can be moved independently so that it can view two different objects simultaneously! This comes in especially handy as it is tree dwelling. The chameleon can keep one eye on its prey and the other on its footing. Its head is often helmet-shaped, and some species have horn-like structures growing out of this scaly helmet.

The feet and tail of the chameleon are also special. Both are prehensile ; that is, they are both perfectly adapted to their sylvan environment. The toes of the chameleon’s feet are bunched into inside and outside groups of two or three to enable this reptile to grasp tree branches tightly. The chameleon can thus climb extraordinarily well while using its tail to grab objects for further balance.

The above inventory of natural selection specializations would be remarkable enough, but what really separates the chameleon from its fellow reptiles is the fact that its scales contain the ability to change color, Though many people think the chameleon can change its color at will and that it can blend into any color, these are misconceptions. In fact, chameleons can blend into many natural colors and even patterns, but they cannot do this at will. Instead, this happens naturally according to temperature, emotional state of the animal, and the triggering of certain hormones within its body.

It is hard to imagine an animal more interesting than the chameleon, with its weird appearance and special abilities. We should always remember, however, that these animals require their native habitat to flourish in, not zoos or individuals’ terrariums . If you want your grandchildren to see this gift of nature, do not collect it as a pet. These natural treasures evolved over millions of years without mankind’s help; they will continue to survive better if left alone.

每隔几个月，这个节目就会 推出 一种吸引了全球公众目光、成为人们喜爱的或 “热门” 的动物。在这个不同寻常的系列节目的第一期中，我们将介绍变色龙，自然界最奇特的生物之一。

也许没有其他动物群体能像 爬行动物 那样激发人类的想象力。在爬行动物的几个 亚纲 （或生物学中的 “目”）中，有蛇和 蜥蜴 、龟 和 鳖 、鳄鱼 和 短吻鳄 ，还有新西兰的一种海蜥蜴 楔齿蜥 。恐龙也属于爬行动物类。过去是哪种蛇、蜥蜴或鳄鱼引起了一些中国人的喜爱从而创造出了龙呢？作为一个 永恒的 主题，爬行动物在过去十年里出现在了 票房 大卖和惨败的影片中，比如恐龙题材的（《侏罗纪公园》和《失落的世界》）、鳄鱼题材的以及蛇题材的（《狂蟒之灾》）。尽管变色龙远没有这些强大的爬行动物那么大，但这种不起眼的动物却以其特殊的才能和技能让无数代人惊叹不已。

什么是变色龙？它不同寻常的名字与这种不同寻常的动物完美契合，因为它从古希腊语翻译过来是 “地上的狮子”。这很出人意料，因为变色龙大部分时间都待在树上，而且要说看起来像狮子，变色龙看起来像…… 嗯，一只变色龙！在大自然的动物园里，没有其他动物看起来像它们这么怪异。它们生活在哪里？真正的变色龙只在东半球的热带森林和丛林中被发现，而且几乎一半的变色龙物种生活在非洲的 马达加斯加 岛上。

变色龙有什么特别之处？太多了！从它的舌头到尾巴，变色龙浑身都是特点。这种看起来像 现代 恐龙的动物，它的舌头能伸出超过身体长度的两倍。这种舌头在青蛙和 蟾蜍 身上也有，被称为 可伸展 舌头。变色龙的眼睛更了不起。它的眼睛是 炮塔状 的，可以独立移动，这样它就能同时看到两个不同的物体！这在它树栖生活时特别有用。变色龙可以一只眼睛盯着猎物，另一只眼睛留意脚下。它的头部通常呈头盔形状，有些物种在这个 有鳞片的 头盔上还长有角状结构。

变色龙的脚和尾巴也很特别。它们都具有 抓握能力 ；也就是说，它们都完美地适应了它们的 森林 环境。变色龙脚上的脚趾分成内侧和外侧两组，每组两三个，这样这种爬行动物就能紧紧抓住树枝。这样，变色龙就能非常出色地攀爬，同时用尾巴抓住物体以保持更好的平衡。

上述这些自然选择的特殊适应性已经足够引人注目了，但真正让变色龙与其他爬行动物区分开来的是，它的鳞片具有变色能力。尽管很多人认为变色龙可以随意改变颜色，并且能融入任何颜色，但这些都是误解。事实上，变色龙可以融入许多自然颜色甚至图案，但它们不能随意这样做。相反，这是根据温度、动物的情绪状态以及其体内某些激素的触发而自然发生的。

很难想象有比变色龙更有趣的动物了，它有着怪异的外表和特殊的能力。然而，我们应该始终记住，这些动物需要它们的原生栖息地才能繁荣，而不是动物园或个人的 玻璃容器 。如果你想让你的孙辈看到这种大自然的馈赠，就不要把它当作宠物收集起来。这些自然宝藏在没有人类帮助的情况下经过数百万年的进化而来；如果不打扰它们，它们会继续更好地生存下去。

Vocabulary & Idioms

Word	Chinese Definition	Phonetic Symbol
feature	特征；特色；容貌	/ˈfiːtʃə®/
reptile	爬行动物	/ˈreptaɪl/
subclass	亚纲；子类	/ˈsʌbklɑːs/
lizard	蜥蜴	/ˈlɪzəd/
turtle	龟；海龟	/ˈtɜːtl/
tortoise	乌龟；陆龟	/ˈtɔːtəs/
crocodile	鳄鱼	/ˈkrɒkədaɪl/
alligator	短吻鳄	/ˈælɪɡeɪtə®/
tuatara	楔齿蜥	/ˌtuːəˈtɑːrə/
perennial	多年生植物；常年的	/pəˈreniəl/
box-office	票房	/ˈbɒks ɒfɪs/
Madagascar	马达加斯加	/ˌmædəˈɡæskə®/
storehouse	仓库；宝库	/ˈstɔːhaʊs/
modern-day	现代的	/ˈmɒdn deɪ/
toad	蟾蜍	/ˈtəʊd/
extensile	可伸展的	/ˈekstensl/
turret	炮塔；角楼	/ˈtʌrɪt/
scaly	有鳞的	/ˈskeɪli/
prehensile	能抓握的	/ˈpriːhensəl/
sylvan	森林的；树木繁茂的	/ˈsɪlvən/
inventory	清单；存货	/ˈɪnvəntri/
misconception	误解；错误观念	/ˌmɪskənˈsepʃn/
terrarium	玻璃容器；饲养箱	/ˈterəriəm/
catch the fancy of sb	吸引某人；使某人喜欢	/ˈkætʃ ðə ˈfænsɪ əv ˈsʌmbədi/
come in handy	迟早有用；派上用场	/ˈkʌm ɪn ˈhændi/
at will	随意；任意	/ˈæt wɪl/