評論
打印
But then the doubts crept in.
可是后來一些懷疑的聲音卻摻雜進(jìn)來。
Only Jarvik had ever analysed the ichthyostega fossil and you just had to take his word for it,
只有Jarvik研究過這塊魚石螈化石，人們只能參照他的說法，
but worse, mutterings began that there was a gaping hole in the story.
更糟的是，有人開始議論這個(gè)故事中有一個(gè)破綻
Eusthenopteron could not be the immediate ancestor of ichthyostega.
真掌鰭魚不可能是魚石螈最近的祖先
The difference between them was too vast.
它們之間的差異太大了
Ichthyostega was a fully formed tetrapod with a ribcage, pelvis attached to the backbone,
魚石螈是完全成形的四足動(dòng)物，擁有與脊椎相連的胸廓和骨盆
a spine with interlocking spurs and limbs with fingers and toes.
具備關(guān)節(jié)突起的脊柱，以及長著爪和趾的四肢
The fish was still a fish, despite its primitive leg bones.
而魚仍舊是魚，盡管它有了原始的腿骨
It showed little sign of evolving any of these other tetrapod features.
它幾乎沒有其它向四足動(dòng)物進(jìn)化的特征跡象
To prove one had become the other they needed more evidence.
要想證明一種動(dòng)物進(jìn)化成了另一種動(dòng)物，他們還需要更多的證據(jù)
What this really adds up to is that these changes seem to be too gross to have happened in one step.
這里總結(jié)起來可以看出，這些變化實(shí)在太大了，不可能一步到位
There must be missing animals in here.
這中間一定有缺失的物種
For a start somewhere out there should be other species of Devonian tetrapods
可以預(yù)見，某個(gè)地方肯定還有其它四足動(dòng)物
which might shed some light on the theory, but above all they needed to find an intermediate animal,
或許能說明這一理論，但他們首先需要做的就是找到中間物種
one that showed the changes between fish and tetrapod actually happening,
一種能解釋魚如何演變成四足動(dòng)物的物種
some strange beast that could walk, but was half fish/half tetrapod that was a missing link.
一只能夠行走，但卻是半魚半四足類的奇怪動(dòng)物，它就是進(jìn)化缺環(huán)。
