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Science and technology
科學技術
Marine biology
海洋生物學
Finding Nemo's role
尼莫的新角色
Clownfish help their anemones breathe
小丑魚助力海葵呼吸
IT IS one of the best-known relationships in nature: the anemone provides a tentacle-guarded home and the clownfish drives off predators that would chew its protector.
這是自然界中一個最廣為人知的關系：海葵為小丑魚提供觸須拱衛的家園，小丑魚則會驅趕會把海葵吃掉的掠食者。
Recent research has, however, shown there is much more going on.
然而最近的研究顯示小丑魚做的要比這多得多。
A study in 2009 revealed that waste excreted by clownfish provides vital nutrients to anemones.
2009年的一項研究顯示，小丑魚的排泄物是海葵極其重要的營養物。
Now researchers have found clownfish can boost their hosts' oxygen supplies at night too.
研究人員現在又發現小丑魚還可以在夜間為其宿主增加供氧量。
Clownfish and anemones live on coral reefs where oxygen levels in the water often plunge at night as photosynthesis shuts down.
小丑魚和海葵生活在珊瑚礁中，由于夜間不再有光合作用，海水在夜間的氧氣含量常會驟然下降。
Some fish species are known to wave their fins over their coral homes to help keep the coral oxygenated.
人們已經知道有些魚類會朝著它們的珊瑚家園搖擺魚鰭來幫助珊瑚保持充氧狀態。
Joseph Szczebak of Auburn University, in Alabama, and his colleagues wondered if clownfish might do something similar for anemones
美國阿拉巴馬州奧本大學的約瑟夫?什切巴克及其同事想了解小丑魚是否也會對海葵做出類似的行為。
It seems that they do. In a forthcoming edition of the Journal of Experimental Biology, Mr Szczebak and his colleagues report that they studied the oxygen consumption of clownfish and anemones in the laboratory, using special tanks which can measure oxygen levels in the water as it is pumped in and out of the tanks.
小丑魚似乎這樣做了。在即將出版的一期《實驗生物學》上，什切巴克及其同事報道了它們在實驗室中研究了小丑魚和海葵的耗氧量。實驗采用了特殊水箱，在水泵將水吸入，抽出水箱時可以測出水的含氧量。
Readings were taken for 20-minute periods during the night and day with just a fish in a tank, just an anemone or both in a tank together.
實驗分別記錄了在水箱中只有一條魚，只有一棵海葵以及兩者共存的三種情況下在夜間及日間中20分鐘的含氧量讀數。
Infra-red cameras quickly hinted that something was going on.
紅外攝像機很快提供了事情發生的線索。
The fish became active at night when they had an anemone to hang out with.
當小丑魚和海葵共處一箱時，它在夜間變得很活躍。
They would twirl around it, push its tentacles up and down, and whip their tails about.
小丑魚會圍著海葵轉動，帶著海葵的觸須上下擺動，還讓自己的尾部搖來擺去。
It was like a sort of dance.
這就像是一種舞蹈。
The combined level of oxygen consumption when the fish and anemone were together was significantly higher than when they were kept apart.
當小丑魚和海葵共存時二者加在一起的耗氧量遠高于比它們分開時的耗氧量之和。
Mr Szczebak speculates that the antics of clownfish allow more water to flow over the anemone, thus increasing the amount of oxygen the anemone can collect.
什切巴克推測，小丑魚做出的滑稽動作可以使更多的水流過海葵，從而使海葵獲取的氧量增加。
How lucky anemones are to have such good friends.
海葵有這么好的朋友真是三生有幸啊！
