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LESSON 15 The tailor-bird
第十五課 縫葉鶯
The birds in a tropical forest are exposed to many dangers;
熱帶森林的鳥(niǎo)兒時(shí)刻處于各種危險(xiǎn)之中；
and if they were not gifted with instinct, they would soon fall victims to their enemies.
如果它們沒(méi)有天賦本能，很快就會(huì)落入天敵的魔爪，丟了性命。
The monkeys are lying in wait for their eggs; and so is the snake, that glides stealthily amongst the bushes.
猴子們暗中伏擊它們的鳥(niǎo)蛋, 躲在灌木叢中悄悄滑動(dòng)的蛇，也在覬覦它們的鳥(niǎo)蛋。
The mother bird knows very well what she has to expect, if either of these cunning foes should find entrance into her nest;
如果這些狡猾的敵人其中一個(gè)找到巢的入口，進(jìn)入鳥(niǎo)巢，鳥(niǎo)媽媽比誰(shuí)都清楚可怕的后果是什么。
and she generally contrives to conceal it so skilfully, that neither snake nor monkey can find it.
所以通常來(lái)說(shuō)，鳥(niǎo)媽媽會(huì)把鳥(niǎo)巢的入口，設(shè)計(jì)地非常巧妙又隱蔽，以至于蛇和猴子都無(wú)法找到它。
The tailor-bird of India is no bigger than the hummingbird, and has a long slender bill, which she uses as a needle.
印度的縫葉鶯比蜂鳥(niǎo)還小，它長(zhǎng)著細(xì)長(zhǎng)的鳥(niǎo)喙，可以當(dāng)針一樣使用。
She is very timid and cautious, and will not hang her nest, as many birds do, to the end of a bough.
它很膽小謹(jǐn)慎，不會(huì)像許多其他鳥(niǎo)類(lèi)那樣，在高懸的大樹(shù)上筑巢。
She fancies that it would not be safe even there.
它甚至想，即使是一根大樹(shù)枝也不安全。
She therefore fastens it to the leaf itself;
因此，它把巢和樹(shù)葉非常小心地連接緊固住，
and so carefully that no one can see it.
這樣誰(shuí)也發(fā)現(xiàn)不了鳥(niǎo)巢。
First of all she picks up a dead leaf from the ground,
首先，它從地上叼起一片枯葉，
and then, with her needle and thread (her needle being her bill, and her thread the fibres of a plant),
然后，用它的針和線（針就是她的喙，線就是植物纖維），
she sews the dead leaf to the side of a living one, and in the space between she makes her nest.
把枯葉和活的葉子邊緣縫起來(lái)，形成一個(gè)空間，在里面它就可以放心筑巢了。
Small as the space is, it is quite large enough for the tiny eggs she lays;
里面空間雖小，但產(chǎn)下的卵非常小，巢里足夠裝得下它們；
and she lines it with gossamer, that the little tailor-birds may feel themselves quite snug and comfortable.
然后縫葉鶯用蛛絲把這些葉子做的鳥(niǎo)巢排成一排，這樣幼鳥(niǎo)會(huì)感到相當(dāng)溫暖舒適。
The leaf, with the nest sewed into it, swings about in the wind as it did before,
這些被縫補(bǔ)進(jìn)鳥(niǎo)巢的葉子，像以前還長(zhǎng)在樹(shù)枝上一樣，隨風(fēng)搖擺，
for the weight of the bird does not draw it down.
里面的鳥(niǎo)兒是那么輕，鳥(niǎo)巢也不會(huì)掉下來(lái)。
