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Hi, everybody! You're just in time.
嗨，大家好！你们刚好来得及！
Squeaks and I were just looking in to an animal mystery.
我和吱吱刚刚在寻找一个动物之谜。
We were looking through our big book of animals, and the last animal in the book caught our eye. It's a zebra!
我们刚才翻阅了大本动物籍，书里的最后一种动物吸引了我们的眼球，那就是斑马！
You've probably heard of them before, they look a lot like horses, but they have black and white stripes!
你以前可能听说过它们，它们长得很像马，但有黑白条纹。
Have you ever wondered why zebras have these special stripes?
你想知道斑马为什么会有这些特殊条纹吗？
To find out, let's look a little closer at the life of a zebra.
为了找出真相，让我们近距离观察它的生活。
Zebras are closely related to horses, and they are look like them in many ways!
斑马与马有密切的关系，它们在很多方面都很像。
They are look like horses, of course, and they run like them, too.
它们的外观像马，当然，奔跑的姿势也像马。
And they also eat grass like horses do.
它们也像马一样吃草。
But zebras are also different from horses in some important ways.
但斑马在某些重要方面与马有所不同。
For one thing, horses can be found in many parts of the world, but wild zebras only live in Africa.
一个方面是马在世界上许多地方都可以找得到，但野生斑马只生活在非洲。
Zebras also have hair on the back of their neck, called a mane, that's shorter and spikier than it is on horses.
斑马的脖子背面也有毛，叫做鬃毛，比马的鬃毛要短得多，也尖得多。
And of course, horses come in many different colors and patterns, but all zebras wear a coat of black and white stripes!
还有就是马有许多不同的颜色和花纹，但所有的斑马都是黑白纹。
But still, not all zebras are exactly the same.
但并不是所有的斑马都完全相同。
There are actually three different species, or special types, of zebra!
事实上，斑马有三种不同的品种或特殊类型。
Two of these species are named after the kind of place they live in.
其中两种是以它们栖息地的类型命名的。
The Plains Zebra lives on the plains, where it's mostly flat and there's a lot of grass and other plants to eat.
平原斑马生活在平原，平原大多平坦，有很多草和其他植物可以供它们食用。
Then there's the Mountain Zebra, which lives, you guessed it, in the mountains.
然后是山地斑马，你猜对了，它们生活在大山中。
The last species is called the Grevys Zebra, and it only lives in a few special grasslands in Africa.
最后一个品种叫格利威斑马，它们只生活在非洲的几个特殊草原上。
But all types of zebras have their famous stripes, and scientists have always wondered what these stripes were for.
但所有类型的斑马都有它们著名的条纹，科学家一直想知道这些条纹的作用。
And this is what we're curious about today!
这也是我们今天感兴趣的话题！
Let's look at a few ideas about how these stripes might help zebras to survive in the wild.
让我们看几个关于条纹如何帮助斑马在野外生存的观点。
Some scientists used to think that zebras could use their stripes to recognize each other.
一些科学家过去认为斑马利用斑纹相互识别。
It turns out that each zebra has a unique pattern of stripes,
事实证明每个斑马的条纹图案都是独一无二的，
just like how every person, including you, has a unique set of fingerprints on their fingertips.
就像包括你在内的每个人，指尖上的一组指纹都是独特的。
Maybe, by looking at each other's stripes, zebras could recognize each other, and their families.
也许，通过相互观察条纹，斑马可以认出彼此以及它们的家人。
But you don't recognize your friends by looking at their fingerprints.
但你认朋友不是靠看他们的指甲吧！
So, we're not sure that zebras use their stripes that way, either.
所以，我们也不确定斑马身上的条纹是否是这样用的。
After all, zebras have many other ways to recognize each other, like by their smell or by the sounds they make.
毕竟，斑马有许多其他方式来识别彼此，比如它们的气味，或者它们发出的声音。
So, scientists have also thought that zebras might use their stripes to hide from predators.
科学家们也认为斑马可能会利用条纹来躲避捕食者。
Lions and hyenas are two predators that often hunt zebras.
狮子和鬣狗是经常捕食斑马的两种动物。
So some have thought that the zebras' long stripes might help them stay hidden in the tall grass.
所以一些人认为斑马的长条纹可能会帮助它们藏在高高的草丛中。
But after looking closer, scientists noticed that the zebras' stripes didn't stop lions and hyenas from finding them.
但科学家近距离观察后，注意到斑马的条纹并不能阻止狮子和鬣狗找到它们。
Instead, the predators used their noses to find zebras by smell, they weren't fooled by the zebras' stripes at all.
相反，掠食者用鼻子嗅出斑马的气味，它们根本不会被斑马身上的条纹所愚弄。
So, maybe the stripes do something else!
所以，条纹或许还有其他的作用。
And, there is one other animal that zebras need to keep away: horseflies!
斑马还需避开另外一种动物:马蝇！
Horseflies are big, pesky biting flies, and they often bite animals like zebras, kind of like how mosquitoes bite people.
马蝇是一种大的、讨厌的咬人蝇，它们经常叮咬斑马之类的动物，和蚊子咬人有点儿像。
But scientists have noticed that horseflies don't seem to like zebras' stripes.
但科学家们注意到，马蝇似乎不喜欢斑马的条纹。
Something about the pattern of the black and white stripes makes horseflies confused, so they stay away from them.
黑白条纹的图案让马蝇迷惑不解，所以它们远离这些东西。
So maybe that's it!
也许这就是原因。
Today, some scientists think that the stripes help zebras avoid getting bitten by horseflies.
现在，一些科学家认为条纹可以帮助斑马免于马蝇的叮咬。
The stripes might work kind of like a built-in bug repellant.
这些条纹可能有点儿像内置的驱虫剂。
In fact, it turns out that zebras have the most stripes in places they really don't want horseflies to bite them, like on their faces.
事实上，斑马条纹最多的地方就是它们不想挨咬的位置，比如它们的面部。
And many people have started using the answer to this animal mystery to help protect horses, too.
许多人已经开始用这个动物之谜的答案来帮助保护马了。
Some farmers have started putting zebra striped coats on their horses to keep the horseflies away.
一些农民已经开始在马身上套上斑马线的外衣来防备马蝇。
What an amazing way to use what we've learned to help our animal friends.
用我们学到的东西来帮助我们的动物朋友真是太棒了！
It's important to remember that there could be more than one right answer to a question,
重要的是，要记住，问题的答案可能不止一个。
especially when you're dealing with nature and science.
在处理自然和科学的问题时要特别注意！
So, scientists are still looking at all the other things that stripes might help a zebra to do.
因此，科学家们仍在研究条纹的其他作用。
Maybe you have some good ideas about what these stripes could do.
也许你对这些条纹的作用有什么好想法，
If you do, ask a grown-up to help you leave your ideas below, or send us an email to kids@scishow.com
如果有的话，找个大人帮忙在下方留言哦，或发送邮件至kids@scishow.com。
Thanks for joining us! And we'll see you next time, here at the fort!
感谢您的收看！我们下期见，沃斯堡等你哦！
