8 Flying home

Chapter Eight FLYING HOME Tamiko and Cheng were sitting in one of the other conifer trees, scanning the Jurassic sky for the Archaeopteryx mother. Pterosaurs circled and they could hear the trumpeting calls of dinosaurs grazing on the plain below. But there was no sign of the mother dinosaur.

多美子和程坐在另一棵针叶树上，扫视着侏罗纪的天空，寻找始祖鸟的母亲。 翼龙在空中盘旋，他们可以听到下面平原上吃草的恐龙的叫声。 但是没有发现母恐龙的踪迹。

They took turns to scavenge for worms and bugs to feed the baby Archaeopteryx. It was back on the branch where it had rested inside its egg, squawking and fussing its feathers with its tiny jaws. The sun began slowly to sink. "What if the mother never comes back?" Cheng asked anxiously. Tamiko rubbed her eyes. "I don't know," she admitted. She didn't want to think about that possibility. Cheng eyed the worm wriggling in Tamiko's hand. "I'm so hungry, I could eat that myself," he said. Tamiko went over to the Archaeopteryx, and dropped the worm into its open jaws. "Too late," she said.

它们轮流寻找蠕虫和虫子来喂养幼始祖鸟。 它回到了它在蛋里休息的树枝上，用它的小嘴巴吱吱叫着，抚弄着羽毛。 太阳开始慢慢地下沉。 “如果妈妈再也不回来怎么办？”程焦急地问。 多美子揉了揉眼睛。“我不知道，”她承认。 她不想去想那种可能性。 程看着在多美子手里蠕动的虫子。 他说：“我太饿了，我可以自己吃。” 多美子走到始祖鸟跟前，把虫子扔进它张开的嘴巴里。 “太晚了，”她说。

The sky was turning to gold now. Cheng leaned against the trunk with his arms across his knees. "I'm going to sit here and dream about soup," he said. "A lovely big bowl of soup. And ice cream for dessert. And–what?" Tamiko had lifted her hand. She stared into the sky. "Listen," she said. The baby Archaeopteryx squawked excitedly. Away in the distance, Tamiko and Cheng heard an answering cry. It wasn't the piercing scream of a pterosaur, or the snuffling of a Stegosaurus. It wasn't the roar of an Allosaurus either. "There!" Tamiko exclaimed. "Cheng, look! It's the mum! She's come at last!" Swooping through the golden sky, they saw the mother Archaeopteryx. Her wings were spread wide. Her baby cried, and she

现在天空变成了金色。 程倚在树干上，双臂交叉在膝盖上。 “我要坐在这里，梦见汤，”他说。 “一大碗可爱的汤。 甜点是冰淇淋。 什么?”多美子举起了手。 她凝视着天空。“听着，”她说。 小始祖鸟兴奋地叫着。 在远处，多美子和程听到了一声应声。 它不是翼龙的尖锐尖叫，也不是剑龙的鼻息声。 这也不是异特龙的吼声。 “有!”Tamiko喊道。 “程,看!是妈妈！她终于来了！”在金色的天空中，他们看到了始祖鸟妈妈。 她的翅膀展开了。 她的孩子哭了，她

answered. Tamiko and Cheng watched as she circled the conifers. She dropped onto a branch beside it. Tamiko glimpsed a wriggling beetle in her jaws. In the next instant it had gone, straight down the baby's throat. Tamiko and Cheng looked at each other. Doing their best not to scare the mother away again, they both silently punched the air. More cries circled overhead. Four more adult Archaeopteryxes descended from the golden clouds. They settled beside the baby.

回答。多美子和程看着她围着针叶树转。 她落在旁边的一根树枝上。 多美子瞥见嘴里衔着一只蠕动的甲虫。 不一会儿，它就消失了，直接进了婴儿的喉咙。 多美子和程面面相觑。 为了不让妈妈再被吓跑，他们俩都默默地挥着拳头。 更多的喊声在头顶盘旋。 又有四只成年始祖鸟从金色的云层中飞了下来。 他们坐在婴儿旁边。

"It's an Archaeopteryx habitat!" Tamiko whispered. "Cheng, we haven't just saved one Archaeopteryx from the Allosauruses. We've saved thousands." "There's only five," Cheng pointed out. "Six if you include the baby." "There are only six right now," said Tamiko. "But thanks to us these guys can settle here, without worrying about predators. They can thrive, and have more babies. And those babies will have babies,

“这是始祖鸟的栖息地！”Tamiko低声说。 “程，我们不仅从异特龙手中拯救了一只始祖鸟。 我们救了成千上万的人。”“只有五个，”程指出。 “如果算上婴儿，就是六个。” “现在只有六只，”多美子说。 “但多亏了我们，这些家伙可以在这里定居，而不用担心捕食者。 它们可以茁壮成长，生出更多的孩子。 这些孩子会生孩子，

and THOSE babies will have babies for a thousand generations–and THAT plays a part in the whole evolution of modern birds!" "Whoa," exclaimed Cheng, impressed. "I guess we deserve a pat on the back after all." Tamiko could have stayed forever, watching the Archaeopteryxes circle and squawk. But the Beagle was waiting for them back at the swamp. So was the team at the Exploration Station, waiting for news of their mission. They made their way slowly and carefully back down the shattered hillside, and picked their way through the trees and ferns. They made it to the edge of the swamp as the Jurassic sun began to dip below the horizon.

这些幼鸟会繁衍千代——这在现代鸟类的整个进化过程中起着重要作用！”“哇，”程惊叹道。 “我想我们还是值得表扬一下。” 多美子本可以永远呆在这里，看着始祖鸟盘旋和嘎嘎叫。 但是小猎犬号在沼泽地等着他们。 在探索站等待任务消息的团队也是如此。 他们慢慢地、小心翼翼地从破碎的山坡上走下来，在树木和蕨类植物中摸索着前进。 当侏罗纪的太阳开始沉入地平线时，他们来到了沼泽的边缘。