Danish Mayfly named 2021 insect of the year－

 

Danish Mayfly named 2021 insect of the year－

丹麥蜉蝣被選為2021年度昆蟲

◎孫宇青

The Danish Mayfly, whose scientific name is Ephemera danica, was selected as the Insect of the Year for 2021.

學名為Ephemera danica的丹麥蜉蝣，被選為2021年的年度昆蟲。

Mayflies have existed for about 355 million years and today some 140 species live in Central Europe. Despite their fleeting time on earth in their final form, their developmental cycle is quite long.

蜉蝣已生存約3.55億年，中歐現有約140種。儘管牠們以最終樣態待在地球的時間很短暫，但成長週期相當長。

Female mayflies lay thousands of eggs under water between May and September every year. Larvae hatch within a few days, and eventually develop gills. Buried in riverbeds, they take between one to three years to develop.

每年5至9月間，雌性蜉蝣會在水面產下數千個蟲卵。幼蟲數天內孵化後長出鰓，接著便蟄伏在河床中，需1至3年才能蛻變。

Shortly before the transition from aquatic to terrestrial life, a layer of air forms between the old and new skin of the larvae. By reducing its specific weight, the larva rises to the water surface.

從水生生物蛻變為陸生生物的過渡期前不久，幼蟲的新舊皮層間會注入一層空氣，並透過減少比重浮上水面。

Once there, the larval skin bursts and within a few seconds a flyable mayfly hatches. With no mouth parts nor an intestine, the fully developed mayfly has only a few days then to mate and lay new eggs before it dies.

（AP）

之後，幼蟲皮層便會破裂，短短幾秒內變成能飛的蜉蝣，但成蟲既無嘴巴也無腸子，只能在生命最後幾天交配並產下後代。

（美聯社）

【新聞辭典】

entomologist：名詞，昆蟲學家。例句：Only entomologists can distinguish dangerous mosquitoes from harmless ones.（只有昆蟲學家能區分危險和無害蚊子。）

fleeting：形容詞，轉瞬的。例句：The witness only got a fleeting glimpse of the suspect.（目擊者僅瞬間瞥到嫌犯。）

larvae：名詞，幼蟲（larva）的複數形。例句：The tadpole is the larva of the frog.（蝌蚪是青蛙的幼蟲。）