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When one finds the right spot, it settles down to chew through a leaf. So far, so normal. But the caterpillar is not actually swallowing the bits of leaf. It' s channelling a gap between the segments. When finished, it' ll tuck itself into the space. So what is so strange about this animal? Well, those are not your typical caterpillar feet, and what follows is not your typical caterpillar behaviour. This is a carnivorous caterpillar with a vicelike hold and a bite to match. Hawaii' s numerous fruit flies were just too good an opportunity to ignore. And the sticklike camouflage of another kind of meateating caterpillar is just as effective when ambushing prey. Nobody knows what set Hawaii' s carnivorous caterpillars on this extraordinary path, but it' s the sort of quirky evolution that' s common on isolated islands. |
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yī dàn zhǎo dào shì dàng de diǎn, tā jiù là xià lái jué yè zi. dào mù qián wéi zhǐ yī qiè dōu zhèng cháng, dàn shí jì shang máo chóng bìng méi yǒu yàn shàng diǎn yè zi. tā zhǐ shì zài yè piàn shàng kāi yí gè fèng xì, wán chéng hòu jiù jiāng zì jǐ sāi jìn qù, zhè gè dòng wù shì bú shì tài qí guài le? zhèi xiē bìng bú shì diǎn xíng de máo chóng jiǎo. xià shù yě méi yǒu diǎn xíng de máo chóng xíng wéi, zhè shì tiáo shí ròu máo chóng, zhǐ yào néng jiào liàng jiù láo láo dì zhuā zhù. xià wēi yí yǒu hěn duō guǒ yíng, jī huì duō de kě yǐ hū lüè. lìng yī zhǒng shí ròu máo chóng yǒu zhe zhī tiáo bān wěi zhuāng, shí jì shang yòng lái fú jī zhèng hǎo. méi rén zhī dào wèi shí me bǎ xià wēi yí shí ròu máo chóng fàng zài zhè zhǒng tè bié de shēng huó fāng shì shàng, dàn shì nà zhǒng kuài sù yǎn huà zài gū dǎo shàng hěn pǔ biàn. |