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They're cute, they're lovable,
它们很可爱，惹人喜欢，
and judging by the 26 billions views of over 2 million YouTube videos of them pouncing,
观众超过260亿人次，YouTube视频200万个，只为了欣赏它们的抓、
bouncing, climbing, cramming, stalking, clawing, chattering, and purring,
扑、跳跃、攀爬、狼吞虎咽、潜行、抓挠、不停地叫甚至打呼噜，
one thing is certain: cats are very entertaining.
有件事是确定的：猫非常很有趣。
These somewhat strange feline behaviors, both amusing and baffling,
这些猫科动物的奇怪行为，既好玩也让人困惑，
leave many of us asking, 'Why do cats do that?'
让我们不由自主地要问：“猫为什么这样呢？”
Throughout time, cats were simultaneously solitary predators of smaller animals and prey for larger carnivores.
一直以来，猫科动物既能独立猎食小动物，也是大型食肉动物的猎物。
As both predator and prey, survival of their species depended on crucial instinctual behaviors
同时作为捕食者和猎物，物种的生存取决于决定性的生物本能，
which we still observe in wild and domestic cats today.
这些我们今天可以从野生或者家养的猫观察到。
While the feline actions of your house cat Grizmo might seem perplexing, in the wild, these same behaviors,
你的猫的行为看上去可能让你困惑，而在野外，这些行为，
naturally bred into cats for millions of years, would make Grizmo a super cat.
经过百万年的自然进化，足以让Grizmo变成一只超级猫。
Enabled by their unique muscular structure and keen balancing abilities,
独一无二的肌肉结构和完美的平衡能力，
cats climbed to high vantage points to survey their territory and spot prey in the wild.
使猫可以爬到很高的地方侦察领地并且锁定野外的猎物。
Grizmo doesn't need these particular skills to find and hunt down dinner in her food bowl today,
Grizmo不需要这些特别技巧来发现和捕捉今天饭碗里的食物，
but instinctually, viewing the living room from the top of the bookcase is exactly what she has evolved to do.
可是本质上，从书架顶部观察客厅正是它在进化中获得的本能。
As wild predators, cats are opportunistic and hunt whenever prey is available.
作为野外猎食者，猫都会时刻准备着捕食猎物。
Since most cat prey are small, cats in the wild needed to eat many times each day,
由于猫的猎物很小，在野外，猫每天要进食很多次，
and use a stalk, pounce, kill, eat strategy to stay fed.
不停地通过潜行-猛扑-杀死-吃掉的技巧来获得食物。
This is why Grizmo prefers to chase and pounce on little toys and eat small meals over the course of the day and night.
这就是为什么Grisom喜欢追逐和抓扑小玩具，并且成天不停地吃东西。
Also, small prey tend to hide in tiny spaces in their natural environments,
而且在野外，小猎物往往隐藏在狭小的空间里，
so one explanation for Grizmo's propensity to reach into containers and openings is that
Grizom之所以喜欢躲进容器和小洞中，
she is compelled by the same curiosity that helped ensure the continuation of her species for millions of years before.
这是由好奇心所驱使，有助于这个物种几百万年得以延续。
In the wild, cats needed sharp claws for climbing, hunting, and self-defense.
在野外，猫需要利爪来爬树、猎食、自我防御。
Sharpening their claws on nearby surfaces kept them conditioned and ready,
随时随地摩尖爪子不仅帮助它们时刻保持状态，
helped stretch their back and leg muscles, and relieve some stress, too.
还有助于活动腰部和腿部肌肉，也使压力得到释放。
So, it's not that Grizmo hates your couch, chair, ottoman, pillows, curtains,
所以，不是Grizmo恨你的沙发、椅子、凳子、枕头、窗帘
and everything else you put in her environment.
以及所有你放在它面前的东西。
She's ripping these things to shreds and keeping her claws in tip-top shape
它抓挠只是为了保持它的爪子锋利，
because this is exactly what her ancestors did in order to survive.
因为这正是它的祖先为了生存所做的事情。
As animals that were preyed upon, cats evolved to not get caught,
作为被捕食的猎物，猫进化出躲避追捕的技能，
and in the wild, the cats that were the best at avoiding predators thrived.
在野外，猫非常善于躲避捕食者。
So at your house today, Grizmo is an expert at squeezing into small spaces and seeking out and hiding in unconventional spots.
所以直到今天，Grizom仍然是个挤进小空间的专家，常常搜寻或躲藏在意想不到的地方。
It also explains why she prefers a clean and odor-free litter box.
这也解释了为什么它喜欢干净无味的小盒子。
That's less likely to give away her location to any predators that may be sniffing around nearby.
那是捕食者，即使在附近寻觅的猎食者，不可能发现的地方。
Considering everything we do know about cats,
想一下我们知道的关于猫的一切，
it seems that one of their most predominate behaviors is still one of the most mysterious.
然而它们最常见的行为之一仍然是最神秘的一个。
Cats may purr for any number of reasons, such as happiness, stress, and hunger.
猫打呼噜可能有多种原因引起，比如快乐、压力甚至饥饿。
But curiously, the frequency of their purrs, between 25 and 150 hertz,
可奇怪的是，它们打呼噜的频率在25-150赫兹之间，
is within a range that can promote tissue regeneration.
这个范围内能促进组织再生。
So while her purring makes Grizmo an excellent nap companion,
所以打呼噜使Grizmo成为优秀的陪伴者，
it is also possible that her purr is healing her muscles and bones, and maybe even yours, too.
也可能还会治疗它的肌肉和骨头，甚至可能也包括你的。
They developed through time as both solitary predators that hunted and killed to eat,
它们一直在进化，一边孤独地捕食，
and stealthy prey that hid and escaped to survive.
一边不停躲避天敌的追捕。
So cats today retain many of the same instincts that allowed them to thrive in the wild for millions of years.
时至今日，猫仍然保留了许多使他们在野外存活了几百万年的本能。
This explains some of their seemingly strange behaviors.
这对一些看来奇怪的行为进行了解释。
To them, our homes are their jungles.
对它们来说，我们的家是它们的丛林。
But if this is the case, in our own cat's eyes, who are we?
如果是这样，在猫的眼里，我们是什么？
Big, dumb, hairless cats competing with them for resources?
是和它们争抢资源的没毛傻大个？
Terribly stupid predators they're able to outsmart every day?
还是它们能轻松应对的愚蠢捕食者？
Or maybe they think we're the prey.
甚至也许它们认为我们是它们的猎物。
