A mammoth maneuver

He died in the prime[1] of life, a tiny red flower lodged[2] in the long hairs of his thick pelt. That was more than 20,000 years ago, when woolly mammoths roamed the Siberian plains. Now, like an Ice Age emissary, Jarkov (named for the nomad family who found him) may help us unravel some of the mysteries of pachyderm life back then. This fall, French explorer Bernard Buigues led the first international expedition to salvage an entire mammoth, whose fur, organs and soft tissues remain remarkably preserved by the permafrost.Russian diggers spent five weeks chipping the carcass from its icy tomb; a daring[3] helicopter airlift then transported the 23-ton block 150 miles to cold-storage caverns in northern Siberia.There, scientists intend to examine Jarkov and the soil around him for clues about the environment and what might have caused the species to become extinct. (source: LIFE January, 2000)

空运猛犸

正值壮年的它告别了世界，只有一朵血红的小花在它厚重浓密的皮毛上吐露芬芳。那是两万多年以前的故事了，披着长毛的猛犸漫步在西伯利亚大草原上。而如今Jarkov（发现猛犸遗体的一个游牧部落）成了冰河时代的使者，他们将帮我们解开远古猛犸的生命之谜。今年秋天，法国探险家白纳德.贝格斯领导了一支国际探险队，主要目的是为了保全猛犸尸体。由于地处永久冻结带，猛犸的皮毛、器官和软组织都保存得相当完好。俄罗斯挖掘队花了整整五个星期才将这一巨物从它的冰墓中凿出。这一重达23吨的庞然巨物由一架胆大的直升飞机驶过150英里，最终运到西伯利亚北部的冷藏洞。科学家想在那儿研究Jarkov部落和猛犸周身的土壤，以期从它生存的环境入手找到导致这一物种灭绝的原因。

摄影：FRANCIS LATREILLE

注释：

1. prime：壮年。这个词的意义很丰富，它能表示“初期、开始”，比如the prime of moon指新月；它还能表示“春，青春，壮年”，比如：the prime of year指的就是春天，She is in her prime.她正直青春年华。

2. lodge：暂时留……住宿。它还有“埋入、嵌入“的意思，比如：It has lodged in his memory.这事一直留存在他的记忆之中。

3. daring：大胆的，勇敢的。它还能翻译成“意气风发的”，比如：Never before have they been so inspired, and so daring as at present. 从来也没有看见他们像现在这样精神振奋，意气风发。