像人那么大的企鹅，真的存在过

体型和人类相似的巨型企鹅曾在新西兰出现

Scientists in New Zealand said Wednesday they’ve found fossilized bones from an extinct monster penguin that was about the size of an adult human and swam the oceans some 60 million years ago.

新西兰科学家星期三说，他们发现了一只灭绝的怪物企鹅的骨骼化石，这只企鹅的大小和成人差不多，大约6000万年前曾在海洋中游泳。

They said the previously undiscovered species is believed to have stood about 5 feet 2 inches tall and weighed up to 176 pounds. It’s believed to have been one of several species of giant penguins that thrived soon after dinosaurs died out.

科学家称，以前从未发现这个物种，据了解该物种大约有5英尺2英寸高，重达176磅。应该是恐龙灭绝后不久，迅速繁衍生息的几种巨型企鹅之一。

The findings were published this week in “Alcheringa: An Australasian Journal of Palaeontology.”

这一发现发表在本周的《阿尔赫林加：澳大利亚古生物学杂志》上。

Paul Scofield, a co-author of the paper and senior curator at the Canterbury Museum, said the discovery is significant because the species is similar to another giant penguin found in Antarctica in 2000 and helps show a connection between the two regions during the Paleocene Epoch.

这篇论文的合著者、坎特伯雷博物馆的高级馆长保罗·斯科菲尔德说，这一发现意义重大，因为这一物种与2000年在南极洲发现的另一只巨型企鹅相似，有助于揭示古新世时期这两个地区之间的联系。

He said that following the extinction of dinosaurs, marine reptiles and gigantic fish, it seemed there was an evolutionary opportunity for penguins to thrive and grow in size.

随着恐龙、海洋爬行动物和巨型鱼类的灭绝，企鹅似乎有了一个茁壮成长的进化机会。

“The oceans were ripe for the picking with the lack of mega predators,” Scofield said. “It looks like what was going on was that penguins were just starting to exploit that niche.”

斯科菲尔德说：“由于没有大型食肉动物，海洋已经成熟到可以觅食了。”“看起来企鹅们开始利用这个生态。”

But he said the giant penguins themselves became extinct within 30 million years as large marine mammals began ruling the waters.

但是，由于大型海洋哺乳动物开始统治这片水域，巨型企鹅在3000万年内就灭绝了。

The monster penguins, named Crossvallia waiparensis, would have been about twice the weight and 30 centimeters (1 foot) taller than the largest type of penguins alive today, emperor penguins.

这只名叫Crossvallia Waiparensis的巨型企鹅，比现存最大的企鹅帝企鹅高出约两倍，高30厘米(1英尺)。

Scofield said the leg bones indicated the monster penguin’s feet may have played a bigger role in swimming than is the case with penguins today.

斯科菲尔德说，这些腿骨表明，这种巨型企鹅的脚可能在游泳中发挥了比现在企鹅更大的作用。

New Zealand is believed to have been the site of many gigantic birds that later became extinct, including the world’s largest parrot, a giant eagle and an emu-like bird called the moa. Scientists say the lack of predators allowed such birds to thrive.

新西兰是许多后来灭绝的巨型鸟类的栖息地，包括世界上最大的鹦鹉、一只巨鹰和一种名为MOA的类鸸鹋鸟。科学家称，由于缺少捕食者，这种鸟得以繁衍生息。

The monster penguin’s bones, from its legs and feet, were found by amateur enthusiast Leigh Love about 18 months ago in the Waipara River bed near the South Island city of Christchurch.

大约18个月前，业余爱好者利·洛夫在南岛城市克赖斯特彻奇附近的怀帕拉河床上，发现了这只企鹅的腿和脚上的骨骼。

Love said he spotted the fragments in an eroding bank.

洛夫说，他在一个被侵蚀的河岸上发现了这些碎片。

“It wasn’t until I got the fossils home and did a little preparation that I realized I had something completely different than what had been found before,” he said.

“直到我把化石带回家，做了一点准备，我才意识到，我发现了一些与之前发现的完全不同的东西，”他说。

Love said his passion for collecting fossils began about 14 years ago after chronic fatigue syndrome prevented him from working for several years.

洛夫说，他对收集化石的热情始于14年前，因为慢性疲劳综合症，使他好几年都无法工作。

“It inspires me to go out and look for more,” he said.

他说：“收集化石激励我走出去，寻找更多的东西。”

Massey University Professor John Cockrem, a penguin expert who wasn’t involved in the research, said the discovery was significant in adding to knowledge about giant penguins and cementing New Zealand’s place as the penguin center of the world.

梅西大学(Massey University)教授、企鹅专家约翰·科克伦(John Cockrem)没有参与这项研究。他说，这一发现对增加有关巨型企鹅的知识、巩固新西兰作为企鹅世界中心的地位具有重要意义。

Ewan Fordyce, a paleontology professor from the University of Otago who also wasn’t involved in the research, said the penguin was among the oldest ever found. He said one challenge was trying to determine the overall size of the birds from skeleton fragments, but added that it was a challenge everybody in the field faced.

奥塔戈大学古生物学教授伊万·福代斯(EwanFordyce)也没有参与这项研究，他说这只企鹅是有史以来发现的最古老的企鹅之一。他说，试图从骨骼碎片中确定鸟类的整体大小是个挑战，但是，这是该领域每个人都面临的挑战。

The monster penguin’s bones were analyzed by Scofield and Vanesa De Pietri, another Canterbury Museum curator, along with German paleontologist Gerald Mayr. The scientists say they have discovered other new penguin species at the remarkable site, which they haven’t yet finished researching.

坎特伯雷博物馆的另一位馆长，斯科菲尔德和瓦内德·皮特里以及德国古生物学家杰拉德·迈尔，对这只企鹅的骨骼进行了分析。科学家们表示，他们已经在这个引人注目的地点发现了其他新的企鹅物种，但他们还没有完成研究。