介绍:
Human populations near the equator have evolved dark skin over many generations because of exposure to the fiercest rays of the sun. A similar phenomenon has also occurred in other parts of the animal kingdom. The African grass mouse is a good example. Most mice are nocturnal, but the African grass mouse is active during daylight hours. This means that it spends its days searching for food in the semi-dry bush in scrubby habitats of eastern and southern Africa. Its furry stripe's like a chipmunk's, which helps it blend in with its environment. Because it spends a lot of time in the intense tropical sun, the grass mouse has also evolved two separate safeguards against the sun's ultraviolet radiation. First, like the population of humans in this region of the world, the skin of the grass mouse contains lots of melanin, or dark pigment. Second and quite unusual, this mouse has a layer of melanin-pigmented tissue between its skull and skin. This unique cap provides an extra measure of protection for the grass mouse and three other types of African mouse, like rodents that are active during the day. The only other species scientists has identified with the same sort of skull adaptation is the white tent-making bat of the Central American tropics. Although these bats sleep during the day, they do so curled up with their heads exposed to the sun.
生词摘录：
1.equator: n. 赤道
2.nocturnal: adj. 夜行的
3.scrubby: adj. 树丛繁盛的
4.stripe: n. 条纹
5.chipmunk: n. 花栗鼠
6.ultraviolet: adj. 紫外线的
7.melanin: n. 黑色素
8.pigment: n. 色素
9.rodent: n. 啮齿类动物
10.skull: n. 头骨
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