科学家表示，他们在英格兰诺森伯兰郡的一片海滩上发现了有史以来最大的巨型千足虫（又称 “马陆”）化石，该发现纯属偶然。

 

The fossil was discovered when a boulder¹ fell and cracked open at Howick Bay in Northumberland. It revealed a 75cm-long section of what's now been identified as an Arthropleura, a giant millipede that lived more than 300 million years ago.

这块化石是在诺森伯兰郡豪威克湾的一块巨石坠裂时被发现的。巨石中露出了一段75厘米长的化石，现已被鉴定为节胸蜈蚣，是一种生活在三亿多年前的巨型千足虫。

 

Researchers at Cambridge University say that the whole creature would have been about 2.7 metres long ­­­­­­­– that's the same as a small car and could have weighed 50 kilos.

剑桥大学的研究人员指出，整个生物全长大约2.7米，与小汽车的长度相同，而且可能重达50公斤。

 

Given this Arthropleura's size, it's possible that it ate small invertebrates² and even amphibians³. Despite its incredible length and name, researchers say this giant millipede had fewer than a hundred legs.

鉴于这种节胸蜈蚣的体型，它很可能以小型无脊椎动物甚至两栖动物为食。尽管这种巨型千足虫的长度和名字很不可思议，但研究人员表示它其实只有不到100条腿。

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