科學圖說

超級建築師(Super Architect)

褐色園丁鳥，是一種非常有名的鳥類，可是長相卻十分普通，從學名(Amblyornis inornata）可以說明這一點。屬名Amblyornis為希臘文ambluoeis和ornithos的結合，前者意指「平淡」，後者意指「鳥」；種本名inornata源自拉丁文inornatus，意為「平淡不加以修飾的」。既然不是因為外表而出名，那又是因什麼而有名的呢？原來褐色園丁鳥是傑出的建築師，可以建造出精美的宮殿來求偶。在建設求偶場前會挑選出一片區域，並把地面清理乾淨，幾乎是寸草不留，接著開始用細樹枝等材料建設求偶場。求偶場前的空地會用一些花瓣、果實、樹葉等進行裝飾，裝飾物的擺放也是井井有條。而牠們最喜歡的竟是黑色和藍色！

The Vogelkop bowerbird is a very well-known species, although its looks are somewhat ordinary, as suggested by its scientific name Amblyornis inornate. Ambylornis is the combination of the Greek words ambluoeis and ornithos. The former means “dull” and the latter “bird”. Inornate comes from the Latin inornatus, which means “dull, without embellishment”. With this description, how did it become so famous? The Vogelkop bowerbird is an outstanding architect. The males create elaborate “bowers”. A male first selects a desirable area and then clears away debris. It uses twigs to build a bower and decorates it with flower petals, fruits and twigs. The placement of these decorations is methodical. Moreover, this bird prefers the colors black and blue!