They’re calling it a “Marine Dwarf World”. And it’s the latest discovery by researchers at the world-leading Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology. Best parts? It’s 462 million years old and it was found in Wales of all places.
他们称之为“海洋矮人世界”。这是世界领先的南京地质古生物研究所研究人员的最新发现。最好的零件？它有 4.62 亿年的历史，在威尔士各地都有发现。
Castle Bank, Wales, in the United Kingdom, was the scene for the discovery, comprising over 150 miniature species, news of which was released on 2 May.
英国威尔士的 Castle Bank 是这一发现的地点，其中包括 150 多种微型物种，相关消息于 5 月 2 日发布。
That location is key to the find. Castle Bank, situated in the east-central Welsh county of Powys, is somewhat unique for its offering of unparalleled glimpses into the evolution of life. This it does by preserving soft tissue and entire organisms.
该位置是找到的关键。城堡银行 (Castle Bank) 位于威尔士中东部波伊斯县，因其提供无与伦比的生命进化视角而显得有些独特。它通过保存软组织和整个生物体来实现这一点。
In this case, an entire-miniature-marine world. The fossils discovered range from just one to three millimetres in length. Many are intricately detailed; internal organs, nerves, tentacles, even digestive systems, can be seen in the find.
在这种情况下，是一个完整的微型海洋世界。发现的化石长度只有一到三毫米。许多都非常详细；内脏、神经、触手，甚至消化系统，都可以在其中看到。
Credit for the historic discovery lies with an international research team led by scientist, Joseph P. Botting; together with associate researcher, Ma Junye; and researcher, Zhang Yuandong, from the Institute in Nanjing.
这一历史性发现归功于由科学家 Joseph P. Botting 领导的国际研究小组；与马俊业副研究员一起；南京研究所张远东研究员。
While the Institute regularly hits the headlines for world firsts from the fossil field, this discovery is particularly newsworthy for its filling a gap in our understanding of the evolution of marine life.
虽然该研究所经常因化石领域的世界第一而成为头条新闻，但这一发现尤其具有新闻价值，因为它填补了我们对海洋生物进化理解的空白。
The “Burgess Shale Type” (BST) of buried-fossil reservoir the team found dates from the Ordovician Period, as opposed to the Cambrian Period (542-485 MYA) from which other similar discoveries have been dated.
研究小组发现的埋藏化石储层的“伯吉斯页岩类型”（BST）可以追溯到奥陶纪，而不是其他类似发现的寒武纪（542-485 MYA）。
As such, the team has helped to shed light on the transition from Cambrian-style organisms to more advances types typical of the Ordovician Period, a time in which there was an explosion in the diversity of life.
因此，该团队帮助阐明了从寒武纪类型的生物到奥陶纪典型的更先进类型的转变，奥陶纪是生命多样性爆炸性增长的时期。
For comparison, other studies of discoveries from the same period have been far inferior. Neither the BST fauna found in the Fezouata Biota (Morocco) or Afon Gam Biota (also in Wales) discoveries display the high biodiversity in terms of both overall and soft body organisms that was found in Castle Bank.
相比之下，其他对同一时期发现的研究就逊色得多。在 Fezouata Biota（摩洛哥）或 Afon Gam Biota（也在威尔士）发现的 BST 动物群在整体和软体生物方面都没有表现出在 Castle Bank 中发现的高度生物多样性。
The team’s findings were published in Nature’s journal, Ecology & Evolution, on 1 May.
该团队的研究结果于 5 月 1 日发表在《自然》杂志《生态与进化》上。
