国家地理:牧野分歧(1)

We bounce in the truck along a furrowed road, through a mud slick and up to a bluff that looks out to the curve of the Earth.

卡车在裂痕纵横的道路上颠簸，开过一片滑溜的泥地登上断崖，弧形的天际线尽收眼底。

The plains glow emerald in this wet spring, rolling toward distant hills. Near an oxbow in the creek beneath us, a herd of buffalo graze. They are primeval creatures, bearded and huge, their winter fur peeling off in strips like old wallpaper.

春雨的浸润让草原像绿宝石般发光，连绵铺向远方的山丘。脚下蜿蜒的溪水形如牛轭，一群野牛在旁吃草。这些古老生灵身形庞大，胡须缀面，过冬的厚毛一条条脱落，如同破旧的墙纸。

In the days before horses and guns, Plains Indians chased buffalo off this steep embankment to their deaths. It's late in May, late in the afternoon, and the light has taken on a rich, nostalgic cast. Damien Austin, a former zookeeper with rectangular glasses and a rectangular fringe of hair, extends his hand across the humped expanse of prairie. "Just imagine grizzly bears running around out there," he says.

在枪支和奔马被引入这片大地之前，“大平原印第安人”的狩猎方式就是驱赶野牛摔下这道断崖。如今正是五月下旬，傍晚时分，光线带着浓浓的怀旧气息。当过动物园管理员的达明·奥斯汀的眼镜框和发型同样方方正正，手臂伸向起伏绵延的草地。“想象一下大灰熊在那里奔跑的场景。”他说道。