HSK7-9 Reading – Spiders That Eat Their Mothers

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HSK 7-9 · Reading Practice

Spiders That Eat Their Mothers

Vocabulary

HSK 7-9 不bù寒hán而ér栗lì Tap to flip

to shudder with fear

一yì想xiǎng到dào那nà场chǎng车chē祸huò的de画huà面miàn，，她tā至zhì今jīn仍réng不bù寒hán而ér栗lì。。

Even now, just thinking about the scene of that car accident makes her shudder.

HSK 7-9 噬shì Tap to flip

to bite; to devour

洪hóng水shuǐ无wú情qíng地de吞tūn噬shì了le整zhěng座zuò村cūn庄zhuāng。。

The flood mercilessly swallowed up the entire village.

HSK 7-9 弑shì Tap to flip

to kill (one’s parent or ruler)

这zhè部bù历lì史shǐ剧jù讲jiǎng述shù了le一yí位wèi王wáng子zǐ弑shì父fù篡cuàn位wèi的de故gù事shì。。

This historical drama tells the story of a prince who kills his father to seize the throne.

HSK 7-9 伦lún理lǐ Tap to flip

ethics

基jī因yīn编biān辑jí技jì术shù引yǐn发fā了le许xǔ多duō伦lún理lǐ上shàng的de争zhēng议yì。。

Gene-editing technology has sparked many ethical controversies.

HSK 7-9 啃kěn Tap to flip

to gnaw; to nibble

小xiǎo狗gǒu趴pā在zài地dì上shàng，，津jīn津jīn有yǒu味wèi地de啃kěn着zhe骨gǔ头tou。。

The puppy lay on the floor, happily gnawing on a bone.

HSK 7-9 忘wàng恩ēn负fù义yì Tap to flip

ungrateful

当dāng年nián是shì老lǎo板bǎn提tí拔bá了le他tā，，他tā却què在zài公gōng司sī最zuì困kùn难nan时shí跳tiào槽cáo，，实shí在zài忘wàng恩ēn负fù义yì。。

It was the boss who promoted him back then, yet he quit when the company was struggling — how ungrateful.

HSK 7-9 孵fū化huà Tap to flip

to hatch; to incubate

经jīng过guò三sān周zhōu的de孵fū化huà，，小xiǎo鸡jī终zhōng于yú破pò壳ké而ér出chū。。

After three weeks of incubation, the chicks finally broke out of their shells.

HSK 7-9 节jié肢zhī动dòng物wù Tap to flip

arthropod

昆kūn虫chóng、、虾xiā和hé螃páng蟹xiè都dōu属shǔ于yú节jié肢zhī动dòng物wù。。

Insects, shrimp and crabs are all arthropods.

HSK 7-9 反fǎn刍chú Tap to flip

to ruminate; to regurgitate food

牛niú吃chī完wán草cǎo后hòu，，会huì躺tǎng下xià来lái慢màn慢màn反fǎn刍chú。。

After eating grass, cows lie down and slowly chew their cud.

HSK 7-9 任rèn由yóu Tap to flip

to let (sb do as they please)

他tā不bú愿yuàn意yì管guǎn教jiào孩hái子zi，，总zǒng是shì任rèn由yóu他tā们men在zài餐cān厅tīng里lǐ乱luàn跑pǎo。。

He’s unwilling to discipline his kids and always lets them run wild in restaurants.

HSK 7-9 乍zhà听tīng之zhī下xià Tap to flip

at first hearing; at first glance

这zhè个ge计jì划huà乍zhà听tīng之zhī下xià很hěn简jiǎn单dān，，其qí实shí执zhí行xíng起qǐ来lái困kùn难nan重chóng重chóng。。

This plan sounds simple at first, but it’s full of difficulties to carry out.

HSK 7-9 写xiě照zhào Tap to flip

portrayal; true picture

这zhè首shǒu歌gē是shì那nà个ge年nián代dài年nián轻qīng人rén心xīn情qíng的de最zuì佳jiā写xiě照zhào。。

This song perfectly captures how young people felt in that era.

HSK 7-9 躯qū体tǐ Tap to flip

body (formal)

运yùn动dòng员yuán拖tuō着zhe疲pí惫bèi的de躯qū体tǐ，，坚jiān持chí跑pǎo完wán了le全quán程chéng。。

The athlete dragged his exhausted body on and finished the whole race.

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Reading Passage

噬母蜘蛛
Spiders That Eat Their Mothers

“噬母蜘蛛”一词，乍听之下总令人不寒而栗：刚孵化的幼蛛啃食生母的躯体，这样的画面很容易被解读为“子代弑母”、“忘恩负义”的极端写照。然而，以人类的伦理框架去衡量动物行为，往往会遮蔽现象背后真正的生物学意涵，也难以帮助我们理解这种行为为何能在自然界中延续下来。

在生物学上，“噬母”（matriphagy）指的是幼体在孵化后，以母体身体作为食物来源的行为，仅见于部分蜘蛛及少数其他节肢动物。值得注意的是，在多数已被研究的案例中，母蜘蛛并非全然被动地遭到吞食：它们可能在产卵后期额外产下不具受精能力的“营养卵”供幼蛛取食，或以反刍方式将消化后的养分喂给幼体，最终在生命的末期，任由幼蛛取食自己的身体。从这个角度看，与其说是母体“被吃掉”，不如说是它对后代所做的最后一次投资。

为什么这样的行为会被自然选择保留下来？研究者提出的一种解释是：对这些蜘蛛而言，母体完成繁殖后所剩的存活时间有限，而幼蛛早期的存活率，又高度取决于能否及时获得充足的养分。若母体将自身转化为养分，对后代生存所带来的优势，可能远大于它多活片刻所能换取的收益。不过，这只是目前被广泛讨论的假说之一，并非定论；不同物种的具体机制也不尽相同，更不能因此推论所有蜘蛛皆是如此。

最后，尚需澄清一个常见的混淆：噬母与“性食同类”（雌蛛在交配前后捕食雄蛛）是两种不同的现象，前者发生在亲代与子代之间，涉及的是亲代投资；后者则发生在交配双方之间，牵涉的是繁殖过程中的利益冲突。将两者混为一谈，或将噬母视为蜘蛛的普遍行为，甚至以此证明“自然界本就残酷”，都是脱离证据、过度延伸的结果。

“Shìmǔ zhīzhū” yì cí, zhà tīng zhī xià zǒng lìng rén bù hán ér lì: gāng fūhuà de yòuzhū kěnshí shēngmǔ de qūtǐ, zhèyàng de huàmiàn hěn róngyì bèi jiědú wéi “zǐdài shì mǔ”, “wàng ēn fù yì” de jíduān xiězhào. Rán’ér, yǐ rénlèi de lúnlǐ kuàngjià qù héngliáng dòngwù xíngwéi, wǎngwǎng huì zhēbì xiànxiàng bèihòu zhēnzhèng de shēngwùxué yìhán, yě nányǐ bāngzhù wǒmen lǐjiě zhè zhǒng xíngwéi wèihé néng zài zìránjiè zhōng yánxù xiàlái.

Zài shēngwùxué shàng, “shìmǔ” (matriphagy) zhǐ de shì yòutǐ zài fūhuà hòu, yǐ mǔtǐ shēntǐ zuòwéi shíwù láiyuán de xíngwéi, jǐn jiàn yú bùfen zhīzhū jí shǎoshù qítā jiézhī dòngwù. Zhíde zhùyì de shì, zài duōshù yǐ bèi yánjiū de ànlì zhōng, mǔ zhīzhū bìngfēi quánrán bèidòng de zāodào tūnshí: tāmen kěnéng zài chǎnluǎn hòuqī éwài chǎnxià bú jù shòujīng nénglì de “yíngyǎngluǎn” gōng yòuzhū qǔshí, huò yǐ fǎnchú fāngshì jiāng xiāohuà hòu de yǎngfèn wèi gěi yòutǐ, zuìzhōng zài shēngmìng de mòqī, rènyóu yòuzhū qǔshí zìjǐ de shēntǐ. Cóng zhège jiǎodù kàn, yǔqí shuō shì mǔtǐ “bèi chīdiào”, bùrú shuō shì tā duì hòudài suǒ zuò de zuìhòu yí cì tóuzī.

Wèishénme zhèyàng de xíngwéi huì bèi zìrán xuǎnzé bǎoliú xiàlái? Yánjiūzhě tíchū de yì zhǒng jiěshì shì: duì zhèxiē zhīzhū ér yán, mǔtǐ wánchéng fánzhí hòu suǒ shèng de cúnhuó shíjiān yǒuxiàn, ér yòuzhū zǎoqí de cúnhuólǜ, yòu gāodù qǔjué yú néngfǒu jíshí huòdé chōngzú de yǎngfèn. Ruò mǔtǐ jiāng zìshēn zhuǎnhuà wéi yǎngfèn, duì hòudài shēngcún suǒ dàilái de yōushì, kěnéng yuǎn dà yú tā duō huó piànkè suǒ néng huànqǔ de shōuyì. Búguò, zhè zhǐ shì mùqián bèi guǎngfàn tǎolùn de jiǎshuō zhī yī, bìngfēi dìnglùn; bùtóng wùzhǒng de jùtǐ jīzhì yě bú jìn xiāngtóng, gèng bù néng yīncǐ tuīlùn suǒyǒu zhīzhū jiē shì rúcǐ.

Zuìhòu, shàng xū chéngqīng yí ge chángjiàn de hùnxiáo: shìmǔ yǔ “xìng shí tónglèi” (cí zhū zài jiāopèi qiánhòu bǔshí xióng zhū) shì liǎng zhǒng bùtóng de xiànxiàng, qiánzhě fāshēng zài qīndài yǔ zǐdài zhījiān, shèjí de shì qīndài tóuzī; hòuzhě zé fāshēng zài jiāopèi shuāngfāng zhījiān, qiānshè de shì fánzhí guòchéng zhōng de lìyì chōngtū. Jiāng liǎngzhě hùn wéi yì tán, huò jiāng shìmǔ shì wéi zhīzhū de pǔbiàn xíngwéi, shènzhì yǐ cǐ zhèngmíng “zìránjiè běn jiù cánkù”, dōu shì tuōlí zhèngjù, guòdù yánshēn de jiéguǒ.

The term “mother-eating spider” sends a chill down the spine at first: newly hatched spiderlings gnawing on their own mother’s body — an image easily read as the ultimate picture of “children killing their mother” or “ingratitude.” Yet judging animal behavior through a human ethical framework often hides the real biological meaning behind the phenomenon, and does little to help us understand why such behavior has persisted in nature.

In biology, “matriphagy” refers to young animals using their mother’s body as a food source after hatching. It is found only in some spiders and a few other arthropods. Notably, in most of the cases that have been studied, the mother spider is not simply a passive victim. She may lay extra, infertile “trophic eggs” late in the egg-laying period for the spiderlings to eat, or feed them regurgitated, pre-digested nutrients, and finally, at the end of her life, allow the spiderlings to feed on her body. Seen this way, rather than saying the mother “gets eaten,” it is more accurate to say this is her final investment in her offspring.

Why would natural selection preserve such behavior? One explanation researchers have proposed is this: for these spiders, the mother has only a limited time left to live after reproducing, while the spiderlings’ early survival depends heavily on getting enough nutrients in time. If the mother turns her own body into food, the survival advantage this gives her offspring may far outweigh whatever she could gain by living a little longer. However, this is only one of the hypotheses currently being widely discussed — it is not settled science. The specific mechanisms differ between species, and we certainly cannot conclude that all spiders behave this way.

Finally, a common confusion needs to be cleared up. Matriphagy and “sexual cannibalism” (a female spider eating the male before or after mating) are two different phenomena. The first occurs between parent and offspring and is a matter of parental investment; the second occurs between mating partners and involves a conflict of interests during reproduction. Lumping the two together, treating matriphagy as typical of all spiders, or even using it to “prove” that nature is inherently cruel — all of these go beyond the evidence and stretch the facts too far.

Comprehension Questions

Question 1 of 6

作zuò者zhě在zài首shǒu段duàn提tí到dào““子zǐ代dài弑shì母mǔ””、、““忘wàng恩ēn负fù义yì””等děng说shuō法fǎ，，主zhǔ要yào用yòng意yì是shì什shén么me？？

The first paragraph presents chilling readings like “children killing their mother” and “ingratitude,” then says that judging animals by human ethics hides the real biological meaning. These readings are what the author sets out to correct, paving the way for the scientific explanation. Saying matriphagy “violates parent-child ethics” mistakes the criticized view for the author’s own; criticism of research or media exaggeration is never mentioned.

第dì二èr段duàn说shuō““与yǔ其qí说shuō是shì母mǔ体tǐ‘‘被bèi吃chī掉diào’’，，不bù如rú说shuō是shì它tā对duì后hòu代dài所suǒ做zuò的de最zuì后hòu一yí次cì投tóu资zī””，，这zhè句jù话huà的de含hán义yì最zuì接jiē近jìn下xià列liè哪nǎ一yí项xiàng？？

The sentence builds on the point that the mother is “not simply passive”: she lays trophic eggs and feeds her young by regurgitation, so she takes part in raising them — hence “investment” rather than just “being eaten.” “Voluntary self-sacrifice” is the trap: the text describes active behavior but never claims she acts willingly or with intent. Whether the mother is harmed is never discussed, and “pure instinct that evolution can’t explain” contradicts the evolutionary explanation that follows.

对duì于yú第dì三sān段duàn所suǒ提tí出chū的de进jìn化huà解jiě释shì，，作zuò者zhě采cǎi取qǔ怎zěn样yàng的de态tài度dù？？

The paragraph ends by calling this “only one of the hypotheses being widely discussed, not settled science,” noting mechanisms differ between species and that we cannot conclude all spiders behave this way. The author grants it some explanatory power while warning against overgeneralizing. Treating it as proven ignores “not settled”; dismissing it ignores that the author discusses it seriously; and the author never says it applies to only one species.

文wén中zhōng提tí到dào““营yíng养yǎng卵luǎn””与yǔ““反fǎn刍chú喂wèi养yǎng””，，其qí在zài论lùn述shù中zhōng的de作zuò用yòng是shì什shén么me？？

Trophic eggs and regurgitation feeding are concrete examples of the mother actively providing nutrients, supporting the claim that matriphagy is a form of parental investment. The text never says spiderlings “must” depend on the mother, does not use these examples to show the behavior is rare, and says mechanisms differ between species rather than being identical.

作zuò者zhě在zài末mò段duàn区qū分fēn““噬shì母mǔ””与yǔ““性xìng食shí同tóng类lèi””，，主zhǔ要yào目mù的dì是shì什shén么me？？

The last paragraph shows the two happen between different parties (parent and offspring vs. mating partners) and differ in nature (parental investment vs. a conflict of interests in reproduction), then calls lumping them together “beyond the evidence.” The goal is to prevent confusion. The text never compares male and female aggression or says sexual cannibalism is more common, and the author does treat matriphagy as parental investment.

这zhè篇piān文wén章zhāng最zuì想xiǎng传chuán达dá的de核hé心xīn观guān点diǎn最zuì可kě能néng是shì什shén么me？？

The whole text holds together: it criticizes moralizing, human-centered readings, explains the behavior from an evolutionary angle, stresses that the explanation is a hypothesis, and warns against confusing concepts or overgeneralizing. “The most extreme parental investment of any animal” and “necessary for all spiders” are sweeping claims not in the text; “proves nature is cruel” is exactly the faulty conclusion the last paragraph criticizes.

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