Plant Decrease Spraying Decline Population Flowering Remains Question

意群训练： The question of whether the decrease in plant fecundity caused by the spraying of pesticides actually causes a decline in the overall population of flowering plant species still remains unanswered .

标志： The question {of whether the decrease (in plant fecundity) (caused by the spraying of pesticides) actually causes a decline ［in the overall population (of flowering plant species)］} still remains unanswered .

译文： {是否 （由于杀虫剂的喷洒造成的）（植物结实性的）下降 真的引起了 \［（开花植物品种的）整体种群数量的］下降 }这个问题 仍未解决 。

解释： 主语question后面是几乎横贯整句的修饰question的同位语，将主语和系动词remains分成牛郎织女。同位语中的主语又是由一个whether所引导的名词性从句来充当，而且whether从句中的主语又非常长，由两个定语来修饰；宾语decline的修饰成分也不短，使得这个句子看起来很不舒服。本句如果用形式主语的方式大概看上去可以好一点：

It remains still unanswered whether the decrease in plant fecundity caused by the spraying of pesticides actually causes a decline in the overall population of flowering plant species.

不过即使是这么说，句子仍然很复杂。