美国国家公共电台 NPR--Outside Hong Kong there's something unexpected: free-roaming animals

Outside Hong Kong there's something unexpected: free-roaming animals

Transcript¹

Hong Kong is one of the planet's most densely² packed urban areas. Not far from its concrete jungle is a real jungle with free-roaming wild cows and water buffalos. One woman is trying to save them.

A MARTINEZ, HOST:

Just outside the city of Hong Kong is a jungle with free-roaming animals you might not expect to find. NPR's John Ruwitch reports on one woman's mission to save them.

JOHN RUWITCH, BYLINE⁴: It's hard to envision feral cows when you're in the city of Hong Kong. But hoof⁵ it onto a ferry to the south side of an island called Lantau that's also part of Hong Kong a half-hour away...

(SOUNDBITE OF BIRDS CHIRPING)

RUWITCH: And the scenery changes dramatically. There are no skyscrapers⁶ - only villages, beaches and lush green hills laced with hiking trails.

(SOUNDBITE OF BIRDS CHIRPING)

RUWITCH: It's here that I meet Ho Loy packing bales of hay into a minivan.

HO LOY: In the winter, they have to totally rely on the hay supply. So we have to keep them interested in it.

RUWITCH: Ho leads a small community of activists⁷ who've been trying to protect the wild cows and water buffaloes⁸ of Lantau for nearly 20 years. She's taking me along to check in on the animals.

HO: Well, on Lantau it's about 200, more or less.

RUWITCH: There used to be farms here, but Ho says Hong Kong's development changed everything. And when the last ones closed in the 1970s, the farm animals were left to their own devices. Ho keeps tabs on them a couple of times a week and makes sure they have enough to eat so they don't forage⁹ in trash cans or at barbecue sites. We head out...

(SOUNDBITE OF CARS PASSING)

RUWITCH: And soon we come across a group of brown cows grazing at the edge of a hilly two-lane road. When they see us pull up, they crowd around. They recognize the car.

HO: There are two highway herds¹¹ - two herds that live on the highway - not because they want to live on the highway. It's because their grazing path was made into a traffic road.

RUWITCH: Ho says there was better balance between humans and nature when the farms existed.

HO: The animal actually keep the community together 'cause in the old day, not everyone can afford to own the animals for farming, and so poor farmer would have to borrow animal from the richer family. So in a way, they shared resources in the community, and they survived together.

RUWITCH: Ho says they still belong to the community. They just don't do farming anymore. Not everyone sees it that way, though. Some locals think the animals are pests. They don't mix well with cars. They sometimes ransack¹² gardens and wander into homes, and their habitat is protected, which Ho says makes it harder to sell land to developers.

HO: Let's move on.

(SOUNDBITE OF CAR DOOR CLOSING)

RUWITCH: Down the road from the highway herds, we park and walk into a clearing near a small bay. Ho knows there's another herd¹⁰ of cows and buffaloes that like to hang out by the water, but we don't see them. So she wades¹³ into the water, keeps her hands over her mouth and faces the far side of the clearing.

HO: Hey.

RUWITCH: Soon some excited bovine¹⁴ are heading our way. A few are galloping¹⁵. Ho counts them, and we spread hay on the ground.

(SOUNDBITE OF WATER BUFFALO³ MOOING)

RUWITCH: At one point, a giant water buffalo walks straight at me.

(SOUNDBITE OF WATER BUFFALO MOOING)

RUWITCH: He's almost as tall as I am with thick crescent horns that stretch five feet across from point to point. I hold my breath and take a few steps back. Ho doesn't flinch¹⁶.

HO: It's just such a gorgeous animal and so peaceful, and it makes you feel calm when you see them. So a lot of our friends, when they are not having a good day or having difficulty in life, I tell them to come and do a duty with me. After you see the animal, you'll feel better. And it works.

(SOUNDBITE OF WATER BUFFALO MOOING)

RUWITCH: Day-trippers from the city love to snap selfies with them, too, she says. She tells everyone to keep their distance, though. They can be dangerous. Last fall, a male water buffalo competing with another for supremacy¹⁷ bowled over a bunch of kids near a bus stop. Three had to go to the hospital. In the past, the government sometimes culled¹⁸ the animals when there were incidents like that. Since 2011, it's been sterilizing¹⁹ and relocating them. Ho says that leaves the future of the island's herds uncertain. And that's a shame, she says.

HO: So when you're in front of a huge animal like this, you'll learn how to humble²⁰ yourself. And we need them, you know, to remind us we're not the boss on this planet. We should be the servant of this planet.

RUWITCH: John Ruwitch, NPR News, on Lantau Island, Hong Kong.

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 densely   

ad.密集地；浓厚地

参考例句：

• A grove of trees shadowed the house densely. 树丛把这幢房子遮蔽得很密实。
• We passed through miles of densely wooded country. 我们穿过好几英里茂密的林地。

3 buffalo   

n.(北美)野牛；(亚洲)水牛

参考例句：

• Asian buffalo isn't as wild as that of America's. 亚洲水牛比美洲水牛温顺些。
• The boots are made of buffalo hide. 这双靴子是由水牛皮制成的。

4 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

5 hoof   

n.(马，牛等的)蹄

参考例句：

• Suddenly he heard the quick,short click of a horse's hoof behind him.突然间，他听见背后响起一阵急骤的马蹄的得得声。
• I was kicked by a hoof.我被一只蹄子踢到了。

6 skyscrapers   

n.摩天大楼

参考例句：

• A lot of skyscrapers in Manhattan are rising up to the skies. 曼哈顿有许多摩天大楼耸入云霄。
• On all sides, skyscrapers rose like jagged teeth. 四周耸起的摩天大楼参差不齐。

7 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 buffaloes   

n.水牛（分非洲水牛和亚洲水牛两种）( buffalo的名词复数 )；（南非或北美的）野牛；威胁；恐吓

参考例句：

• Some medieval towns raced donkeys or buffaloes. 有些中世纪的城市用驴子或水牛竞赛。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Water buffaloes supply Egypt with more meat than any other domestic animal. 水牛提供给埃及的肉比任何其它动物都要多。 来自辞典例句

9 forage   

n.(牛马的)饲料，粮草；v.搜寻，翻寻

参考例句：

• They were forced to forage for clothing and fuel.他们不得不去寻找衣服和燃料。
• Now the nutritive value of the forage is reduced.此时牧草的营养价值也下降了。

10 herd   

n.兽群，牧群；vt.使集中，把…赶在一起

参考例句：

• She drove the herd of cattle through the wilderness.她赶着牛群穿过荒野。
• He had no opinions of his own but simply follow the herd.他从无主见，只是人云亦云。

11 herds   

兽群( herd的名词复数 )； 牧群； 人群； 群众

参考例句：

• Regularly at daybreak they drive their herds to the pasture. 每天天一亮他们就把牲畜赶到草场上去。
• There we saw herds of cows grazing on the pasture. 我们在那里看到一群群的牛在草地上吃草。

12 ransack   

v.彻底搜索，洗劫

参考例句：

• He began to ransack his mother's workbox for a piece of thread.他要找一根线,开始翻腾妈妈的针线盒。
• She ransack my apartment for the bankbook.她在我公寓里到处搜索寻找存折。

13 wades   

（从水、泥等）蹚，走过，跋( wade的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• A lumi wields a golden morningstar with trained ease as it wades into melee. 光民熟练地挥舞钉头锤加入战团。

14 bovine   

adj.牛的；n.牛

参考例句：

• He threw off his pack and went into the rush-grass andand munching,like some bovine creature.他丢开包袱，爬到灯心草丛里，像牛似的大咬大嚼起来。
• He was a gentle,rather bovine man.他是一位文雅而反应迟钝的人。

15 galloping   

adj. 飞驰的, 急性的 动词gallop的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• The horse started galloping the moment I gave it a good dig. 我猛戳了马一下，它就奔驰起来了。
• Japan is galloping ahead in the race to develop new technology. 日本在发展新技术的竞争中进展迅速，日新月异。

16 flinch   

v.畏缩，退缩

参考例句：

• She won't flinch from speaking her mind.她不会讳言自己的想法。
• We will never flinch from difficulties.我们面对困难决不退缩。

17 supremacy   

n.至上；至高权力

参考例句：

• No one could challenge her supremacy in gymnastics.她是最优秀的体操运动员，无人能胜过她。
• Theoretically,she holds supremacy as the head of the state.从理论上说，她作为国家的最高元首拥有至高无上的权力。

18 culled   

v.挑选，剔除( cull的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The herd must be culled. 必须有选择地杀掉部分牧畜。 来自辞典例句
• The facts were culled from various sources. 这些事实是从各方收集到的。 来自辞典例句

19 sterilizing   

v.消毒( sterilize的现在分词 )；使无菌；使失去生育能力；使绝育

参考例句：

• The nurse is sterilizing the surgical instruments. 护士在把外科手术器具消毒。 来自辞典例句
• By testing, steam is the ble sterilizing method for herbal medicine. 这些方法难以保证药性，或有残留，要不然就是费用昂贵。 来自互联网

20 humble   

adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低

参考例句：

• In my humble opinion,he will win the election.依我拙见，他将在选举中获胜。
• Defeat and failure make people humble.挫折与失败会使人谦卑。