英伦广角 Issue 110 海军事关海豚之死?

When a pod of dolphins swam up a river near Falmouth in Cornwall on Monday, it became one of the worst cases of mass stranding¹ in the U.K. It's thought something may have panicked them into their fatal journey. Having first denied it, the Ministry² of Defense³ has now confirmed a submarine and survey ship have been in the area. It's been suggested that this could have caused confusion.

If, if that did occur in this case, we might not find anything the animals to tell us that that's the case, it would just be, perhaps that the animals would avoid something like a sound source.

 

The MOD says it's extremely unlikely sonar from its vessels⁵ affected⁶ the dolphins. However, marine⁴ experts argue that as the mammals have no fish in their stomach, this adds weight to the theory that they were panicked by an underwater disturbance⁷ whilst looking for food. Phil Greed says he saw huge numbers of fish in the area.

 

It was quite a large show, I would say, and maybe, you know, that's what they were interested in.

 

And the dolphins came up this far,is that true?

 

Yeah, right into this area, yeah, you know, I didn't see it before.

 

Other than chasing fish, the dolphins were well fed and showed no other signs of ill health. Detailed⁸ test results are not expected to be back for weeks. Today, conservationists are continuing to keep an eye on the few remaining dolphins, as they try to untangle what caused their companions to get lost in the shallows.

1 stranding   

n.（船只）搁浅v.使滞留，使搁浅( strand的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The airport had to be closed, stranding tourists. 机场被迫关闭，造成游客滞留。 来自辞典例句
• The stream of history had changed course away from him, stranding him in failure. 历史潮流已经改变方向，与他背道而驰，使他陷于失败之中。 来自辞典例句

2 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

3 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

4 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

5 vessels   

n.血管( vessel的名词复数 )；船；容器；（具有特殊品质或接受特殊品质的）人

参考例句：

• The river is navigable by vessels of up to 90 tons. 90 吨以下的船只可以从这条河通过。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• All modern vessels of any size are fitted with radar installations. 所有现代化船只都有雷达装置。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

6 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

7 disturbance   

n.动乱，骚动；打扰，干扰；(身心)失调

参考例句：

• He is suffering an emotional disturbance.他的情绪受到了困扰。
• You can work in here without any disturbance.在这儿你可不受任何干扰地工作。

8 detailed   

adj.详细的，详尽的，极注意细节的，完全的

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• A detailed list of our publications is available on request.我们的出版物有一份详细的目录备索。