《英语流行话题阅读:语境识词3500》Unit98:野猪

　　Unit 98
Wild Pigs
Not especially nice and very competitive the wild pi is a dangerous little animal, congregating¹ more in places with many trees although a few can be seen on plains. Covering the world over is this species of nasty, tusked² and ill-tempered creatures. They are not native animals in most areas. The wild pigs in most regions are descendants of domestic pigs brought here by the original homesteaders. Over the years, some of these domestic animals escaped and went wild. Today, their descendants may be found in various locations.
Wild pigs have twin tusks³ which are used for impaling⁴ or hitting or just to sit there and look threatening. It has four legs with a swishing, thin tail, and black or brown fur. Wild pigs tend to be a bit fat and bulky making them very economical for eating. Their eyes, usually black, are sunk into their head giving them a rather large blind spots on both sides.
The wild pig is a fast creature. In a full charge at top speed a strong boar is capable of plowing⁵ through the wall of normal, on brick, house. Another special ability which is probably not very fun for the pigs is their delicious taste and plentifulness⁶.
Wild pigs are protective, unafraid, and extremely competitive. Wild pigs are the leading cause of death among wild pigs, with them fighting each other over mates, or food, or just because a good battle helps fight off the cold. Despite all this fighting though, pigs are pack animals and live in groups of ten to twenty, although they often seek to gain more advantages for themselves than for the group.
Wild pigs eat grass, berries, flowers, and that sort of thing. They eat quite a lot but there is plenty to go around; the pigs don't think there is but Pigs aren't especially smart.
When pigs mate, they mate for life. If a pig loses it's mate it will never mate again. They usually have two litters a year which finish maturing within four months. Males usually fight for a mate. Initially⁷, many pig fatalities⁸ originate from these battles.
Hunting wild pig is a common practice. Oftentimes teams of up to hundreds of men will all crash into a forest and decrease the pig population. This is done because pigs are not only relatively⁹ tasty meat but also because it is cheap. Pigs are almost everywhere and there is enough meat on them that a small family can easily live by killing¹⁰ two wild pigs a month with no difficulty. Pig hunting has grown so much that it is often done for fun instead of necessity angering some townsfolk who respect the beast.

1 congregating   

（使）集合，聚集( congregate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The spatial distribution patterns of larvae and pupae are congregating distribution. 幼虫和蛹的空间分布均为聚集分布。
• He says victims of violence are congregating there because they feel safer. 他说暴力的受害者聚集在这里因为他们觉得更安全。

2 tusked   

adj.有獠牙的，有长牙的

参考例句：

• Bogy,brown eyes regarding me,panted happily,pink tongue peeking from tusked20 jaws. 博吉那双棕色眼睛看着我，高兴地喘着粗气，张开长着獠牙的嘴，吐出粉红的舌头。 来自互联网

3 tusks   

n.（象等动物的）长牙( tusk的名词复数 )；獠牙；尖形物；尖头

参考例句：

• The elephants are poached for their tusks. 为获取象牙而偷猎大象。
• Elephant tusks, monkey tails and salt were used in some parts of Africa. 非洲的一些地区则使用象牙、猴尾和盐。 来自英语晨读30分（高一）

4 impaling   

钉在尖桩上( impale的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The detective sat down facing John, his eyes impaling the young man. 侦探面对约翰坐下，犀利的目光逼视着这个年轻人。

5 plowing   

v.耕( plow的现在分词 )；犁耕；费力穿过

参考例句：

• "There are things more important now than plowing, Sugar. "如今有比耕种更重要的事情要做呀，宝贝儿。 来自飘（部分）
• Since his wife's death, he has been plowing a lonely furrow. 从他妻子死后，他一直过着孤独的生活。 来自辞典例句

6 plentifulness   

大量，丰富

参考例句：

7 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。

8 fatalities   

n.恶性事故( fatality的名词复数 )；死亡；致命性；命运

参考例句：

• Several people were injured, but there were no fatalities. 有几个人受伤，但没有人死亡。
• The accident resulted in fatalities. 那宗意外道致多人死亡。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

10 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。