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英语听力:自然百科 阿布扎比海牛

时间:2014-04-29 03:45来源:互联网 提供网友:gmeng   字体: [ ]
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    (单词翻译:双击或拖选)

 From the sculpted1 beauty of dessert dunes2 to the undersea realms of the Persian Gulf3, the United Arab Emirates is a study in contrast.

And while most people associate Arabia with desert life, the region is in fact teeming4 with marine5 animals as well, and perhaps none more intriguing6 than the dugong. Its nickname is the sea cow. And like its namesake, it spends hours each day grazing.
 
Dugongs ply7 the warm shallow waters off the coast, feeding along seemingly endless beds of waving sea grass. Their cylinder-shaped bodies measure more than 10 feet in length and fully8 grown that can weigh in at over 800 pounds.
 
In the sea grass beds they seem bulky, placid9 and content, but conservationists are worried. Some of these creatures share the coastline with the largest of the emirates Abu Dhabi. Over a million people live here and that number is swelling10 by over 50,000 each year.
 
New buildings sprout11 from the sands and engineers drive back the sea to house the burgeoning12 population. All this prime real estate comes at a cost not just to the buyers but to the marine environment as well.
 
Dredging and construction leach13 silt14 into the gulf which chokes corals. Worse for the dugongs, the silt smothers15 the sea grass, covering their food supply with a blanket of debris16 and pollution. The sea grass beds are dying.
 
It's a potential threat because these so-called seacows need to consume huge amounts of seagrass in order to survive. The underwater vegetation has a very low nutritional17 value what dugongs lack in quality they make up for in vast quantities. An adult can eat almost 70 pounds of grass in a single day.
 
It's not only dugongs that suffer, the sea grasses also provide food and shelter for the endangered green turtle. And the sea turtle in turn provides transportation for fish called remoras. So with the sea grass beds buried, entire ecosystems18 of marine creatures feel the impact.
 
But in the emirate of Abu Dhabi, it's the dugong population that is most in the spotlight19. The species has already been listed as vulnerable to extinction20. And this is part of the second-largest population remaining in the world. To lose these dugongs would be a further blow to an already beleaguered21 species.
 
To find out what it will take to protect the dugongs, a government organization called the Environment Agency Abu Dhabi or EAD has been asked to investigate. The first priority is head count. More than 2000 dugongs spend their summers near Abu Dhabi. In the winter, the number swells22 to almost 3000.
 
when a dead dungong washes up on shore, a team of scientists move in to examine the remains23. First they measure the body and then take photographs. With the data collected, scientists try to determine the cause of death. Many of the animals are killed by boats. Others drown when they become entangled24 in fishing nets.
 
Now that the authorities know where the dugongs are and how they're being impacted, they can continue to make plans to keep them safe.
 
When a lot of pressure came into the marine environment, the population declined. So, today we have a well established strategy for conservation of the dugong.
 
A major part of the conservation area is a marine protected area in the region with the densest25 population of dugongs. It's one of the largest sanctuaries26 of its kind in the Middle East.

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1 sculpted da5be298460bb9f4b0690c2dc86da0af     
adj.经雕塑的
参考例句:
  • a display of animals sculpted in ice 冰雕动物展
  • The ladies had their hair sculpted by the leading coiffeur of the day. 女士们的发型都是当代有名的理发师做的。
2 dunes 8a48dcdac1abf28807833e2947184dd4     
沙丘( dune的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • The boy galloped over the dunes barefoot. 那男孩光着脚在沙丘间飞跑。
  • Dragging the fully laden boat across the sand dunes was no mean feat. 将满载货物的船拖过沙丘是一件了不起的事。
3 gulf 1e0xp     
n.海湾;深渊,鸿沟;分歧,隔阂
参考例句:
  • The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
  • There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。
4 teeming 855ef2b5bd20950d32245ec965891e4a     
adj.丰富的v.充满( teem的现在分词 );到处都是;(指水、雨等)暴降;倾注
参考例句:
  • The rain was teeming down. 大雨倾盆而下。
  • the teeming streets of the city 熙熙攘攘的城市街道
5 marine 77Izo     
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。
6 intriguing vqyzM1     
adj.有趣的;迷人的v.搞阴谋诡计(intrigue的现在分词);激起…的好奇心
参考例句:
  • These discoveries raise intriguing questions. 这些发现带来了非常有趣的问题。
  • It all sounds very intriguing. 这些听起来都很有趣。 来自《简明英汉词典》
7 ply DOqxa     
v.(搬运工等)等候顾客,弯曲
参考例句:
  • Taxis licensed to ply for hire at the railway station.许可计程车在火车站候客。
  • Ferryboats ply across the English Channel.渡船定期往返于英吉利海峡。
8 fully Gfuzd     
adv.完全地,全部地,彻底地;充分地
参考例句:
  • The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气,然后全部呼出。
  • They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。
9 placid 7A1yV     
adj.安静的,平和的
参考例句:
  • He had been leading a placid life for the past eight years.八年来他一直过着平静的生活。
  • You should be in a placid mood and have a heart-to- heart talk with her.你应该心平气和的好好和她谈谈心。
10 swelling OUzzd     
n.肿胀
参考例句:
  • Use ice to reduce the swelling. 用冰敷消肿。
  • There is a marked swelling of the lymph nodes. 淋巴结处有明显的肿块。
11 sprout ITizY     
n.芽,萌芽;vt.使发芽,摘去芽;vi.长芽,抽条
参考例句:
  • When do deer first sprout horns?鹿在多大的时候开始长出角?
  • It takes about a week for the seeds to sprout.这些种子大约要一周后才会发芽。
12 burgeoning f8b25401f10e765adc759ee165d5c1c5     
adj.迅速成长的,迅速发展的v.发芽,抽枝( burgeon的现在分词 );迅速发展;发(芽),抽(枝)
参考例句:
  • Our company's business is burgeoning now. 我们公司的业务现在发展很迅速。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • These efforts were insufficient to contain the burgeoning crisis. 这些努力不足以抑制迅速扩散的危机。 来自辞典例句
13 leach uxCyN     
v.分离,过滤掉;n.过滤;过滤器
参考例句:
  • Liquid water can leach soluble materials from the interface.液态水能够从界面溶解出可溶性物质。
  • They believe that the humic materials are leached from decaying plant materials.他们认为腐植物料是从腐烂的植物体浸沥而来。
14 silt tEHyA     
n.淤泥,淤沙,粉砂层,泥沙层;vt.使淤塞;vi.被淤塞
参考例句:
  • The lake was almost solid with silt and vegetation.湖里几乎快被淤泥和植物填满了。
  • During the annual floods the river deposits its silt on the fields.每年河水泛滥时都会在田野上沉积一层淤泥。
15 smothers 410c265ab6ce90ef30beb39442111a2c     
(使)窒息, (使)透不过气( smother的第三人称单数 ); 覆盖; 忍住; 抑制
参考例句:
  • Mary smothers her children with too much love. 玛丽溺爱自己的孩子。
  • He smothers his hair with grease, eg hair-oil. 他用发腊擦头发。
16 debris debris     
n.瓦砾堆,废墟,碎片
参考例句:
  • After the bombing there was a lot of debris everywhere.轰炸之后到处瓦砾成堆。
  • Bacteria sticks to food debris in the teeth,causing decay.细菌附着在牙缝中的食物残渣上,导致蛀牙。
17 nutritional 4HRxN     
adj.营养的,滋养的
参考例句:
  • A diet lacking in nutritional value will not keep a person healthy.缺乏营养价值的饮食不能维持人的健康。
  • The labels on food products give a lot of information about their nutritional content.食品上的标签提供很多关于营养成分的信息。
18 ecosystems 94cb0e40a815bea1157ac8aab9a5380d     
n.生态系统( ecosystem的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • There are highly sensitive and delicately balanced ecosystems in the forest. 森林里有高度敏感、灵敏平衡的各种生态系统。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Madagascar's ecosystems range from rainforest to semi-desert. 马达加斯加生态系统类型多样,从雨林到半荒漠等不一而足。 来自辞典例句
19 spotlight 6hBzmk     
n.公众注意的中心,聚光灯,探照灯,视听,注意,醒目
参考例句:
  • This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
  • The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。
20 extinction sPwzP     
n.熄灭,消亡,消灭,灭绝,绝种
参考例句:
  • The plant is now in danger of extinction.这种植物现在有绝种的危险。
  • The island's way of life is doomed to extinction.这个岛上的生活方式注定要消失。
21 beleaguered 91206cc7aa6944d764745938d913fa79     
adj.受到围困[围攻]的;包围的v.围攻( beleaguer的过去式和过去分词);困扰;骚扰
参考例句:
  • The beleaguered party leader was forced to resign. 那位饱受指责的政党领导人被迫辞职。
  • We are beleaguered by problems. 我们被许多困难所困扰。 来自《简明英汉词典》
22 swells e5cc2e057ee1aff52e79fb6af45c685d     
增强( swell的第三人称单数 ); 肿胀; (使)凸出; 充满(激情)
参考例句:
  • The waters were heaving up in great swells. 河水正在急剧上升。
  • A barrel swells in the middle. 水桶中部隆起。
23 remains 1kMzTy     
n.剩余物,残留物;遗体,遗迹
参考例句:
  • He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
  • The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。
24 entangled e3d30c3c857155b7a602a9ac53ade890     
adj.卷入的;陷入的;被缠住的;缠在一起的v.使某人(某物/自己)缠绕,纠缠于(某物中),使某人(自己)陷入(困难或复杂的环境中)( entangle的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • The bird had become entangled in the wire netting. 那只小鸟被铁丝网缠住了。
  • Some military observers fear the US could get entangled in another war. 一些军事观察家担心美国会卷入另一场战争。 来自《简明英汉词典》
25 densest 196f3886c6c5dffe98d26ccca5d0e045     
密集的( dense的最高级 ); 密度大的; 愚笨的; (信息量大得)难理解的
参考例句:
  • Past Botoi some of the densest jungle forests on Anopopei grew virtually into the water. 过了坊远湾,岛上的莽莽丛林便几乎直长到水中。
  • Earth is the densest of all of these remaining planets. 地球是所剩下行星中最致密的星球。
26 sanctuaries 532347c9fc39e40608545e03c6fe7eef     
n.避难所( sanctuary的名词复数 );庇护;圣所;庇护所
参考例句:
  • The designation of special marine reserves and marine sanctuaries shall be subject to the State Council for approval. 海洋特别保护区、海上自然保护区的确定,须经国务院批准。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • After 1965 he acquiesced when they established sanctuaries on that soil. 1965年以后,他默认了他们在那块土地上建立庇护所。 来自辞典例句
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