VOA慢速英语 2008 0122a

This is the VOA Special English Agriculture Report.

A study from Canada says fish farms are a threat to some populations of wild salmon¹. It says the danger is from sea lice, which are small organisms that feed on fish.

 
 
The researchers say these parasites² commonly infect salmon raised in farms, but also attack young wild pink salmon that swim nearby. Their research suggests that if these outbreaks continue, then local populations of wild pink salmon will all but disappear.

Experts are debating the study, published in Science magazine. The Canadian government and some American experts say no direct link has been found between sea lice and salmon deaths.

Martin Krkosek of the University of Alberta in Edmonton led the study team.

The researchers relate the growth of fish farming off British Columbia to losses in young wild salmon. The number of fish farms in the area has increased sharply.

The researchers say lice commonly kill more than eighty percent of pink salmon in the areas they studied. The fish in these coastal³ areas swim past many fish farms before entering the open ocean.

The researchers say they used information from the Canadian government from nineteen seventy to the present. They studied fourteen populations of young wild pink salmon that came in contact with salmon farms. They compared these populations with one hundred twenty-eight populations that did not have such contact.

The scientists say the populations were dying out in the areas near salmon farms, but other populations stayed healthy. They note that earlier research on this issue had similar results.

Sea lice travel from inland rivers to the ocean. The lice eat the muscle and skin of young fish. Adult fish do not seem affected⁴. Older, bigger fish have thicker skins.

An official of NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric⁵ Administration in the United States, said facts do not support the new study. He said many conditions affect salmon. One is the salt content of the water. Another is the presence of predators⁶ that attack the fish. Still another is the amount of fishing that takes place in the area.

Demand for fresh salmon is growing. Now, almost seventy-five percent of the salmon that Americans eat comes from fish farms. And Congress is considering legislation that could permit many more fish farms.

And that’s the VOA Special English Agriculture Report, written by Jerilyn Watson. To learn more about agriculture, go to voaspecialenglish.com. I’m Steve Ember.

 

1 salmon   

n.鲑，大马哈鱼，橙红色的

参考例句：

• We saw a salmon jumping in the waterfall there.我们看见一条大马哈鱼在那边瀑布中跳跃。
• Do you have any fresh salmon in at the moment?现在有新鲜大马哈鱼卖吗？

2 parasites   

寄生物( parasite的名词复数 )； 靠他人为生的人； 诸虫

参考例句：

• These symptoms may be referable to virus infection rather than parasites. 这些症状也许是由病毒感染引起的，而与寄生虫无关。
• Kangaroos harbor a vast range of parasites. 袋鼠身上有各种各样的寄生虫。

3 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

4 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。

5 atmospheric   

adj.大气的，空气的；大气层的；大气所引起的

参考例句：

• Sea surface temperatures and atmospheric circulation are strongly coupled.海洋表面温度与大气环流是密切相关的。
• Clouds return radiant energy to the surface primarily via the atmospheric window.云主要通过大气窗区向地表辐射能量。

6 predators   

n.食肉动物( predator的名词复数 )；奴役他人者（尤指在财务或性关系方面）

参考例句：

• birds and their earthbound predators 鸟和地面上捕食它们的动物
• The eyes of predators are highly sensitive to the slightest movement. 捕食性动物的眼睛能感觉到最细小的动静。 来自《简明英汉词典》