2007年VOA标准英语-Remains of Fifth Rare Gorilla Discovered Follow

By Kari Barber
Dakar
20 August 2007

A fifth rare mountain gorilla¹ has been found shot dead inside the Virunga National Park in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. In an unusual attack last month the five endangered animals were killed and their carcasses left in the park and not eaten or sold. Kari Barber has more from VOA's West and Central Africa bureau in Dakar.

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Graves of gorillas recently killed in Democratic Republic of Congo

The remains³ of a female mountain gorilla were discovered Thursday near a ranger⁴ station in the city of Goma. Nine mountain gorillas have been killed this year in the region. In the past, the endangered primates⁵ have been killed for their meat by rebel groups who occupy the forests or to be sold by poachers.

Samantha Newport of the conservation group WildlifeDirect says what is unusual about the recent killings⁶ is that no meat was taken and and a baby gorilla was left behind.

"In the recent cases, they have been killed execution style almost, with bullets to the head or the back of the neck. There is also evidence during the recent massacre⁷ that machetes were used," said Newport.

Newport says one male gorilla escaped with a cut on his arm from a machete.

Gorilla family at Virunga National Park in DRC

About 100 of the world's approximately 700 remaining mountain gorillas live in Virunga National Park.

Newport says the gorilla family whose members were killed in July are starting to recover from their loss and behave normally. But, she says, they have no females left in the family to reproduce with, hampering⁸ conservationists' efforts to protect the species from extinction⁹.

The Virunga National Park is situated¹⁰ in an unstable¹¹ region of the DRC which is occupied by the Congolese army, dissident members of the army, Rwanda refugees, and various Mai Mai rebel groups.

"They live in one of the most dangerous areas of the world that has seen armed conflict for the last 10 to 12 years. They are really under considerable pressure from encroaching populations, militia¹² groups and poachers," added Newport.

Rangers¹³ say the trees in the forest where the gorillas live are a source of charcoal¹⁴, and the killings may be linked to a struggle for power between those who want to protect the forrest and those involved in illicit¹⁵ trade. Newport says this link is being investigated.

Newport says wildlife groups have stepped up efforts to protect the gorillas.

Remains of a rare gorilla killed at Virunga National Park, August 2007

"There is action that is taking place to reinforce the presence of the guard in the park and provide around-the-clock monitoring of the gorilla family," said Newport.

She says for rangers, defending the gorillas is a difficult task since would-be poachers and assailants are armed and often very dangerous.

Virunga National Park is Africa's oldest national park and used to be a major tourist attraction before war destabilized the region in the 1990's.

1 gorilla   

n.大猩猩，暴徒，打手

参考例句：

• I was awed by the huge gorilla.那只大猩猩使我惊惧。
• A gorilla is just a speechless animal.猩猩只不过是一种不会说话的动物。

2 gorillas   

n.大猩猩( gorilla的名词复数 )；暴徒，打手

参考例句：

• the similitude between humans and gorillas 人类和大猩猩的相像
• Each family of gorillas is led by a great silverbacked patriarch. 每个大星星家族都由一个魁梧的、长着银色被毛的族长带领着。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 remains   

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。

4 ranger   

n.国家公园管理员，护林员；骑兵巡逻队员

参考例句：

• He was the head ranger of the national park.他曾是国家公园的首席看守员。
• He loved working as a ranger.他喜欢做护林人。

5 primates   

primate的复数

参考例句：

• Primates are alert, inquisitive animals. 灵长目动物是机灵、好奇的动物。
• Consciousness or cerebration has been said to have emerged in the evolution of higher primates. 据说意识或思考在较高级灵长类的进化中已出现。

6 killings   

谋杀( killing的名词复数 )； 突然发大财，暴发

参考例句：

• His statement was seen as an allusion to the recent drug-related killings. 他的声明被视为暗指最近与毒品有关的多起凶杀案。
• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。

7 massacre   

n.残杀，大屠杀；v.残杀，集体屠杀

参考例句：

• There was a terrible massacre of villagers here during the war.在战争中，这里的村民惨遭屠杀。
• If we forget the massacre,the massacre will happen again!忘记了大屠杀，大屠杀就有可能再次发生！

8 hampering   

妨碍，束缚，限制( hamper的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• So fraud on cows and development aid is seriously hampering growth. 因此在牛问题上和发展补助上的诈骗严重阻碍了发展。
• Short-termism, carbon-trading, disputing the science-are hampering the implementation of direct economically-led objectives. 短效主义，出售二氧化碳，进行科学辩论，这些都不利于实现以经济为主导的直接目标。

9 extinction   

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。

10 situated   

adj.坐落在...的，处于某种境地的

参考例句：

• The village is situated at the margin of a forest.村子位于森林的边缘。
• She is awkwardly situated.她的处境困难。

11 unstable   

adj.不稳定的，易变的

参考例句：

• This bookcase is too unstable to hold so many books.这书橱很不结实，装不了这么多书。
• The patient's condition was unstable.那患者的病情不稳定。

12 militia   

n.民兵，民兵组织

参考例句：

• First came the PLA men,then the people's militia.人民解放军走在前面，其次是民兵。
• There's a building guarded by the local militia at the corner of the street.街道拐角处有一幢由当地民兵团守卫的大楼。

13 rangers   

护林者( ranger的名词复数 )； 突击队员

参考例句：

• Do you know where the Rangers Stadium is? 你知道Rangers体育场在哪吗？ 来自超越目标英语 第3册
• Now I'm a Rangers' fan, so I like to be near the stadium. 现在我是Rangers的爱好者，所以我想离体育场近一点。 来自超越目标英语 第3册

14 charcoal   

n.炭，木炭，生物炭

参考例句：

• We need to get some more charcoal for the barbecue.我们烧烤需要更多的碳。
• Charcoal is used to filter water.木炭是用来过滤水的。

15 illicit   

adj.非法的，禁止的，不正当的

参考例句：

• He had an illicit association with Jane.他和简曾有过不正当关系。
• Seizures of illicit drugs have increased by 30% this year.今年违禁药品的扣押增长了30%。