2007年VOA标准英语-More Species Threatened With Extinction

By Lisa Schlein
Geneva
12 September 2007

A new report says the number of species threatened with extinction¹ is escalating². The World Conservation Union, which has just released its Red List of Threatened Species, warns life on Earth will continue to disappear at a rapid rate unless urgent action is taken. Lisa Schlein reports for VOA from Geneva, close to Gland³, Switzerland where the Union is headquartered.

Gorilla4 eats a frozen-juice treat prepared by its keeper at Franklin Park Zoo in Boston (file photo)" hspace="2" src="/upimg/allimg/070915/0904570.jpg" width="210" vspace="2" border="0" />

A Western Lowland Gorilla eats a frozen-juice treat prepared by its keeper at Franklin Park Zoo in Boston (File)

There are now 41,415 species on the Red List and 16,306 of them are threatened with extinction. This is nearly 200 more than last year. The World Conservation Union says the total number of extinct species has reached 785 and a further 65 are only found in captivity⁵ or in cultivation⁶.

Included in the list of endangered species are the Western Gorilla, the Yangtze River Dolphin, India and Nepal's crocodile, and Vultures in Africa and Asia. For the first time, 10 species of corals from the Galapagos Islands have been added to the Red List.

Program Officer for the Union's Red List, Caroline Pollock, says the Great Apes are critically endangered because of habitat loss, poaching and the deadly Ebola virus. She says the gorilla population has declined by 60 percent over the last 25 years.

She tells VOA any species loss is a great loss to humanity. Even the forbidding vulture, she says, is of tremendous use.

"A lot of people think of them as just a great big ugly bird that eats nasty dead things. But, actually we need big ugly birds to eat nasty dead things. It helps their environment tremendously," said Pollock. "The people who live in the areas and share their habitat with vultures, they do actually rely on vultures to get rid of carrion⁷ and to cut down on the spread of disease from animals being out there in the fields. So, we do actually need them to play an important role in their health and their own system."

Pollock says the main cause of all animal, fish and plant species loss is human induced. She says most of the time, species decline is due to habitat loss and degradation⁸, the effects of over-hunting, poaching and over-fishing.

She says invasive species are very destructive when they are brought to islands or areas where they do not naturally exist. She says other factors such as disease and climate change can also threaten species. In all cases, she says, humanity is the big loser.

"We entirely⁹ rely on bio-diversity," she said. "Species, animals and plants, all across the whole planet-they give us our food. They give us our livelihoods¹⁰. They give us our furniture, the roofs over our heads. They give us medicines - a whole range of things we take for granted nowadays, they all come from species. And the more species we lose, the more we are risking our own health, our own welfare and we are risking our future generations. It is something we really absolutely need to pay attention to and do something about."

Pollock says bio-diversity loss can be stemmed by actions including conservation measures, the protection of habitats and steps to stop climate change.

She says governments should take the lead in enacting¹¹ good conservation policies. But, she notes everyone has to consider the consequences of their own actions and not be wasteful¹² in using the earth's precious resources.

1 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。

2 escalating   

v.（使）逐步升级( escalate的现在分词 )；（使）逐步扩大；（使）更高；（使）更大

参考例句：

• The cost of living is escalating. 生活费用在迅速上涨。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The cost of living is escalating in the country. 这个国家的生活费用在上涨。 来自辞典例句

3 gland   

n.腺体，(机)密封压盖，填料盖

参考例句：

• This is a snake's poison gland.这就是蛇的毒腺。
• Her mother has an underactive adrenal gland.她的母亲肾上腺机能不全。

4 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。

5 captivity   

n.囚禁；被俘；束缚

参考例句：

• A zoo is a place where live animals are kept in captivity for the public to see.动物园是圈养动物以供公众观看的场所。
• He was held in captivity for three years.他被囚禁叁年。

6 cultivation   

n.耕作，培养，栽培（法），养成

参考例句：

• The cultivation in good taste is our main objective.培养高雅情趣是我们的主要目标。
• The land is not fertile enough to repay cultivation.这块土地不够肥沃，不值得耕种。

7 carrion   

n.腐肉

参考例句：

• A crow of bloodthirsty ants is attracted by the carrion.一群嗜血的蚂蚁被腐肉所吸引。
• Vultures usually feed on carrion or roadkill.兀鹫通常以腐肉和公路上的死伤动物为食。

8 degradation   

n.降级；低落；退化；陵削；降解；衰变

参考例句：

• There are serious problems of land degradation in some arid zones.在一些干旱地带存在严重的土地退化问题。
• Gambling is always coupled with degradation.赌博总是与堕落相联系。

9 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

10 livelihoods   

生计，谋生之道( livelihood的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• First came the earliest individualistic pioneers who depended on hunting and fishing for their livelihoods. 走在最前面的是早期的个人主义先驱者，他们靠狩猎捕鱼为生。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件
• With little influence over policies, their traditional livelihoods are threatened. 因为马赛族人对政策的影响力太小，他们的传统生计受到了威胁。

11 enacting   

制定（法律），通过（法案）( enact的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Generally these statutes apply only to wastes from reactors outside the enacting state. 总之，这些法令只适宜用在对付那些来自外州的核废料。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法
• In addition, the complexion of enacting standards for live working is described. 另外，介绍了带电作业标准的制订情况。

12 wasteful   

adj.（造成）浪费的，挥霍的

参考例句：

• It is a shame to be so wasteful.这样浪费太可惜了。
• Duties have been reassigned to avoid wasteful duplication of work.为避免重复劳动浪费资源，任务已经重新分派。