VOA标准英语2011--US Woman Fights to Save Cheetahs

US Woman Fights to Save Cheetahs²

Since ancient times, people have regarded cheetahs with awe³ for their beauty, grace and unique ability to reach speeds of up to 110 kilometers per hour.
But today, the species - which once ranged across Africa, India and Asia, has dwindled⁴ to only 10,000 animals worldwide, primarily in 24 African countries. The species once numbered at 100,000.
Luckily for the cheetahs, Dr. Laurie Marker is on their side.
Learning curve
Marker first started working with cheetahs in the early 1970s, when she ran a wildlife park in the state of Oregon. She says at the time, nobody knew much about cheetahs.
"The more people I asked, they said ‘When you find out something about cheetahs let us know. They don't do well in captivity⁵. They have a very short life span and we're losing them throughout the ranges in the world.' So that just made me fascinated and I wanted to know everything there was about them."
Marker traveled to Namibia - a southern African country which is home to the world's largest wild cheetah¹ population - to learn as much about the species as she could.
Threat to cheetahs
In 1990, Marker moved to Namibia permanently⁶ and founded the Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF), a non-profit organization which conducts research and offers educational programs.
The center develops strategies to combat some of the biggest threats to cheetahs, including confrontations⁷ with livestock⁸ farmers.
Anatolian Shepherd dogs help Namibian farmers protect their livestock from cheetahs. (Cheetah Conservation Fund)
Because cheetahs often prey¹⁰ on the cattle, sheep and goats that now graze on the African savannah, they are often killed by farmers. So Marker started working with local farming communities to find ways to protect their livestock from the big cats.
Guard dogs
In 1994, she introduced the farmers to the Anatolian Shepherd, a breed originally from Turkey.
"This breed has been used for about 5,000 years to protect livestock from predators¹²," says Marker, "and they act as a guardian¹³ by avoidance."
By barking loudly, the dogs let the predator¹¹ know that they're there protecting the flock, and since the predator doesn't want to get hurt, they will then avoid those flocks where the dogs are, she says.
Marker now breeds and trains the guarding dogs, which don't herd⁹, but simply put themselves between the livestock and any predators. That is usually enough to discourage the cheetahs from attacking.
Laurie Marker with Koya, a Turkish guarding dog, and Chewbakka.( A.L. Harrington)
Over the past 15 years, CCF has donated more than 400 dogs to Namibian livestock farmers. As a result, there has been up to an 80 percent decrease in livestock losses and farmers have developed more tolerance¹⁴ for having cheetahs around.
Since the introduction of the guard dog program, CCF says the population of cheetahs in Namibia has risen from about 1,000 to 1,500, to between 3,500 and 4,000.
"So we've been able to really grow the population," says Marker, "and again, that's out of a world population of about 10,000."
Going global
Marker would like to keep growing that number by expanding the CCF programs into other countries where cheetahs once roamed.
"What we're trying to do is to actually work together with a variety of partners throughout Africa to look at areas where the cheetahs are, the kind of problems that they are facing and solutions that we can then help the people and the cheetah," she says.
CCF is also working with the government of Iran - home to less than 100 cheetahs - to double that number within the next 10 years.
Today, Marker is considered one of the world's leading experts on cheetahs. She travels the world giving speeches and attending fundraisers to increase awareness¹⁵ about this charismatic and highly endangered animal.
"If we are not successful we're going to lose this amazing species in a very short period of time," she says.

1 cheetah   

n.(动物)猎豹

参考例句：

• The cheetah is generally credited as the world's fastest animal.猎豹被公认是世界上跑得最快的动物。
• The distribution of the cheetah ranges from Africa to Central Asia.印度豹的足迹遍及从非洲到中亚的广大地区。

2 cheetahs   

n.（奔跑极快的）非洲猎豹( cheetah的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Unlike lions or cheetahs, leopards are secretive, solitary cats. 花豹不像狮子或印度豹，是属于较神秘而隐居的大猫。 来自互联网
• Among this lot are cheetahs, lions, leopards, rhinoceroses, spotted hyenas and elephants. 印度豹、狮子、花豹、犀牛、斑点土狼、大象等，都是此地的居民。 来自互联网

3 awe   

n.敬畏，惊惧；vt.使敬畏，使惊惧

参考例句：

• The sight filled us with awe.这景色使我们大为惊叹。
• The approaching tornado struck awe in our hearts.正在逼近的龙卷风使我们惊恐万分。

4 dwindled   

v.逐渐变少或变小( dwindle的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Support for the party has dwindled away to nothing. 支持这个党派的人渐渐化为乌有。
• His wealth dwindled to nothingness. 他的钱财化为乌有。 来自《简明英汉词典》

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 permanently   

adv.永恒地，永久地，固定不变地

参考例句：

• The accident left him permanently scarred.那次事故给他留下了永久的伤疤。
• The ship is now permanently moored on the Thames in London.该船现在永久地停泊在伦敦泰晤士河边。

7 confrontations   

n.对抗，对抗的事物( confrontation的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• At times, this potential has escalated into actual confrontations. 有时，这一矛盾升级为实际的对抗。 来自英汉非文学 - 行政法
• These confrontations and uncertainties were bing played out for the first time on a global scale. 所有这一切对抗和不稳定，第一次在全球范围内得到充分的表演。 来自辞典例句

8 livestock   

n.家畜，牲畜

参考例句：

• Both men and livestock are flourishing.人畜两旺。
• The heavy rains and flooding killed scores of livestock.暴雨和大水淹死了许多牲口。

9 herd   

n.兽群，牧群；vt.使集中，把…赶在一起

参考例句：

• She drove the herd of cattle through the wilderness.她赶着牛群穿过荒野。
• He had no opinions of his own but simply follow the herd.他从无主见，只是人云亦云。

10 prey   

n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨

参考例句：

• Stronger animals prey on weaker ones.弱肉强食。
• The lion was hunting for its prey.狮子在寻找猎物。

11 predator   

n.捕食其它动物的动物；捕食者

参考例句：

• The final part of this chapter was devoted to a brief summary of predator species.本章最后部分简要总结了食肉动物。
• Komodo dragon is the largest living lizard and a fearsome predator.科摩多龙是目前存在的最大蜥蜴，它是一种令人恐惧的捕食性动物。

12 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》

13 guardian   

n.监护人；守卫者，保护者

参考例句：

• The form must be signed by the child's parents or guardian. 这张表格须由孩子的家长或监护人签字。
• The press is a guardian of the public weal. 报刊是公共福利的卫护者。

14 tolerance   

n.宽容；容忍，忍受；耐药力；公差

参考例句：

• Tolerance is one of his strengths.宽容是他的一个优点。
• Human beings have limited tolerance of noise.人类对噪音的忍耐力有限。

15 awareness   

n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智

参考例句：

• There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
• Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。