国家地理:Sea Otters in Danger 拯救海獭
时间：2018-12-30 作者：英语课 分类：国家地理2007年
英语课
For several years something mysterious has been plaguing sea otter 1 populations off the coast of California.
The animal may have seizure 2s, it may shake, it may act like it's weak, uh, it may not seem like it's very aware of its surroundings, and it may seem to have problems, uh, bringing food to its mouth as those kinds of things that tips off it. Something isn't quite right with this animal.
These symptoms and other research data point in part to an unlikely culprit, a parasite 4 that causes toxoplasmosis.
The first big surprise for us was how common the infection really was. Uh, what we found was that about 4 out of every 10 live otters 5 that we tested actually had antibodies to the parasite. Good boy.
And even more surprising was a link to human population centers where the parasite is transported by fresh water runoff. A university of California study confirmed that otters sampled near major streams and rivers were almost 3 times more likely to test positive for the parasite than those living away from fresh water. Other factors could also be responsible, everything from other parasites 6 and diseases to pollution and pesticides 7.
The bottom line right now is it remains 8 an open question.
Sea otters eat about 25 percent of their body weight in shellfish and other invertebrates 9 everyday. Since people eat some of the same seafoods 10, this poses the question of how humans might be affected 11, sending a warning to a fishing industry that the state heavily depends on.
Hey, Morgan, hey, Rick, hi buddy 12.
It's also important to remember that this is not just about saving sea otters, that's important, but it's about saving marine 13 ecosystems 14 because the organisms that we are seeing have significant implications for human health that has concordance for the people of California, the people of the world that want to enjoy and utilize 16 the Pacific coast.
And that is what is raising the stakes.
What you think, ah?
Making the effort to save the sea otters, a California state priority.
seizure: A sudden attack, spasm 17, or convulsion, as in epilepsy or another disorder 18. 发作突然的
tip off: An indication of an otherwise unknown fact or probability 表明；暗示
toxoplasmosis: [医]弓形体病, 弓浆虫病
bottom line: The main or essential point 要点或关键之处
concordance: Agreement; concord 15. 协议；和谐
The animal may have seizure 2s, it may shake, it may act like it's weak, uh, it may not seem like it's very aware of its surroundings, and it may seem to have problems, uh, bringing food to its mouth as those kinds of things that tips off it. Something isn't quite right with this animal.
These symptoms and other research data point in part to an unlikely culprit, a parasite 4 that causes toxoplasmosis.
The first big surprise for us was how common the infection really was. Uh, what we found was that about 4 out of every 10 live otters 5 that we tested actually had antibodies to the parasite. Good boy.
And even more surprising was a link to human population centers where the parasite is transported by fresh water runoff. A university of California study confirmed that otters sampled near major streams and rivers were almost 3 times more likely to test positive for the parasite than those living away from fresh water. Other factors could also be responsible, everything from other parasites 6 and diseases to pollution and pesticides 7.
The bottom line right now is it remains 8 an open question.
Sea otters eat about 25 percent of their body weight in shellfish and other invertebrates 9 everyday. Since people eat some of the same seafoods 10, this poses the question of how humans might be affected 11, sending a warning to a fishing industry that the state heavily depends on.
Hey, Morgan, hey, Rick, hi buddy 12.
It's also important to remember that this is not just about saving sea otters, that's important, but it's about saving marine 13 ecosystems 14 because the organisms that we are seeing have significant implications for human health that has concordance for the people of California, the people of the world that want to enjoy and utilize 16 the Pacific coast.
And that is what is raising the stakes.
What you think, ah?
Making the effort to save the sea otters, a California state priority.
seizure: A sudden attack, spasm 17, or convulsion, as in epilepsy or another disorder 18. 发作突然的
tip off: An indication of an otherwise unknown fact or probability 表明；暗示
toxoplasmosis: [医]弓形体病, 弓浆虫病
bottom line: The main or essential point 要点或关键之处
concordance: Agreement; concord 15. 协议；和谐
n.水獭
- The economists say the competition otter to the brink of extinction.经济学家们说，竞争把海獭推到了灭绝的边缘。
- She collared my black wool coat with otter pelts.她把我的黑呢上衣镶上了水獭领。
n.没收；占有；抵押
- The seizure of contraband is made by customs.那些走私品是被海关没收的。
- The courts ordered the seizure of all her property.法院下令查封她所有的财产。
n.起获( seizure的名词复数 )；没收；充公；起获的赃物
- Seizures of illicit drugs have increased by 30% this year. 今年违禁药品的扣押增长了30%。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- Other causes of unconsciousness predisposing to aspiration lung abscess are convulsive seizures. 造成吸入性肺脓肿昏迷的其他原因，有惊厥发作。 来自辞典例句
n.寄生虫；寄生菌；食客
- The lazy man was a parasite on his family.那懒汉是家里的寄生虫。
- I don't want to be a parasite.I must earn my own way in life.我不想做寄生虫，我要自己养活自己。
n.（水）獭( otter的名词复数 )；獭皮
- An attempt is being made to entice otters back to the river. 人们正试图把水獭引诱回河里去。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- Otters are believed to have been on Earth for 90 million years. 水獭被认为存活在地球上已经9千多万年。 来自互联网
寄生物( parasite的名词复数 )； 靠他人为生的人； 诸虫
- 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。
n.杀虫剂( pesticide的名词复数 )；除害药物
- vegetables grown without the use of pesticides 未用杀虫剂种植的蔬菜
- There is a lot of concern over the amount of herbicides and pesticides used in farming. 人们对农业上灭草剂和杀虫剂的用量非常担忧。 来自《简明英汉词典》
n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹
- 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。
n.无脊椎动物( invertebrate的名词复数 )
- Insects and worms are all invertebrates. 昆虫和蠕虫都是无脊椎动物。 来自辞典例句
- In the earthworm and many other invertebrates, these excretory structures are called nephridia. 在蚯蚓和许多其它无脊椎动物中，这些排泄结构称为肾管。 来自辞典例句
adj.不自然的，假装的
- 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。
n.（美口）密友，伙伴
- Calm down,buddy.What's the trouble?压压气，老兄。有什么麻烦吗？
- Get out of my way,buddy!别挡道了，你这家伙！
adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵
- 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。
n.生态系统( ecosystem的名词复数 )
- 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
n.和谐；协调
- These states had lived in concord for centuries.这些国家几个世纪以来一直和睦相处。
- His speech did nothing for racial concord.他的讲话对种族和谐没有作用。
vt.使用，利用
- The cook will utilize the leftover ham bone to make soup.厨师要用吃剩的猪腿骨做汤。
- You must utilize all available resources.你必须利用一切可以得到的资源。
n.痉挛，抽搐；一阵发作
- When the spasm passed,it left him weak and sweating.一阵痉挛之后，他虚弱无力，一直冒汗。
- He kicked the chair in a spasm of impatience.他突然变得不耐烦，一脚踢向椅子。