时间:2019-01-03 作者:英语课 分类:2018年VOA慢速英语(六)月


英语课

Tourists Experience the Ancient Sport of Falconry


Falconry is an old tradition in many parts of the world, including Western Europe, the Middle East and Central Asia. Now, it is becoming a tourist activity at hotels and other places in the United States, from Vermont to Colorado to California.


The ancient sport of using birds of prey 2 to hunt wild animals has existed for at least 4,000 years. Experiences designed for the tourism industry do not usually involve hunting. They center on the flight of the birds and their return to their human trainers.


During a demonstration 3 for visitors to the Woodstock Inn in Vermont, a professional falconer teaches about birds of prey and the history of falconry. He also flies a trained Harris’s hawk 4. Then, he helps interested observers fly the hawk themselves.


Bouchaine Vineyards in California started using falconers in 2016 to stop birds from eating their crops. Vineyard visitors were pleased to see the hawks 5 fly and work with their trainer. So, the company decided 6 to offer guests that experience as part of a wine-tasting and lunch.


“It’s amazing to showcase the birds, and to be able to actually hold a glove out and have a falcon 1 land on your hand,” said employee Chris Kajani. He said the falconry program also gives the vineyard good publicity 7.


At New England Falconry in Vermont recently, a young Harris’s hawk named Audubon launched from a high place. He flew through the wind, over a grassy 8 field, straight to falconer Jessica Snyder’s hand. She then treated the 1-year-old hawk to a piece of meat.


“He has fun out here,” she said. She also noted 9 that the bird “has about 10 times the sight ability of an average human.”


The Harris’s hawk has brown feathers and yellow legs with long black talons 11. Its strong eyesight enables it to spot prey on the ground below. The Harris’s hawk, which hunts in groups, is considered the most social bird of prey. However, each has its own personality, Snyder said. Falconers attach an electronic device to their birds so they can be found if they do not return from a flight.


Growth in the use of hunting guns almost ended falconry, which arrived in the U.S. in the early 1900s. Sheldon Nicolle, president of the North American Falconers Association, said it is generally an activity of wealthy people. But, Nicolle said there are now 20 or 30 places to enjoy falconry experiences in the U.S.


I’m Susan Shand.


Words in This Story


falconry- n. the sport of hunting with hawks


tourist – n. a person who travels to a place for pleasure


prey – n. an animal that is hunted or killed by another animal for food


vineyard – n. a field where grapes are grown


glove – n. a covering for the hand that has separate parts for each finger


hawk – n. a kind of bird that kills other birds and animals for food


platform – n. a flat surface that is raised higher than the floor or ground


feather – n. one of the light growths that make up the outer covering of the body of a bird


talon 10 – n. one of the sharp claws on the feet of some birds


antenna 12 – n. a device (such as a wire or a metal rod) for sending or receiving radio or television signals



n.隼,猎鹰
  • The falcon was twice his size with pouted feathers.鹰张开羽毛比两只鹰还大。
  • The boys went hunting with their falcon.男孩子们带着猎鹰出去打猎了。
n.被掠食者,牺牲者,掠食;v.捕食,掠夺,折磨
  • Stronger animals prey on weaker ones.弱肉强食。
  • The lion was hunting for its prey.狮子在寻找猎物。
n.表明,示范,论证,示威
  • His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
  • He gave a demonstration of the new technique then and there.他当场表演了这种新的操作方法。
n.鹰,骗子;鹰派成员
  • The hawk swooped down on the rabbit and killed it.鹰猛地朝兔子扑下来,并把它杀死。
  • The hawk snatched the chicken and flew away.老鹰叼了小鸡就飞走了。
鹰( hawk的名词复数 ); 鹰派人物,主战派人物
  • Two hawks were hover ing overhead. 两只鹰在头顶盘旋。
  • Both hawks and doves have expanded their conditions for ending the war. 鹰派和鸽派都充分阐明了各自的停战条件。
adj.决定了的,坚决的;明显的,明确的
  • This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
  • There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。
n.众所周知,闻名;宣传,广告
  • The singer star's marriage got a lot of publicity.这位歌星的婚事引起了公众的关注。
  • He dismissed the event as just a publicity gimmick.他不理会这件事,只当它是一种宣传手法。
adj.盖满草的;长满草的
  • They sat and had their lunch on a grassy hillside.他们坐在长满草的山坡上吃午饭。
  • Cattle move freely across the grassy plain.牛群自由自在地走过草原。
adj.著名的,知名的
  • The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
  • Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。
n.爪;(如爪般的)手指;爪状物
  • Can you get a little tighter with the talon?你能不能把摄像探头固定住不动?
  • This kind of spice is made of eagle's talon and has a unique flavor.这种香料味道独特,是用鹰爪作原料制成的。
n.(尤指猛禽的)爪( talon的名词复数 );(如爪般的)手指;爪状物;锁簧尖状突出部
  • The fingers were curved like talons, but they closed on empty air. 他的指头弯得像鹰爪一样,可是抓了个空。 来自英汉文学 - 热爱生命
  • The tiger has a pair of talons. 老虎有一对利爪。 来自辞典例句
n.触角,触须;天线
  • The workman fixed the antenna to the roof of the house.工人把天线固定在房顶上。
  • In our village, there is an antenna on every roof for receiving TV signals.在我们村里,每家房顶上都有天线接收电视信号。
学英语单词
4-methylsalinomycin
acetilenic
airspace prohibited area
aporheidine
ataxiameter
Barytheres
bismarckia nobilis hiddebr et wendel
boiler blowdown water
Carloforte
cassette lid
cellulose propionate fibre
chapel of love
chobes
closing of root
commuting time
crassament
cultural immediacy
cushion moss
differential instrument
dilatant fluia
diveroli
documentary
ecomap
electrovoice
enqueuers
enquiry (enq)
everall
Fahry alloy
fire-prevention pipe
forest-police
game laws
gastos
geographical variant of association
grievance provision
grouped controls
had a cow
high tensile reinforing steel
highway bus station
historiosophical
hydraulic gate valve
information system for process control
inverse-feedback filter
jtc
Krishnapur
kuehneola japonica
lift someone's face
Ligularia atroviolacea
martingality
melolontha minima
Mendhein kiln
military ordinary mail
Murker
musico-
national resource industries
nickelization
niprs
nostalgie
occluded rubber
off-market offsetting
ornela
pansy orchid
pat test
per incuriam
pesterings
piston (pneumatic)
platydema terusane
production campaign
projection tract
pronunciable
pseudo-cumene
radial ventilated type
response circuit
scanzoni
seien
selective bias
semi passive
set an objective
shock tube
shotblaster
shriveling
Sinmyong
Soromaya
stowings
subarea
systems audit
Taihei-yama
taken your own life
talastine
the Alps
traceability of measurements
transient condition
truanted
truth drug
two-pass symbolic language assembler
typical model
UK-6558-01
unisolvent
Ur of the Chaldees
vapor pressure method
water fennel oil
weather notations