时间:2018-12-05 作者:英语课 分类:国家地理2008年


英语课

On a rocky beach in Iceland, two youngsters are on a mission of mercy. Inside their cardboard box, they have two orphans 1, fledglings plucked from the streets of town, baby puffins. The children of Heimaey have been saving young puffins called pufflings for generations. In fact, at the end of the summer, releasing them by the hundreds to the safety of the sea has become a local tradition.


"They have to save the birds, well, if they don't do it, they'll die. They find it very exciting."


Exciting obviously for the kids who get to throw live birds into the air and watch them fly away. But no doubt it's a little nerve-racking for the recently born pufflings. The problem for the pufflings is that when they are old enough, they leave their burrows 2 in the cliffs and head out to sea. But the lights of the town confuse them. Instead of flying out to sea, they fly into town where they crash land and end up on the streets. That's where the puffling patrols come in. Each night, during the month of August, Moms and Dads lead troops of kids through town looking for wayward pufflings. They use flashlights to search the ground near buildings and street lights. The piers 3 are particularly popular place.


"Oh hey guys, look it's there, it's there!"


When a bird is spotted 4, the kids rush to scoop 5 it up, and bring it in off the mean streets of Heimaey for the night. It's hard work. The following day all the birds that landed in friendly hands are transported to the seashore, pointed 6 in the right direction, and given their flying orders. The kids seem to be having a great time. Apparently 7 there is a proper way to release the pufflings. First, the proper grip, then, the right technique. With its wings free and flapping, the idea is to cock your arm like a quarterback, and throw a short path. Whether they swim to safety or fly off over the North Atlantic, one wonders what kind of impact all this has on this species as a whole. The world's largest Atlantic puffin colonies are found in Iceland, containing some 8 to 10 million birds. They are still flourishing with a little help from some strong arms and big hearts.



1 orphans
孤儿( orphan的名词复数 )
  • The poor orphans were kept on short commons. 贫苦的孤儿们吃不饱饭。
  • Their uncle was declared guardian to the orphans. 这些孤儿的叔父成为他们的监护人。
2 burrows
n.地洞( burrow的名词复数 )v.挖掘(洞穴),挖洞( burrow的第三人称单数 );翻寻
  • The intertidal beach unit contains some organism burrows. 潮间海滩单元含有一些生物潜穴。 来自辞典例句
  • A mole burrows its way through the ground. 鼹鼠会在地下钻洞前进。 来自辞典例句
3 piers
n.水上平台( pier的名词复数 );(常设有娱乐场所的)突堤;柱子;墙墩
  • Most road bridges have piers rising out of the vally. 很多公路桥的桥墩是从河谷里建造起来的。 来自辞典例句
  • At these piers coasters and landing-craft would be able to discharge at all states of tide. 沿岸航行的海船和登陆艇,不论潮汐如何涨落,都能在这种码头上卸载。 来自辞典例句
4 spotted
adj.有斑点的,斑纹的,弄污了的
  • The milkman selected the spotted cows,from among a herd of two hundred.牛奶商从一群200头牛中选出有斑点的牛。
  • Sam's shop stocks short spotted socks.山姆的商店屯积了有斑点的短袜。
5 scoop
n.铲子,舀取,独家新闻;v.汲取,舀取,抢先登出
  • In the morning he must get his boy to scoop it out.早上一定得叫佣人把它剜出来。
  • Uh,one scoop of coffee and one scoop of chocolate for me.我要一勺咖啡的和一勺巧克力的。
6 pointed
adj.尖的,直截了当的
  • He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
  • She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。
7 apparently
adv.显然地;表面上,似乎
  • An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽,豁然开朗。
  • He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。
学英语单词
amodiachin
angioedemas
angular artery (mouth)
anticatalysis
aortic bodies
Appalachian fields
artificial sight
auxiliary plunger
average sphericity
axine
baby-sit
balance pit
bolsterless bogie
branchid
breit-wigner
btrieves
cam nut
capromys pilorides
carbonic acide method
Cassius Clay
Castlejordan
catalinas
caterpillar tread
CBX
Chamberlain R.
cold confinement
conflict-of-law
containment pressure suppression
dead man's brake
deadlinked
deep fill
deferred hedging
Delima sarmentosa
diopside-kersantite
downward dog
dr.robert
drop shipped
electron beam machine
emperilling
falseface
fetal cranial diameter
first nighter
fraction collection trap
granulating slag
gyroporus castaneus
Halhgol
integral square estimation
kawamoto
kehrli
laira
latus rectum
lead-acid cobat battery
least absolute value (lav) estimator
Leninskoye
line fed
linked-memory philosophy
low brass
mammaliaforms
manufacturer's new order
Markova, Dame Alicia
maser relaxation
mean atsolute deviation
Medising
mellaart
microoptic clinometer
military drafe law
mini-rugbies
mining region
mnemonic system
mondin
Monterrubio
Moore mount
multiple period schedule
nonnegativity constraints
on-line secured communication system
onshores
operating tools
Orthoxenol
penone
phoromete
PMEL
pneumatic target
prairie fires
print management facility
productive practice
put something down to
ready reckoners
record manager
recording clockwork
ruvetto
scanty survey
scargle
support on
supratentorium
the CEBR
thematizing
three-toed sloths
till the end
trailing edge noise
Wai'ale'ale
wild liquorice
Willard, Jess