英国语文第三册 第73期:鹦鹉

 Lesson 62 The parrot 第六十二课 鹦鹉

Parrots abound 1 in the forests of South America.  鹦鹉在南美洲的森林比比皆是。
They live where there is summer all the year round, where the leaves are always green,  他们在那里生存，一年四季都是夏天,树叶总是绿色的,
and the flowers are always blooming. There the bright little humming-bird may be seen darting 2 about in the sunshine.  花儿总是盛开着的。在那里，小小的蜂鸟有时候会在阳光中飞来飞去。
And at night the firefly flits to and fro, shining like a tiny star. 晚上的时候，萤火虫飞来飞去，就像一颗亮晶晶的小星星。
The parrot makes his home in the forest, because he can find shade there in the heat of the day.  鹦鹉在森林里面筑巢，因为在白天天气炎热的时候，森林里面有树荫。
If you were going through the forest, you would hear such a noise and chattering 3 in the boughs 5 over your head,  当你在森林中穿行的时候，你就会听到头顶的树枝上传来的叽叽喳喳的声音，
that you would wonder what was the matter.  你就会想这是怎么回事。
If you looked up, you would see a great many parrots sitting on the boughs. 抬头一看，就会发现树枝上有许多鹦鹉。
Parrots feed chiefly on fruit and seeds; and plenty of fruit grows in the forest for them to eat.  鹦鹉主要以水果和种子为食；森林里面的果实完全可以满足他们的食物需求。
They are very fond of the wild cherry, especially of the stone.  他们非常喜欢野樱桃，尤其是樱桃核。
They drive their hard, strong bill into it, and get the kernel 6 out in a minute. 他们用力啄樱桃，将喙插入里面，在一分钟之内就能吃到樱桃核。
The bill of the parrot seems made on purpose to enable him to crack these stones.  鹦鹉的喙似乎就是专门用来剥开这些果核用的。
It is very sharp, and is hooked at the end. In fact, his bill is his knife, and his foot is his fork.  鹦鹉喙非常的锋利，末尾成勾状。实际上，他的喙就是他的刀子，脚就是叉子。
He can hold anything he likes in his foot. It is as useful to him as your hand is to you. 他可以用脚来抓住任何他喜欢的东西。他的脚就像你的手一样有用。
The toes of the parrot are as distinct from each other as your fingers are;  鹦鹉的脚趾就像你的手指一样，各不相同。
and the joints 7 are so supple 8 that he can bend them about in any way he pleases.  而且脚趾的关节非常的灵活，可以按照他的喜好任意弯曲。
If it were not for his foot, he could never climb the trees as he does.  如果他没有脚的话，那他就不可能像现在这样爬上树了。
He hooks himself on to a branch overhead by his bill. Then he lays hold of a bough 4 with his foot, and pulls himself up.  他用喙把自己挂在头顶的树枝上面。然后他用脚抓住树枝，最后把自己拽上去。
He goes on climbing in this way till he gets to the top of the tree. 他就是这样一路爬到树的顶部的。
Parrots are very fond of bathing. They fly about till they find some clear pool or stream.  鹦鹉非常喜欢洗澡。他们会在空中盘旋着找到清澈的水池或者溪流。
Then they enjoy themselves very much indeed. They dip into the water, and splash it all over their feathers.  然后他们就在那里面尽情洗澡。他们在水中浸一下，水花溅湿了他们浑身的羽毛。
When they are tired of bathing, they sit in the sun and dress their feathers till they are dry. 他们洗澡洗累了之后，他们就站在阳光下，晒干自己的羽毛。
In the middle of the day, the heat becomes very great.  在正午的时候，气候非常炎热。
Then the parrots fly into the deepest shade they can find. They perch 9 on the trees and go to sleep.  这时候，鹦鹉就会飞进森林中他们能找到的最凉快的地方避暑。他们在树上栖息睡觉。
The chattering ceases, and the forest is still.  叽叽喳喳的声音逐渐消失，森林一片寂静。
But in the evening, when the sun is down, they wake up, and are as noisy and as lively as ever. 但是到了晚上，太阳下山之后，他们就醒了，叽叽喳喳的声音又开始像之前一样活跃了。
They sup, as they breakfasted, upon the kernels 10 of the fruits; and then they go to the water to bathe once more.  他们啄一下果核，就像是在吃早餐一样。然后他们就再次去水中洗澡。
Again follows the business of pluming 11 their feathers; and after this they go to rest for the night.  接着又开始摆弄自己的羽毛，然后晚上又去休息。
But they do not roost in the branches where they took their mid-day nap.  但是他们不会在中午栖息的树枝上睡觉。
Their sleeping-room is a hollow in a tree, scooped 12 out by the woodpecker. 他们睡觉的地方是被啄木鸟挖的一个树洞。
As many parrots go in as the hollow will contain.  树洞里面住满了鹦鹉。
The rest hook themselves to the bark by their claws and bills, and hang there during the night. 其他没挤进树洞的鹦鹉，在晚上，就会用爪子和喙把自己挂在树上睡觉。
The parrot lays her eggs in these hollow trees. She does not make a nest, but is content with the soft rotten wood;  鹦鹉会在树洞中下蛋。她不会筑巢，但是柔软腐烂的树木就已经让她感到满足了。
and the whole flock lay their eggs together in the same tree. 整群鹦鹉都会在同一棵树里面下蛋。