CCTV9英语新闻：Butterflies dying off in Yunnan province

For people in the cities, the simple beauty offered by a floating butterfly vanished long ago. In the valleys of Yunnan province in the southwest of China, explosions of brightly colored butterflies were a common spectacle. But even there, butterflies are now dying out.

 

A spectacular wonder. Every May, thousands of yellow butterflies are spotted 1 in the small valleys of Jinping county in southwest Yunnan province.

 

"This particular butterfly prefers humid climates. With 2500 millimeters of annual rain and vast vegetation, this area is an ideal breeding ground for the butterflies." Zhou Xuesong, ecological 2 expert with Southwestern Forestry 3 University, said.

 

Expert says unique geographical 4 conditions are also perfectly 5 suited for the butterflies. The altitude of the valleys ranges from 130 to 3,000 meters, with tropic, subtropical and temperate 6 zones. The forest coverage 7 is over 70%. The area is filled with bamboo and flowers, and has few natural predators 8 for the butterflies. But global warming and pollution have endangered the species, whose number has been dropping by a third every year.

 

"This massive breakout of butterflies has not been seen for three years. Their number is dropping dramatically. Say last year there were 10,000, this year it’s 3,000, and next year there would be only 1,000." Zhou said.

 

Experts say the extinction 9 of insects is at the root of the problem. Sprawling 10 cities leads to heavy pollution. The over-use of pesticides 11 and fertilizers also kills off these insects. If they go extinct, humans will be directly affected 12.

 

"85% of plants are host plants. When they bear fruits, they need these insects as a medium for fertilization. If they disappear, our agricultural production will be severely 13 affected." Wu Xiaoqiang, associate professor with Southwestern Forestry University, said.

 

According to a global butterfly study by London Animal Society, the number of world butterflies is down by two thirds. If the trend is not reversed, some of the rare species could disappear forever.

点击收听单词发音  






1
spotted

  
 


adj.有斑点的，斑纹的，弄污了的


参考例句：





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。












2
ecological

  
 


adj.生态的，生态学的


参考例句：





The region has been declared an ecological disaster zone.这个地区已经宣布为生态灾难区。
Each animal has its ecological niche.每种动物都有自己的生态位.












3
forestry

  
 


n.森林学；林业


参考例句：





At present, the Chinese forestry is being at a significant transforming period. 当前, 我国的林业正处于一个重大的转折时期。
Anhua is one of the key forestry counties in Hunan province. 安化县是湖南省重点林区县之一。












4
geographical

  
 


adj.地理的；地区(性)的


参考例句：





The current survey will have a wider geographical spread.当前的调查将在更广泛的地域范围內进行。
These birds have a wide geographical distribution.这些鸟的地理分布很广。












5
perfectly

  
 


adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地


参考例句：





The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。












6
temperate

  
 


adj.温和的，温带的，自我克制的，不过分的


参考例句：





Asia extends across the frigid,temperate and tropical zones.亚洲地跨寒、温、热三带。
Great Britain has a temperate climate.英国气候温和。












7
coverage

  
 


n.报导，保险范围，保险额，范围，覆盖


参考例句：





There's little coverage of foreign news in the newspaper.报纸上几乎没有国外新闻报道。
This is an insurance policy with extensive coverage.这是一项承保范围广泛的保险。












8
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》












9
extinction

  
 


n.熄灭，消亡，消灭，灭绝，绝种


参考例句：





The plant is now in danger of extinction.这种植物现在有绝种的危险。
The island's way of life is doomed to extinction.这个岛上的生活方式注定要消失。












10
sprawling

  
 


adj.蔓生的，不规则地伸展的v.伸开四肢坐[躺]( sprawl的现在分词 )；蔓延；杂乱无序地拓展；四肢伸展坐着（或躺着）


参考例句：





He was sprawling in an armchair in front of the TV. 他伸开手脚坐在电视机前的一张扶手椅上。
a modern sprawling town 一座杂乱无序拓展的现代城镇












11
pesticides

  
 


n.杀虫剂( pesticide的名词复数 )；除害药物


参考例句：





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》












12
affected

  
 


adj.不自然的，假装的


参考例句：





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。












13
severely

  
 


adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地


参考例句：





He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。
He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。