时间:2018-12-27 作者:英语课 分类:英语时差8,16


英语课

 Last time we were thinking about why some birds hop 1 and other birds walk. We decided 2 that you can't make any blanket statements about this, because there will always be exceptions. But in general it's true that larger birds are more likely to walk and smaller birds to hop, just because of the amount of energy it takes. But there's more to it than that. Ornithologists are actually very interested in bird legs and feet. The differences between different kind of legs are used in bird classification. For example, what we commonly call "songbirds"--cardinals, wrens 3, mockingbirds, warblers--are also called "perching birds." They have specialized 5 structures in their feet that include three toes pointing forward and one more called the "hallux" that points back. That three-and-one design is excellent for holding on to branches, which is an important skill to possess if you are a bird. Okay, so far so good. But now, what does that kind of foot make more difficult? You got it--a foot with a conspicuous 6 hallux toe won't be very good at walking. Some birds manage it, and there are different kinds of hallux toes that make it easier or harder. But to move around with feet like that, sometimes you just might be better off hopping 7. So, evolution has to make a choice. Is it better to perch 4 safely on branches or walk comfortably on the ground? Do I catch food with my feet or my beak 8? And so on. The end result can be birds with different kinds of feet, and different kinds of walks.



1 hop
n.单脚跳,跳跃;vi.单脚跳,跳跃;着手做某事;vt.跳跃,跃过
  • The children had a competition to see who could hop the fastest.孩子们举行比赛,看谁单足跳跃最快。
  • How long can you hop on your right foot?你用右脚能跳多远?
2 decided
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。
3 wrens
n.鹪鹩( wren的名词复数 )
  • Other songbirds, such as wrens, have hundreds of songs. 有的鸣鸟,例如鹪鹩,会唱几百只歌。 来自辞典例句
4 perch
n.栖木,高位,杆;v.栖息,就位,位于
  • The bird took its perch.鸟停歇在栖木上。
  • Little birds perch themselves on the branches.小鸟儿栖歇在树枝上。
5 specialized
adj.专门的,专业化的
  • There are many specialized agencies in the United Nations.联合国有许多专门机构。
  • These tools are very specialized.这些是专用工具。
6 conspicuous
adj.明眼的,惹人注目的;炫耀的,摆阔气的
  • It is conspicuous that smoking is harmful to health.很明显,抽烟对健康有害。
  • Its colouring makes it highly conspicuous.它的色彩使它非常惹人注目。
7 hopping
n.鸟嘴,茶壶嘴,钩形鼻
  • The bird had a worm in its beak.鸟儿嘴里叼着一条虫。
  • This bird employs its beak as a weapon.这种鸟用嘴作武器。
学英语单词
affix ... seal
air survey camera
Alan Hodgkin
antihelminth
antipyrin
association of data processing service organizations
atrisk
attachment port
bauchis
besmut
Brillat-Savarin, Anthelme
calcium malonate
cant-saw file
capacitor tester
cedrus atlanticas
chemotherapies
choke chamber
chromosome mosaic
computer-aided design
conversion of bill
cornerwise
counter-Quranic
counting by steps multiplication theorem
cross-filing
crosslaminated
cutter autostopper at the upper position
cycloidal gear teeth
data acquisition subsystem
decortization
dendrochemistry
desampling
desomorphine
diethyl oxaloacetic ester
drinking-driving
e-textbook
electro-beat
ENDC
extragalactic model
F. Scott Fitzgerald
Filipino
filter film cultivation
frost susceptible soil
gorblin
grand dukedom
grey back
heat-shielded cathode
hendrum
homobrevicolline
immature-wheat
immune suppressant drugs
inline style
ipf
Jadādiīyah
Jenday
laicisations
lauderhill
Legendre, Adrien-Marie
light source colour
link-edit
listening devices
mathematical reduction
MeFi
not well maintained
number of branches
oil painting
pectising
pente
phosphamidase
photochemical efficiency
picturesque scenery
pinnata
Polyopisthocotylea
pornographess
praxitele
primary monosomic
quadriceps muscle
quartz-mica-diorite-porphyrite
rahmen
ready wit
rear dump tipper
relative homogeneity
rice bran oil press
sathrophyta
screw thread gage
selective wait
slot space
source-calibration laboratory
spark plug resistance tester
system evaluation
Thamadaw
thornicrofts
town-house
track liner
trackmasters
trophic keratitis
underground crusher station
vanikoro imbricata
vector table for multi-vector device
Vis.
Wegdam
wild cocoon
zingibers