【英语趣味课堂】骆驼，考拉和袋鼠-Camels,Koalas,Kangaroos

Todd: Rebecca, I'm a huge animal lover¹. I love animals and Australia has lots of wildlife and animals. I was wondering, could you talk about them and starting with, what's the deal with the camels? Why do you have camels?

 

Rebecca: Camels are not really Australian animals but Australia's really big. It has a lot of desert in the center part of Australia so when white people first arrived in Australia, they decided² to explore inland and because it's so dry, there's no water, the couldn't use horses so they brought camels over, but some got away and they went wild and they started breeding³ and now there's hundreds, maybe thousands, of camels running around wild in the desert.

 

Todd: No, way, really. So these camels are just free to do whatever, like, do people try to catch them or just let them be or what's the deal?

 

Rebecca: As far as I know they have no jobs, no obligations⁴. I think they can just do what they want. No, but in the northern part of Australia, actually they have a famous camel race every year, and it's like a horse race but with camels. That's pretty funny.

 

Todd: Cool. That would be cool to see. OK, I got to ask about the Koala⁵. Now I heard that the Koala actually is not such a cute creature. That it has sharp claws⁶ and this and that. Is that true?

 

Rebecca: Yeah, something I could never really understand is why tourists want to cuddle a koala. I've never cuddled one and I don't want to because I've heard that they don't smell very nice. They're a little bit, not very friendly. Yes, they do have sharp claws and they can hurt you if they choose to. I think they genuinely⁷ are pretty peaceful, but I think they would rather sleep so.

 

Todd: OK, and could the same be said for the kangaroo? So the kangaroo, are they these fun loving creatures or are they kind of wild and dangerous?

 

Rebecca: Kangaroos are definitely⁸ wild and dangerous. I think wallabies are safer. They're smaller and usually more friendly with people. You do have to be careful especially with male kangaroos. When I was a kid I tried to feed a kangaroo but the kangaroo got a little bit over-excited about my sandwich and he pushed me over and he stole my sandwich.

 

Todd: Man. Whoa. Cool. Well, it's kind of cool that a kangaroo has an attitude.

 

 

1 lover   

n.情人，恋人；爱好者

参考例句：

• Every lover sees a thousand graces in the beloved object.情人眼里出西施。
• Mr.Smith was a lover of poetry.史密斯先生是一名诗歌爱好者。

2 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• 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 breeding   

n.繁殖

参考例句：

• the breeding of horses 马的饲养
• This area of the city has become a breeding ground for violent crime. 这个市区已成为暴力犯罪的滋生地。

4 obligations   

n.债务( obligation的名词复数 )；义务；[法律]债券；合约

参考例句：

• Belgium replied that she had always been faithful to her international obligations. 比利时政府答复说，比利时一贯忠实履行其国际义务。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• It would never do to neglect official obligations. 玩忽职守是绝对不行的。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 koala   

n.考拉，树袋熊

参考例句：

• The koala is the most popular animal in this zoo.树袋熊是这个动物园里最受欢迎的动物。
• Some species sleep day and night such as the Koala Bear.一些物种白天和夜晚都睡觉，例如树袋熊。

6 claws   

n.爪( claw的名词复数 )；（有壳水生动物的）螯；爪形夹具；（机械的）爪

参考例句：

• the claws of a crab 螃蟹的螯
• The lion's claws had gouged a wound in the horse's side. 狮爪在马身一侧抓了一道深口。

7 genuinely   

ad.真地；确实地

参考例句：

• She appeared genuinely surprised by this gesture of affection. 看来她真的被这个爱意的表示惊呆了。
• She seems genuinely fond of the children. 她似乎真的喜欢这些小孩。

8 definitely   

adv.一定地，肯定地；明确地，确切地

参考例句：

• The team will definitely lose if he doesn't play.如果他不参加比赛，这个队肯定会输。
• I shall definitely be home before six o'clock.6点以前，我一定回家。