英国语文第三册 第36期:鸵鸟(上)

 　　LESSON 35 The ostrich¹ 第三十五课 鸵鸟

　　The humming-bird is the smallest and the ostrich the largest of birds. 鸵鸟是最小的鸟类，鸵鸟是最大的鸟类。

　　There are humming-birds no larger than bees, while the ostrich is often ten feet in height, from the crown of the head to the ground. 有的蜂鸟还没有蜜蜂大小，鸵鸟从头顶到脚底却有十英尺高。

　　The home of the ostrich is in the sandy deserts of Africa and Arabia. 鸵鸟生活在非洲和阿拉伯的沙漠。

　　Among the Arabs, it is called the camel bird, from the form of its neck and body. 由于长相，阿拉伯人把鸵鸟称为“像骆驼一样的鸟”。

　　Like the camel, it dwells in the desert, and can live a long time without water. 像骆驼一样，鸵鸟居住在沙漠，长时间缺水也能生存。

　　Though the ostrich has wings, they are too small for it to fly with; but in running, it uses them like paddles. 虽然鸵鸟有翅膀，但是太小，不足以让它飞起来；但是跑起来时，它的翅膀就像桨。

　　Spreading them out, and flapping them in the air, it runs along with great speed. 伸展开翅膀，在空中摆动几下，鸵鸟跑起来就能健步如飞。

　　The swiftest horse cannot keep up with it! 最快的马也追不上！

　　As is said in the Bible, "She lifteth up herself on high, she scorneth the horse and his rider." 就像《圣经》里记载：“它把自己高高举起，嘲笑马得缓慢。”

　　The nest of the ostrich is simply a hole in the sand; and there the female bird lays ten or twelve large eggs. 鸵鸟的洞穴就是简单的在沙子里挖个洞；雌性鸵鸟会在洞里埋上十到十二个大鸵鸟蛋。

　　She watches her nest very closely, always sitting on her eggs at night, and leaving them only during the hottest part of the day. 它密切注视着它的洞穴，晚上坐在鸵鸟蛋上，只有在一天中最热的时候才会离开。

　　The eggs are prepared for food in various ways; and some people are very fond of them. 鸵鸟蛋有许多不同的吃法；是有些人的挚爱。

　　The shells also are made into cups and ornaments² of different kinds. 他们把蛋壳做成形状各异的杯子和饰物。

　　The ostrich is often hunted on horseback; 猎人们骑着马去猎杀鸵鸟；

　　but so rapid is its flight, that the hunters would seldom succeed in catching³ it, if they did not know that it never runs in an even course, but zig-zag. 但是如果他们不知道鸵鸟从不走直线而是走之字形路线这一诀窍，很少能打到健步如飞的鸵鸟。

　　So they let it go winding⁴ and doubling about, while they themselves push straight forward, thus saving time and keeping up with it. 所以猎人们会让鸵鸟走曲线并让它折返，那样鸵鸟就会自己沿着直线跑，既可以节省时间，也不会跟丢猎物。

　　The chase sometimes lasts two or three days, till the poor bird is tired out; for though swift, it is not so strong as a horse. 有时候要花上两三天去追捕一只鸵鸟，直到可怜的猎物筋疲力尽；这样，尽管它们还是很敏捷，但已经比不上马得速度。

1 ostrich   

n.鸵鸟

参考例句：

• Ostrich is the fastest animal on two legs.驼鸟是双腿跑得最快的动物。
• The ostrich indeed inhabits continents.鸵鸟确实是生活在大陆上的。

2 ornaments   

n.装饰( ornament的名词复数 )；点缀；装饰品；首饰v.装饰，点缀，美化( ornament的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The shelves were chock-a-block with ornaments. 架子上堆满了装饰品。
• Playing the piano sets up resonance in those glass ornaments. 一弹钢琴那些玻璃饰物就会产生共振。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 catching   

adj.易传染的，有魅力的，迷人的，接住

参考例句：

• There are those who think eczema is catching.有人就是认为湿疹会传染。
• Enthusiasm is very catching.热情非常富有感染力。

4 winding   

n.绕，缠，绕组，线圈

参考例句：

• A winding lane led down towards the river.一条弯弯曲曲的小路通向河边。
• The winding trail caused us to lose our orientation.迂回曲折的小道使我们迷失了方向。