VOA慢速英语2021 澳大利亚本土生物受外来物种威胁

A new report warns that Australia's native wildlife could see disastrous¹ effects from nonnative plants and animals.

一份新的报告警告说，外来动植物可能会对澳大利亚的本土野生生物产生灾难性的影响。

Experts at the national science agency, the CSIRO, are predicting much of the country's native plants and animals are in danger.

澳大利亚国家科研机构CSIRO的专家预测，该国大部分本土动植物正处于危险之中。

They believe they could disappear by 2050 unless urgent action is taken.

他们认为，如果不采取紧急行动，到2050年，它们可能会灭绝。

Nonnative species have invaded Australia and threaten to overrun native plants and animals.

外来物种入侵澳大利亚，并有要占领本土动植物栖息地的威胁。

Invasive animals include European rabbits, which overrun two-thirds of Australia, wild house cats, pigs, and foxes.

入侵动物物种包括欧洲兔，欧洲兔侵扰了澳大利亚三分之二的地区，还有野猫、猪和狐狸。

Introduced species are endangering more than 80 percent of Australia's threatened species.

外来物种正在危及澳大利亚80%以上的濒危物种。

The report is called Fighting Plagues and Predators²: Australia's Path Towards a Pest and Weed-Free Future.

这份报告名为《抗击瘟疫和捕食者：澳大利亚通向无虫害和杂草的未来之路》。

It notes what researchers believe is an upcoming "… wave of new extinctions."

报告指出，研究人员认为即将到来的是“……新一轮本土物种灭绝浪潮”。

The study was done by the Commonwealth³ Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO), a government agency.

这项研究是由政府机构联邦科学与工业研究组织（CSIRO）进行的。

Andy Sheppard is CSIRO's research director for biosecurity.

安迪·谢泼德是联邦科学与工业研究组织的生物安全研究主任。

He said Australia's colonization⁴ by the British more than 200 years ago has left harmful environmental effects.

他说，200多年前英国对澳大利亚的殖民统治造成了有害的环境影响。

"Look, Australia, as a lot of post-British colonial countries suffered from a huge amount of introduction of exotic species early in their colonization histories," he said.

他说：“许多国家在沦为英国的殖民地后在其殖民史早期遭受了大量外来物种的引进，所以你们看看澳大利亚。”

He added that there were groups set up to purposefully introduce plants and animals so the Europeans felt more at home.

他还说，有一些组织是为了有目的地引进动植物而设立的，这样欧洲人感觉更像在家里一样。

Australia just like New Zealand has suffered as a result.

就像新西兰一样，澳大利亚也因此蒙受了损失。

"Australia unfortunately has the worst record internationally for mammalian extinction," he said and noted⁵ that this has much to do with the activities of introduced cats and foxes.

他说：“不幸的是，澳大利亚是世界上哺乳动物灭绝最严重的国家。”他还指出，这与引进猫和狐狸的活动有很大关系。

The report released on November 23 estimated the cost of the damage caused by invasive species in Australia at about $18 billion each year and growing.

11月23日发布的这份报告估计，入侵物种在澳大利亚每年造成的损失约为180亿美元，而且还在不断增加。

The study said that immediate⁶ action was needed to stop the spread of invasive species and protect Australia's "irreplaceable native animals and plants."

该研究称，需要立即采取行动以阻止入侵物种传播和保护澳大利亚“不可替代的本土动植物”。

Traditionally, chemical and biological controls have been used to manage wild pest populations.

在传统上，化学防治和生物防治一直被用来管理野生害虫种群。

There are debates about these methods and some supporters of animals have criticized them as inhumane.

人们对这些方法存有争议，一些动物的支持者批评它们是不人道的。

Scientists in Australia are working on genetic⁷ pest control methods.

澳大利亚的科学家正在研究利用遗传技术来控制虫害的方法。

Testing is under way on small laboratory animals, but a so-called "working system" could be up to five years away.

目前这些方法正在实验室的小动物身上进行测试，但所谓的“工作系统”可能需要长达五年的时间。

One possible biocontrol includes limiting their ability to reproduce.

一种可能的生物防治包括限制它们的繁殖能力。

1 disastrous   

adj.灾难性的，造成灾害的；极坏的，很糟的

参考例句：

• The heavy rainstorm caused a disastrous flood.暴雨成灾。
• Her investment had disastrous consequences.She lost everything she owned.她的投资结果很惨，血本无归。

2 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》

3 commonwealth   

n.共和国，联邦，共同体

参考例句：

• He is the chairman of the commonwealth of artists.他是艺术家协会的主席。
• Most of the members of the Commonwealth are nonwhite.英联邦的许多成员国不是白人国家。

4 colonization   

殖民地的开拓，殖民，殖民地化； 移殖

参考例句：

• Colonization took place during the Habsburg dynasty. 开拓殖民地在哈布斯堡王朝就进行过。
• These countries took part in the colonization of Africa. 这些国家参与非洲殖民地的开发。

5 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

6 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

7 genetic   

adj.遗传的，遗传学的

参考例句：

• It's very difficult to treat genetic diseases.遗传性疾病治疗起来很困难。
• Each daughter cell can receive a full complement of the genetic information.每个子细胞可以收到遗传信息的一个完全补偿物。