VOA慢速英语2021--志愿者饲养牡蛎修复珊瑚礁

Volunteers Raise Oysters² to Restore Reefs

Students at St. Stanislaus High School in Mississippi are among the volunteers along U.S. coasts raising oysters to help restore, or repair, weakened reefs.

Oyster¹ reefs are an important part of coastal³ environments. Each oyster filters, or cleans, 95 to 190 liters of water a day. Young oysters attach themselves to larger oysters and grow. The reefs provide living space for shrimp⁴, crabs⁵ and fish. They also protect coastlines.

In the states of Maryland, Virginia, Mississippi, and Alabama, there are more than 1,000 oyster gardens. Most of them are in wire cages hanging from private ports.

Colin Wood is one of two students looking after the St. Stanislaus garden. He collects data and supervises other students. He said he was excited by the hands-on work he gets to do. "I didn't realize oysters had a big impact on the environment," he said.

Dennis Hatfield grows oysters on Little Lagoon⁶ in Gulf⁷ Shores, Alabama. He said he is surprised each summer by the number of crabs, fish, shrimp and other animals he clears from his cages.

He said that many of the 50,000 to 55,000 adult oysters grown there each year go to reefs in Mobile Bay.

In the 1950s, an average of 37,400 tons of oysters were taken yearly from partly salty waters in the U.S. But U.S. oyster harvests fell sharply in the 1990s. Federal data showed the cause of the drop to be overharvesting, pollution, pests and other problems.

Commercial farmers around the country grow oysters near the surface of water. Oysters develop much faster where the water holds more of the plankton⁸ they eat and predators¹⁰ can be more easily removed.

Oyster gardening uses many of the same methods as farming. But the oysters are not being grown to be eaten.

Oyster gardens get pulled from the water every seven to 10 days. The time out of the water is used to clear out small animals, keep oysters from growing through the wires, and dry and clean off plant-life growing on the wires.

Bob Stokes is director of the Galveston Bay Foundation in Texas. He said oyster gardening is as much about education as it is restoration.

Oyster gardening started in the late 1990s around the Chesapeake Bay, where harvests had dropped 90 percent in 20 years. The Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant's oyster gardening program was modeled after the Chesapeake's.

The Chesapeake Bay oysters faced many problems, including two deadly diseases. Chris Moore is a scientist with the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. He said decreases in oyster numbers in the second half of the 1900s followed a more severe decrease in the 1920s from widespread overharvesting.

Gardeners in the foundation and its member groups have added at least 15 million oysters in Maryland and 1 million in Virginia, Moore said.

Another group called the Chesapeake Oyster Alliance has set a goal of adding 10 billion oysters by 2025.

Words in This Story

reef – n. a chain of rocks or coral or a ridge¹¹ of sand at or near the surface of water

filter – v. to pass something, such as a gas or liquid, through a filter to remove something unwanted

cage – n. a box made of wire or metal bars in which people keep animals or birds

impact – n. a powerful or major influence or effect

pest – n. an epidemic¹² disease associated with high mortality

commercial – adj. related to or used in the buying and selling of goods and services

predator⁹ – n. an animal that lives mostly by killing and eating other animals

1 oyster   

n.牡蛎；沉默寡言的人

参考例句：

• I enjoy eating oyster; it's really delicious.我喜欢吃牡蛎，它味道真美。
• I find I fairly like eating when he finally persuades me to taste the oyster.当他最后说服我尝尝牡蛎时，我发现我相当喜欢吃。

2 oysters   

牡蛎( oyster的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• We don't have oysters tonight, but the crayfish are very good. 我们今晚没有牡蛎供应。但小龙虾是非常好。
• She carried a piping hot grill of oysters and bacon. 她端出一盘滚烫的烤牡蛎和咸肉。

3 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

4 shrimp   

n.虾，小虾；矮小的人

参考例句：

• When the shrimp farm is built it will block the stream.一旦养虾场建起来，将会截断这条河流。
• When it comes to seafood,I like shrimp the best.说到海鲜，我最喜欢虾。

5 crabs   

n.蟹( crab的名词复数 )；阴虱寄生病；蟹肉v.捕蟹( crab的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• As we walked along the seashore we saw lots of tiny crabs. 我们在海岸上散步时看到很多小蟹。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The fish and crabs scavenge for decaying tissue. 鱼和蟹搜寻腐烂的组织为食。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 lagoon   

n.泻湖，咸水湖

参考例句：

• The lagoon was pullulated with tropical fish.那个咸水湖聚满了热带鱼。
• This area isolates a restricted lagoon environment.将这一地区隔离起来使形成一个封闭的泻湖环境。

7 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

8 plankton   

n.浮游生物

参考例句：

• Plankton is at the bottom of the marine food chain.浮游生物处于海洋食物链的最底层。
• The plankton in the sea feeds many kinds of animals. 海的浮游生物成为很多种动物的食物。

9 predator   

n.捕食其它动物的动物；捕食者

参考例句：

• The final part of this chapter was devoted to a brief summary of predator species.本章最后部分简要总结了食肉动物。
• Komodo dragon is the largest living lizard and a fearsome predator.科摩多龙是目前存在的最大蜥蜴，它是一种令人恐惧的捕食性动物。

10 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》

11 ridge   

n.山脊；鼻梁；分水岭

参考例句：

• We clambered up the hillside to the ridge above.我们沿着山坡费力地爬上了山脊。
• The infantry were advancing to attack the ridge.步兵部队正在向前挺进攻打山脊。

12 epidemic   

n.流行病；盛行；adj.流行性的，流传极广的

参考例句：

• That kind of epidemic disease has long been stamped out.那种传染病早已绝迹。
• The authorities tried to localise the epidemic.当局试图把流行病限制在局部范围。