国家地理 火烈鸟与狒狒

This is East Africa, the Great Rift¹ Valley, a land in constant upheaval².

这里是东非大裂谷，世界大陆上最大的断裂带。

The flamingos³ and baboons⁴ here at Lake Bogoria live in harmony.

在这里，火烈鸟和狒狒在博戈尼亚湖和谐相处。

They share this landscape and all it has to offer. They may not be compatible.

他们分享这里美丽的风景和一切。火烈鸟和狒狒并不想容。

But in the midst of Bogoria's bounty⁵, they can afford to be indifferent.

但是由于博戈尼亚湖的宽容，他们的表现有所不同。

In July, after a successful breeding season, nearly four million flamingos gather along the scenes of the Great Rift Valley.

七月份，经过一个成功的喂养季节，大约400万只火烈鸟聚集在大裂谷。

They carve the inlets and crowd the local residents.

他们包围了当地居民。

The baboons who live here all year round can't help buttake notice of the sheer numbers of new arrivers.

常年居住在这里的狒狒很难不注意到这些新来者。

Some baboons have never seen these many flamingos before, and some of them don't know how to behave.

有些狒狒以前从来没见过这么多火烈鸟，有些狒狒不知道该怎么办。

There are so many birds at Bogoria that they trip over each other in order to escape.

博戈尼亚湖的鸟太多了，为了逃生，他们不得不你追我赶。

Baboons aren't meat eaters, but this is something unusual for baboons.

狒狒并不是食肉动物，但是火烈鸟对他们来说是不寻常的。

Choosing between fruits and flesh is a simple matter for these meat eaters.

对他们来说，在野果和肉类之间选择是再简单不过的事。

Until now, such an orchestrated attack on flamingos has rarely been witnessed or recorded.

目前为止，还没有人目击或者记录到狒狒对火烈鸟大规模的袭击。

The graceful⁶ wading⁷ birds become a buffet⁸ of pink feathers and crimson⁹ flesh.

优雅的水生鸟变成了粉红色的羽毛和深红色的血肉的自助餐。

The young have discovered a new taste and they like it.

年幼的狒狒发现了新的美味，而且非常喜欢。

Perhaps this is nature's coldly indifferent way of restoring balance.

或许这就是自然恢复平衡的冷漠的方式。

1 rift   

n.裂口，隙缝，切口；v.裂开，割开，渗入

参考例句：

• He was anxious to mend the rift between the two men.他急于弥合这两个人之间的裂痕。
• The sun appeared through a rift in the clouds.太阳从云层间隙中冒出来。

2 upheaval   

n.胀起，(地壳)的隆起；剧变，动乱

参考例句：

• It was faced with the greatest social upheaval since World War Ⅱ.它面临第二次世界大战以来最大的社会动乱。
• The country has been thrown into an upheaval.这个国家已经陷入动乱之中。

3 flamingos   

n.红鹳，火烈鸟（羽毛粉红、长颈的大涉禽）( flamingo的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Flamingos stand in a salt lake in Larnaca, Cyprus. 塞浦路斯的拉纳卡市一个盐湖中的火烈鸟。 来自互联网
• The research started researchers studied greater flamingos and in a bird sanctuary in southern Spain. 研究人员在西班牙南部的一个鸟类保护区对大型火烈鸟进行研究。 来自互联网

4 baboons   

n.狒狒( baboon的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Baboons could break branches and leaders. 狒狒会折断侧枝和顶梢。 来自辞典例句
• And as nonprimates, they provoke fewer ethical and safety-related concerns than chimps or baboons. 而且作为非灵长类，就不会产生像用黑猩猩或狒狒那样的伦理和安全方面的顾虑。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 医学的第四次革命

5 bounty   

n.慷慨的赠予物，奖金；慷慨，大方；施与

参考例句：

• He is famous for his bounty to the poor.他因对穷人慷慨相助而出名。
• We received a bounty from the government.我们收到政府给予的一笔补助金。

6 graceful   

adj.优美的，优雅的；得体的

参考例句：

• His movements on the parallel bars were very graceful.他的双杠动作可帅了!
• The ballet dancer is so graceful.芭蕾舞演员的姿态是如此的优美。

7 wading   

（从水、泥等）蹚，走过，跋( wade的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The man tucked up his trousers for wading. 那人卷起裤子，准备涉水。
• The children were wading in the sea. 孩子们在海水中走着。

8 buffet   

n.自助餐；饮食柜台；餐台

参考例句：

• Are you having a sit-down meal or a buffet at the wedding?你想在婚礼中摆桌宴还是搞自助餐？
• Could you tell me what specialties you have for the buffet?你能告诉我你们的自助餐有什么特色菜吗？

9 crimson   

n./adj.深(绯)红色(的)；vi.脸变绯红色

参考例句：

• She went crimson with embarrassment.她羞得满脸通红。
• Maple leaves have turned crimson.枫叶已经红了。