国家地理:佛罗里达美洲狮的回归(4)

"That was a milestone," wildlife biologist Jennifer Korn says of the sighting in the Babcock Ranch¹ Preserve.

“那是一个里程碑。”野生动物生物学家珍妮弗·柯恩提到在巴布科克牧场保护区的那次目击时说。

Unlike males, females don't travel far from their mother's home range, a major limiting factor in the animal's expansion.

母美洲狮与公美洲狮不同，它们不会远离母亲的栖地，这也是这种动物扩张领域的主要限制因素。

About a couple dozen panthers now live north of the Caloosahatchee, Kelly estimates, including a few females.

凯利估计，目前约有二十几只美洲狮在卡鲁沙哈奇河北岸生活，其中包括几只母美洲狮。

The northward² expansion is necessary for panthers to survive long term,

沃德表示，美洲狮想要长久存续，就必须向北扩张，

but it's possible only if the Florida Wildlife Corridor, a patchwork⁴ of public and private lands that runs throughout the state, is preserved, Ward³ says.

但这只有在贯穿全州公共与私人土地的佛罗里达野生动物廊道得到保护的情况下，才有可能实现。

To make that possible, more conservation funding is needed to help landowners, mainly ranchers,

因此，需要更多保育资金来帮助主要是牧场主的土地所有者，

prevent open spaces from becoming subdivisions, parking lots, and roads.

防止空地变成住宅区、停车场与道路。

Many of the cats in Florida live on public lands, including Big Cypress⁵ National Preserve, Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge,

佛罗里达州境内的许多美洲狮都生活在公有土地上，包括大柏树国家保护区、佛罗里达美洲狮国家野生动物保护区、

Fakahatchee Strand⁶ Preserve State Park, and Picayune Strand State Forest, which make up about 1,420 square miles.

法喀哈契滨水州立公园保护区，以及皮卡尤恩滨水州立森林等，总共占地约1420平方英里。

But these and nearby protected areas in South Florida cannot support a much larger population of these territorial⁷ animals, says state panther biologist Dave Onorato.

尽管如此，州政府单位美洲狮专家戴夫·奥诺拉托却表示，美洲狮是领域性动物，因此这些地区与邻近的南佛罗里达州保护区不足以支持更大的美洲狮族群。

Panthers may each need up to 200 square miles of territory in which to roam and hunt, he says.

他说，每只美洲狮可能需要大约200平方英里的领土来漫游狩猎。

At the same time, populations of white-tailed deer, one of panthers' primary food sources, have dropped in areas of Big Cypress.

同时，美洲狮的一种主要猎物--白尾鹿，在大柏树国家保护区某些地方的族群数量已经减少了。

That may be partly because of invasive Burmese pythons, which devour⁸ deer and other panther prey⁹.

部分原因可能是缅甸蟒的入侵，这种入侵物种会吃掉白尾鹿与美洲狮的其他猎物。

1 ranch   

n.大牧场，大农场

参考例句：

• He went to work on a ranch.他去一个大农场干活。
• The ranch is in the middle of a large plateau.该牧场位于一个辽阔高原的中部。

2 northward   

adv.向北；n.北方的地区

参考例句：

• He pointed his boat northward.他将船驶向北方。
• I would have a chance to head northward quickly.我就很快有机会去北方了。

3 ward   

n.守卫，监护，病房，行政区，由监护人或法院保护的人（尤指儿童）；vt.守护，躲开

参考例句：

• The hospital has a medical ward and a surgical ward.这家医院有内科病房和外科病房。
• During the evening picnic,I'll carry a torch to ward off the bugs.傍晚野餐时，我要点根火把，抵挡蚊虫。

4 patchwork   

n.混杂物；拼缝物

参考例句：

• That proposal is nothing else other than a patchwork.那个建议只是一个大杂烩而已。
• She patched new cloth to the old coat,so It'seemed mere patchwork. 她把新布初到那件旧上衣上，所以那件衣服看上去就象拼凑起来的东西。

5 cypress   

n.柏树

参考例句：

• The towering pine and cypress trees defy frost and snow.松柏参天傲霜雪。
• The pine and the cypress remain green all the year round.苍松翠柏，常绿不凋。

6 strand   

vt.使（船）搁浅，使（某人）困于（某地）

参考例句：

• She tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ears.她把一缕散发夹到了耳后。
• The climbers had been stranded by a storm.登山者被暴风雨困住了。

7 territorial   

adj.领土的，领地的

参考例句：

• The country is fighting to preserve its territorial integrity.该国在为保持领土的完整而进行斗争。
• They were not allowed to fish in our territorial waters.不允许他们在我国领海捕鱼。

8 devour   

v.吞没；贪婪地注视或谛听，贪读；使着迷

参考例句：

• Larger fish devour the smaller ones.大鱼吃小鱼。
• Beauty is but a flower which wrinkle will devour.美只不过是一朵，终会被皱纹所吞噬。

9 prey   

n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨

参考例句：

• Stronger animals prey on weaker ones.弱肉强食。
• The lion was hunting for its prey.狮子在寻找猎物。