纪录片《我们的地球》 第142期 辽阔平原(17)

Elephants are in immediate¹ danger. They must drink almost daily.

大象的生命变得岌岌可危，因为它们几乎每天都要喝水。

Driven on by thirst, they march hundreds of miles across the parched² plains.

在干渴的驱使下，它们在干涸的平原上跋涉几百英里。

Relying on memory, the matriarchs lead their families to those special water holes that saved them in previous years.

领头的老雌象，凭着记忆带领全家大小去寻找以前救过它们的水坑。

This one still has water, but they must share what remains³ with desperately⁴ thirsty animals of all kinds.

这个还有水，可大象必须和其它照样渴得要命的动物分享所剩无几的资源。

These are tense times.

这时候正是紧张时刻。

The elephants dominate the water hole, but as night falls the balance of power will shift.

大象在这些水坑的控制权上占主导地位，但随着夜幕降临力量的对比将发生变化。

Thirsty herds⁵ continue to arrive throughout the night.

口干舌焦的动物趁着夜色纷至沓来。

It's a cooler time to travel.

夜间行路比较凉爽。

In the darkness, the tables turn.

在黑暗之中，局势发生了变化。

The elephant's night vision is little better than our own.

大象的夜视能力只比人类稍好一点。

But lions have much more sensitive eyes.

而狮子有着更加锐利的视力。

1 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。

2 parched   

adj.焦干的；极渴的；v.（使）焦干

参考例句：

• Hot winds parched the crops.热风使庄稼干透了。
• The land in this region is rather dry and parched.这片土地十分干燥。

3 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

4 desperately   

adv.极度渴望地，绝望地，孤注一掷地

参考例句：

• He was desperately seeking a way to see her again.他正拼命想办法再见她一面。
• He longed desperately to be back at home.他非常渴望回家。

5 herds   

兽群( herd的名词复数 )； 牧群； 人群； 群众

参考例句：

• Regularly at daybreak they drive their herds to the pasture. 每天天一亮他们就把牲畜赶到草场上去。
• There we saw herds of cows grazing on the pasture. 我们在那里看到一群群的牛在草地上吃草。