新奇事件簿 昆虫数量锐减威胁人类安全（在线收听）

The number of insects in the world has fallen by 45 per cent in the past 35 years. Scientists say this could be dangerous for humans. A report on insect numbers has been published in the journal ‘Science'. It says the human population has doubled since 1980 while the number of insects has nearly halved. One of the biggest reasons for this loss of insects is deforestation. Many of the places where insects live are disappearing because of new cities and land being used for farming. Another reason is global warming. Scientists say that in the UK, the number of beetles, butterflies, bees and wasps has fallen by up to 60 per cent. Many countries are worried about the disappearance of bees and butterflies.

在过去的35年里，世界上昆虫的数量减少了45%。科学家称，这会给人类带来危险。《科学》杂志发表了一则关于昆虫数量的报告。报告称，自1980年以来，人类的数量翻倍，而昆虫的数量却几乎减半。昆虫数量减少的最主要的原因是滥砍滥伐。新城建设以及土地农业化，致使许多昆虫生存的地方都消失了。另一个原因就是全球变暖。科学家称，在英国，甲壳虫、蝴蝶、蜜蜂和黄蜂的数量减少幅度达60%。许多国家都因蜜蜂和蝴蝶的消失而感到忧虑。

Scientists say the decline in insect populations will lead to many problems for humans. One of the biggest dangers is that there will be fewer insects to pollinate flowers. This means that farmers will have problems growing food. The lead author of the report, professor Rodolfo Dirzo, said falling numbers of insects could also lead to more disease in humans. He said rats and mice would have less food to eat so they will move to cities and bring diseases with them. Dr Ben Collen from London University said we needed to stop more insects from dying. He added that scientists must understand, "what species are winning and losing in the fight for survival". He said this knowledge would help us to protect the "helpful" insects.

科学家称，昆虫数量的减少会给人类带来许多问题。最大的威胁就是，给花朵授粉的昆虫会越来越少。这意味着农民种植粮食会有问题。报告的首席作者，鲁道夫教授称，昆虫数量的减少还会给人类带来更多疾病。他说，供老鼠食用的东西越来越少，老鼠就会跑到城市，并给城市带来疾病。伦敦大学的本.科伦博士称，我们需要阻止更多昆虫死亡。他还说，科学家必须要明白“在生存斗争中，哪些物种存活下来，哪些物种被淘汰了。”他说，这一知识会帮助我们保护益虫。