VOA慢速英语2014 猎豹跑得快,但能否赖以生存呢?

 

Is Cheetah¹ Fast Enough to Survive? 猎豹跑得快,但能否赖以生存呢?

In 1900, about 100,000 cheetahs² lived in the world. Today there are only 10,000 of the animals.

Just about everyone knows that cheetahs are fast. Some studies have measured their speed at about 95 kilometers an hour over distances of about 366 meters. So it seems reasonable that all that sprinting³ would rob the wild cheetah of some of its energy. It seems that all that exercise would make the big, spotted⁴ cat a likely target of attack. But until recently no one ever really measured how much energy a cheetah uses up. 

John Wilson took part in the cheetah research. He says cheetahs can easily deal with those energy outbursts.

“Like any cat, basically, they rest for most of the day. And they have only brief periods of activity. So, for example, a cheetah would only hunt in the morning for a few hours – in the afternoon for a few hours. We assume they expend⁵ a lot of energy during these chases. They offset⁶ those high-energy expenditures⁷ by resting for most of the day. So these blistering⁸ speeds that they run for short periods do not really have an effect on the cheetahs over the entire day.”

But if the cheetahs are not out of breath or weak after the chase, what causes their population to decrease? Some experts say other predators⁹, like lions or hyenas¹⁰, might be stealing most of the cheetahs’ food after they make a kill.

Dr. Wilson said the new study found that is not really what happens.

“Our study has found that that's actually not really the case. Cheetahs lose about 12 percent of the food. So while they lose quite a bit of their food, cheetahs are pretty fast eaters. So, they’ve eaten a lot of that food before they use that food. The act of losing food is not that significant.”

It appears that the cheetah is vulnerable to attacks by other animals because of its physiology¹¹ -- the way its body operates. The cat simply burns a lot of calories -- the energy produced by food.

“Because these cheetahs have a fast metabolism¹² – they have huge lungs and a strong heart -- their resting metabolic¹³ rate is really high. So just the act of walking already for a cheetah is pretty expensive. And then the longer they look for food, the more energy they need to invest in finding the food.” 

And, he says, that is the problem. It takes a lot longer for cheetahs to find animals they can catch and eat. And they have to walk a lot farther to do so. Mr. Wilson says that is because they naturally avoid people. 

But human beings are increasingly occupying the areas where cheetahs traditionally look for food. Houses and fences block them from searching for animals to attack. Cheetahs use up a lot of energy to get around these barriers.

Mr. Wilson says that while this has not affected¹⁴ the number of cheetah cubs¹⁶ being born, it can affect their survival. He remembers seeing a female cheetah in a desert.

“This mom is under stress already looking for food for herself.  Then she needs to look for food for her cub¹⁵.  And if she needs to move further and further, the mother is under more strain and then that puts even more strain on the cub.

He says people are also killing¹⁷ the animals that cheetahs hunt. People also capture and sell cheetahs in the Middle East as pets. However, the wildlife group Born Free USA says up to 70 percent of the cheetah cubs illegally transported through East Africa die.

Earlier this year, the group called on members of the CITES treaty, Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, to increase enforcement at borders and to improve laws and rules. 

Mr. Wilson says there are no easy solutions to help cheetahs deal with human activity, but fast action is needed. He says there is a 10 percent chance that the animals could disappear forever within 100 years.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service lists cheetahs as an Endangered Species. And the International Union for Conservation of Nature describes the cats as vulnerable.

Words in this Story

spotted - adj. marked with spots, which are small areas of a surface that are different from other areas

sprinting - v. running or going very fast for a short distance

outburst - n.  a surge of activity or growth

predators - n. animals that live by killing and eating other animals; an animal that preys¹⁸ on other animals

vulnerable - adj. capable of being physically¹⁹ or emotionally wounded

 

physiology - n. a science that deals with the way things function

1 cheetah   

n.(动物)猎豹

参考例句：

• The cheetah is generally credited as the world's fastest animal.猎豹被公认是世界上跑得最快的动物。
• The distribution of the cheetah ranges from Africa to Central Asia.印度豹的足迹遍及从非洲到中亚的广大地区。

2 cheetahs   

n.（奔跑极快的）非洲猎豹( cheetah的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Unlike lions or cheetahs, leopards are secretive, solitary cats. 花豹不像狮子或印度豹，是属于较神秘而隐居的大猫。 来自互联网
• Among this lot are cheetahs, lions, leopards, rhinoceroses, spotted hyenas and elephants. 印度豹、狮子、花豹、犀牛、斑点土狼、大象等，都是此地的居民。 来自互联网

3 sprinting   

v.短距离疾跑( sprint的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Stride length and frequency are the most important elements of sprinting. 步长和步频是短跑最重要的因素。 来自互联网
• Xiaoming won the gold medal for sprinting in the school sports meeting. 小明在学校运动会上夺得了短跑金牌。 来自互联网

4 spotted   

adj.有斑点的，斑纹的，弄污了的

参考例句：

• The milkman selected the spotted cows,from among a herd of two hundred.牛奶商从一群200头牛中选出有斑点的牛。
• Sam's shop stocks short spotted socks.山姆的商店屯积了有斑点的短袜。

5 expend   

vt.花费，消费，消耗

参考例句：

• Don't expend all your time on such a useless job.不要把时间消耗在这种无用的工作上。
• They expend all their strength in trying to climb out.他们费尽全力想爬出来。

6 offset   

n.分支，补偿；v.抵消，补偿

参考例句：

• Their wage increases would be offset by higher prices.他们增加的工资会被物价上涨所抵消。
• He put up his prices to offset the increased cost of materials.他提高了售价以补偿材料成本的增加。

7 expenditures   

n.花费( expenditure的名词复数 )；使用；（尤指金钱的）支出额；（精力、时间、材料等的）耗费

参考例句：

• We have overspent.We'll have to let up our expenditures next month. 我们已经超支了，下个月一定得节约开支。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The pension includes an allowance of fifty pounds for traffic expenditures. 年金中包括50镑交通费补贴。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 blistering   

adj.酷热的；猛烈的；使起疱的；可恶的v.起水疱；起气泡；使受暴晒n.[涂料] 起泡

参考例句：

• The runners set off at a blistering pace. 赛跑运动员如脱缰野马般起跑了。
• This failure is known as preferential wetting and is responsible for blistering. 这种故障称为优先吸湿，是产生气泡的原因。 来自辞典例句

9 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》

10 hyenas   

n.鬣狗( hyena的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• These animals were the prey of hyenas. 这些动物是鬣狗的猎物。 来自辞典例句
• We detest with horror the duplicity and villainy of the murderous hyenas of Bukharinite wreckers. 我们非常憎恨布哈林那帮两面三刀、杀人破坏，干尽坏事的豺狼。 来自辞典例句

11 physiology   

n.生理学，生理机能

参考例句：

• He bought a book about physiology.他买了一本生理学方面的书。
• He was awarded the Nobel Prize for achievements in physiology.他因生理学方面的建树而被授予诺贝尔奖。

12 metabolism   

n.新陈代谢

参考例句：

• After years of dieting,Carol's metabolism was completely out of whack.经过数年的节食，卡罗尔的新陈代谢完全紊乱了。
• All living matter undergoes a process of metabolism.生物都有新陈代谢。

13 metabolic   

adj.新陈代谢的

参考例句：

• Impressive metabolic alternations have been undergone during embryogenesis.在胚胎发生期间经历了深刻的代谢变化。
• A number of intoxicants are associated with metabolic acidosis.许多毒性物质可引起代谢性酸中毒。

14 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

15 cub   

n.幼兽，年轻无经验的人

参考例句：

• The lion cub's mother was hunting for what she needs. 这只幼师的母亲正在捕猎。
• The cub licked the milk from its mother's breast. 这头幼兽吸吮着它妈妈的奶水。

16 cubs   

n.幼小的兽，不懂规矩的年轻人( cub的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a lioness guarding her cubs 守护幼崽的母狮
• Lion cubs depend on their mother to feed them. 狮子的幼仔依靠母狮喂养。 来自《简明英汉词典》

17 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

18 preys   

v.掠食( prey的第三人称单数 )；掠食；折磨；（人）靠欺诈为生

参考例句：

• His misfortune preys upon his mind. 他的不幸使她心中苦恼。 来自辞典例句
• The owl preys on mice. 猫头鹰捕食老鼠。 来自辞典例句

19 physically   

adj.物质上，体格上，身体上，按自然规律

参考例句：

• He was out of sorts physically,as well as disordered mentally.他浑身不舒服，心绪也很乱。
• Every time I think about it I feel physically sick.一想起那件事我就感到极恶心。