Alligators Success Story

51 美国鳄鱼的成功生存报道

DATE=5-30-01
TITLE=EXPLORATIONS #1954 - Alligators² Success Story
BYLINE=Paul Thompson

VOICE ONE:
This is Steve Ember.
VOICE TWO:
And this is Shirley Griffith with the VOA Special English program, EXPLORATIONS.  Not too long ago, the American (1) alligator¹ was in danger of (2) disappearing from the Earth. Today we tell the success story of this animal.
(((THEME)))
VOICE ONE:
 When Spanish explorers reached what would become the southern State of Florida, they found a long, （3）fierce green animal.  It had a wide head and a large mouth that opened to show up to eighty teeth.  The (4) Spanish explorers called this dangerous creature "El lagarto."  The words mean, "the lizard³."  In time the Spanish words would change to the modern English word, "alligator."  
For many years, the huge green animals were hunted and their (5) territory destroyed.  Their tough, beautiful skin was made into shoes, belts and other (6) leather products.  Their natural territory was used to build roads, streets, homes and cities.  For years the American alligators were disappearing faster than they could reproduce⁴.  Scientists knew the animal was in danger of disappearing from the Earth.  
In Nineteen-Sixty-Seven, Congress⁵ approved a law that would protect the American alligator.  The United States Fish and (7) Wildlife Service announced rules for saving⁶ the animals.
VOICE TWO:
To better understand the situation, come with us for a few minutes.  We will take you to a large hole filled with water that is the home of an American alligator.   
The water hole is in the extreme southern part of the state of (8) Florida.  It is in a land area protected by the federal⁷ government  -- the (9) Everglades National Park.
((MUSIC BRIDGE)))
VOICE ONE:
A large green animal slowly comes to the surface of the water.  At first, only its eyes and front of its long nose can be seen above the water.  It moves very slowly in the water without effort.  Its long tail moves slowly from side to side.  From its nose to the end of its tail it is almost three (10) meters long.  
 The animal is hungry.  But it is in no hurry.  It caught and killed a small deer several days before.  It attacked the deer that had come to the water to drink. Then it hid the dead deer under water.  Now the alligator wants to eat.
 It is the hot dry summer season now.  There has been little rain for several weeks.  The huge (11) reptile⁸ dug this large hole that is filled with water.
VOICE TWO:
Digging the hole has taken the alligator several years.  Each year the hole became bigger and deeper.  Digging was slow hard work.  As the animal dug with its short legs, it pushed away the plants it found.  Some of the plants grew around the outside of the hole.  Seeds from trees blew into the area and grew where the alligator had pushed dirt and mud out of the hole.  Now, the huge water filled hole was (12) surrounded by many different kinds of plants and trees.
Millions of liters⁹ of water are just below the surface of the ground, so the large hole is always filled with fresh, clear water.  In the dry season, other animals come here for the needed liquid.  Other animals and birds are able to survive the dry season because of the water hole.  And, the other animals became a fresh supply of food for the dark green alligator, which did not have to leave home to hunt.
VOICE ONE:
This alligator is a large (13) female¹⁰.  Several weeks before, she had built a nest above the water.  She had laid almost forty eggs.  Each egg was just a little larger than that of a chicken. 
She had covered the nest with wet plants and mud. She had been carefully guarding the nest since she placed the eggs there.  The sun and plants had kept the (14) nest and the eggs warm. 
Early this morning she heard the sound young alligators make when they have left the egg.  Because the eggs were so well protected by the nest, the young alligators cannot climb out. 
VOICE TWO:
The mother alligator opens the nest area to permit the small reptiles¹² to enter the water.  They weigh only about sixty grams each.  They are about twenty centimeters long.  As the young leave the nest, birds come to the area.  Within an hour, birds eat twelve of them.  
The mother alligator tries to protect her young.  She will protect them for almost three years.  But even an alligator cannot protect all of the young that leave the nest.  Until they grow large enough, the young alligators are in danger of being eaten by birds and other animals. 
Yet in time, each of the young alligators that survive will become a fierce looking animal up to four meters long.  Each one will be a ruler of its own small area.  Each one will be a dangerous (15) hunter.
(((MUSIC BRIDGE)))
VOICE ONE
The story we just told could have taken place ten thousand years ago.  Or it could be taking place today.  The alligator is a very ancient and successful creature.  It has not changed much since the time huge reptiles called (16) dinosaurs¹³ ruled the Earth.
The Everglades National Park is home to many thousands of these huge green animals.  When the alligators began to disappear, scientists started to understand the effect of the animals on the environment of the Everglades area.  
Without the alligators to help provide water, other animals could not survive the dry season.  Without the water holes dug by the alligators, fewer plants and trees would grow in the area.  Scientists discovered that one kind of turtle places its eggs near the alligator's nest.  The （17）turtle depends on the alligator to survive.  The turtle is only one of several animals that need the water provided¹⁴ by the alligator.
VOICE TWO:
The American alligator is a real success story.  It is a good example of how federal and state laws helped an animal increase in numbers.
 In Nineteen-Sixty-Seven, the Federal Government declared the alligator to be endangered.  Laws were passed that said it could no longer be hunted.  The government also approved laws to make it illegal to buy and sell products made from alligator skin.  
Government scientists began projects in Louisiana, Florida, Georgia Texas and South Carolina.  These are states where the alligator is found in the wild.  
The projects called for some alligators to be raised on farms.  More than 150 alligator farms were built in the states of Florida, Louisiana, and Texas.  All of these farms were linked to a central program that supervised¹⁵ the project to increase the number of alligators.  
VOICE ONE
Scientists started the farms by collecting eggs and young alligators from their natural area.  These alligators were cared for and protected.  
The young alligators were returned to natural areas when they became large enough to survive on their own.  About seventeen percent of the alligators raised on farms were returned to the wild.  Others were kept on the farms to reproduce.
In a little more than ten years, the number of the animals surviving increased.  (18) Government records now show that more than three- hundred- fifty- thousand alligators live on farms.  Many of these farms no longer belong to the government.  They are businesses that use the alligator as a crop.  
Leather products from the alligator can once again be found for sale. Some eating-places offer alligator meat. However the farms and alligator products still are carefully controlled.
VOICE TWO:
The federal government also learned¹⁶ that helping¹⁷ the alligator recover called for educating the public about what can be a very dangerous animal.  In the past, alligators were killed if they came anywhere near a population center.  Now, special workers remove them if possible and take them back to wild areas.
The public has been taught about how to live with alligators.  For example, Alabama now has about thirty-five thousand alligators living in natural areas.  State records show there have been only five recorded alligator attacks on people.  While these attacks were serious, no one was killed.
VOICE ONE:
In Nineteen-Eighty-Seven, the federal government declared the American alligator to be fully¹¹ recovered.  It was no longer considered to be an （19）endangered animal.  Yet many protection (20) measures remain in place to make sure the population of alligators does not decrease.
Today, visitors to the southern state of Florida can see many alligators at the Everglades National Park.  Park workers show visitors alligator water holes, young alligators, and huge adults.  Alligators can also be seen in great numbers in many other areas where they live in the wild.
VOICE TWO: 
The alligator is a success story today because of the work of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.  Yet it is only one animal the agency¹⁸ is working to help survive.  Five- hundred- eleven animals are on the list of those that need help if they are to survive into the future. 
(((THEME)))
VOICE ONE:
This program was written and produced by Paul Thompson.  Our studio engineer was Keith Holmes.  This is Steve Ember.
VOICE TWO:
And this is Shirley Griffith.  Join us again next week for another EXPLORATIONS program in Special English on the Voice of America.

注释：
(1) alligator[ 5Ali^eitE ]n.产于美洲的鳄鱼
(2) disappear[ 7disE5piE ]vi.消失, 不见
(3) fierce[ fiEs ]adj.凶猛的, 猛烈的
(4) Spanish[ 5spAniF ]adj.西班牙的, 西班牙人的n.西班牙人, 西班牙语
(5) territory[ 5teritEri ]n.领土, 版图, 地域
(6) leather[ 5leTE ]n.皮革, 皮革制品
(7) wildlife[5waIldlaIf]n.野生动植物
(8) Florida[ 5flCridE ]n.佛罗里达(美国州名)
(9) everglade[ 5evE^leid ]n.湿地, 沼泽地
(10) meter[ 5mi:tE ]n.米, 公尺
(11) reptile[ 5reptail ]n.爬虫动物, 卑鄙的人adj.爬行的, 爬虫类的
(12) surround[ sE5raund ]v.包围, 环境v.围绕
(13) female[ 5fi:meil ]n.女性, 女人
(14) nest[ nest ]n.巢, 窝
(15) hunter[ 5hQntE ]n.猎人
(16) dinosaur[ 5dainEsC: ]n.恐龙
(17) turtle[ 5tE:tl ]n.海龟
(18) government[ 5^QvEnmEnt ]n.政府
(19) endangered[In`deIndVEd]adj.（生命等）有危险的,有灭绝危险的
(20) measure[ 5meVE ]n.尺寸, 量度器, 量度标准v.测量, 测度

1 alligator   

n.短吻鳄(一种鳄鱼)

参考例句：

• She wandered off to play with her toy alligator.她开始玩鳄鱼玩具。
• Alligator skin is five times more costlier than leather.鳄鱼皮比通常的皮革要贵5倍。

2 alligators   

n.短吻鳄( alligator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Two alligators rest their snouts on the water's surface. 两只鳄鱼的大嘴栖息在水面上。 来自辞典例句
• In the movement of logs by water the lumber industry was greatly helped by alligators. 木材工业过去在水上运输木料时所十分倚重的就是鳄鱼。 来自辞典例句

3 lizard   

n.蜥蜴，壁虎

参考例句：

• A chameleon is a kind of lizard.变色龙是一种蜥蜴。
• The lizard darted out its tongue at the insect.蜥蜴伸出舌头去吃小昆虫。

4 reproduce   

v.生育，繁殖，复制，重做

参考例句：

• The machine can reproduce a key in two minutes.这机器能在两分钟内复制一把钥匙。
• The picture will reproduce well.这照片会印得很清楚。

5 Congress   

n.(代表)大会；(C-:美国等国的)国会，议会

参考例句：

• There were some days to wait before the Congress.大会的召开还有几天时间。
• After 18 years in Congress,he intented to return to private life.在国会供职18年后，他打算告老还乡。

6 saving   

n.节省，节约；[pl.]储蓄金，存款

参考例句：

• Energy saving is term strategic policy of our country.节约能源是我国长期的战略国策。
• Old-fashioned housewives were usually very saving.旧时的家庭主妇通常都很节俭。

7 federal   

adj.联盟的；联邦的；(美国)联邦政府的

参考例句：

• Switzerland is a federal republic.瑞士是一个联邦共和国。
• The schools are screaming for federal aid.那些学校强烈要求联邦政府的援助。

8 reptile   

n.爬行动物；两栖动物

参考例句：

• The frog is not a true reptile.青蛙并非真正的爬行动物。
• So you should not be surprised to see someone keep a reptile as a pet.所以，你不必惊奇有人养了一只爬行动物作为宠物。

9 liters   

n.升( liter的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• In the metric system, measurements are made in metres and liters. 在公制中，用米和升作计量单位。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• This can holds five liters of water. 这个容器可装五升水。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 female   

adj.雌的，女(性)的；n.雌性的动物，女子

参考例句：

• We only employ female workers.我们只雇用女工。
• The animal in the picture was a female elephant.照片上的动物是头母象。

11 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

12 reptiles   

n.爬行动物，爬虫( reptile的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Snakes and crocodiles are both reptiles. 蛇和鳄鱼都是爬行动物。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Birds, reptiles and insects come from eggs. 鸟类、爬虫及昆虫是卵生的。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

13 dinosaurs   

n.恐龙( dinosaur的名词复数 )；守旧落伍的人，过时落后的东西

参考例句：

• The brontosaurus was one of the largest of all dinosaurs. 雷龙是所有恐龙中最大的一种。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Dinosaurs have been extinct for millions of years. 恐龙绝种已有几百万年了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 provided   

conj.假如，若是；adj.预备好的，由...供给的

参考例句：

• Provided it's fine we will have a pleasant holiday.如果天气良好，我们的假日将过得非常愉快。
• I will come provided that it's not raining tomorrow.如果明天不下雨，我就来。

15 supervised   

v.监督，管理( supervise的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The architect supervised the building of the house. 建筑工程师监督房子的施工。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He supervised and trained more than 400 volunteers. 他指导和培训了400多名志愿者。 来自辞典例句

16 learned   

adj.有学问的，博学的；learn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He went into a rage when he learned about it.他听到这事后勃然大怒。
• In this little village,he passed for a learned man.在这个小村子里，他被视为有学问的人。

17 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

18 agency   

n.经办；代理；代理处

参考例句：

• This disease is spread through the agency of insects.这种疾病是通过昆虫媒介传播的。
• He spoke in the person of Xinhua News Agency.他代表新华社讲话。