VOA标准英语2011--Indigestion Can Protect Africa's Lions

Indigestion Can Protect Africa's Lions

African lions are increasingly hunting domestic cattle. And many of them are being killed as humans retaliate¹. Now, in Botswana, a pilot project is underway to save the lion by making cattle taste bad.
The king of beasts is facing possible extinction². Its once proud numbers are dwindling³ fast.
Cascade⁴ of consequences
“Forty years ago, there were 450,000 across their former range on the African continent. Today that range has shrunk and there are less than 23,000 lions in the wild,” said Eli Weiss, founder⁵ of the Wildize Foundation. She said lions have fallen victim to a “cascade of consequences.”
“Climate change, which is changing migration⁶ routes of prey⁷ species. Water, as we all know. And then population increases, which is putting pressure on those habitats where those lions live, which [are] game-rich areas, which can also be agriculturally rich areas. So people are moving into areas formerly⁸ occupied by wildlife and lions and they’re bringing in their cattle. And as their cattle eat the grasses that the prey species would typically eat, it’s forcing the lions to find food elsewhere,” she said.
Kill and be killed
Lions are very territorial⁹. So they stay within a specific area even if their typical prey has literally¹⁰ left for greener pastures.
“So the closest thing around is cattle. And that’s creating a huge economic loss to cattle ranchers and pastoralists. So in retaliation¹¹, when a lion kills a cow, that lion is then killed,” Weiss said.
The Wildize Foundation hopes to change the kill-and-be-killed cycle. That’s where Conditioned Taste Aversion, or CTA, comes in. Weiss says it’s aimed at the “hardwired” response in mammals to avoid eating what’s toxic¹².
Weiss said, “We’ve all had an experience where we’ve eaten something bad or drunk something bad and we got sick from it and, in future, can never eat it again.”
Conditioned Taste Aversion
So, for a lion, how do you make a seemingly delicious looking cow into something that turns its stomach?
“We do this by treating bait of the target prey species -- in this case it’s going to be a cow -- and get the lion to eat that. First we use untreated bait. Then we use a treated bait with a general pharmaceutical¹³ chemical called thiabendazole. It’s not a dangerous chemical. It doesn’t make them foaming-at-the-mouth sick. It just gives them an upset stomach,” she said.
Once the lion has had a good case of indigestion, untreated bait is then left. When the lion smells the cattle bait, the animal associates it with feeling sick and doesn’t eat it. Wildize then leaves bait of a prey species that the lion is free to eat.
“We want that lion to get the full olfactory¹⁴ experience of taste, smell and chewing through the hide and the meat to get that full effect of being averted,” said Weiss.
Wildize is using captive animals on a reserve in Botswana to test how well Conditioned Taste Aversion works. Even though the project may last several years, they’ll know by mid¹⁵ October if it’s a success. If it is, Kenya has agreed to use CTA to help protect its threatened lion population.
The method was first used successfully in the 1950s and 60s by CTA expert Dr. Lowell Nicolaus and Denver Zoo research associate Bill Given. Over the years, it’s been to save wolves, coyotes, raccoons, cougars¹⁶, foxes and badgers¹⁷ in the U.S. and Mexico.

1 retaliate   

v.报复，反击

参考例句：

• He sought every opportunity to retaliate against his enemy.他找机会向他的敌人反击。
• It is strictly forbidden to retaliate against the quality inspectors.严禁对质量检验人员进行打击报复。

2 extinction   

n.熄灭，消亡，消灭，灭绝，绝种

参考例句：

• The plant is now in danger of extinction.这种植物现在有绝种的危险。
• The island's way of life is doomed to extinction.这个岛上的生活方式注定要消失。

3 dwindling   

adj.逐渐减少的v.逐渐变少或变小( dwindle的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The number of wild animals on the earth is dwindling. 地球上野生动物的数量正日渐减少。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He is struggling to come to terms with his dwindling authority. 他正努力适应自己权力被削弱这一局面。 来自辞典例句

4 cascade   

n.小瀑布，喷流；层叠；vi.成瀑布落下

参考例句：

• She watched the magnificent waterfall cascade down the mountainside.她看着壮观的瀑布从山坡上倾泻而下。
• Her hair fell over her shoulders in a cascade of curls.她的卷发像瀑布一样垂在肩上。

5 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

6 migration   

n.迁移，移居，（鸟类等的）迁徙

参考例句：

• Swallows begin their migration south in autumn.燕子在秋季开始向南方迁移。
• He described the vernal migration of birds in detail.他详细地描述了鸟的春季移居。

7 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。

8 formerly   

adv.从前，以前

参考例句：

• We now enjoy these comforts of which formerly we had only heard.我们现在享受到了过去只是听说过的那些舒适条件。
• This boat was formerly used on the rivers of China.这船从前航行在中国内河里。

9 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。

10 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

11 retaliation   

n.报复，反击

参考例句：

• retaliation against UN workers 对联合国工作人员的报复
• He never said a single word in retaliation. 他从未说过一句反击的话。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 toxic   

adj.有毒的，因中毒引起的

参考例句：

• The factory had accidentally released a quantity of toxic waste into the sea.这家工厂意外泄漏大量有毒废物到海中。
• There is a risk that toxic chemicals might be blasted into the atmosphere.爆炸后有毒化学物质可能会进入大气层。

13 pharmaceutical   

adj.药学的，药物的；药用的，药剂师的

参考例句：

• She has donated money to establish a pharmaceutical laboratory.她捐款成立了一个药剂实验室。
• We are engaged in a legal tussle with a large pharmaceutical company.我们正同一家大制药公司闹法律纠纷。

14 olfactory   

adj.嗅觉的

参考例句：

• He is to develop a sensor to substitute for the olfactory abilities of dogs.克罗克将研制一种传感器用以代替狗的嗅觉功能。
• Based on these findings, Keller suspects that each person has an olfactory blind spot.根据这些发现，凯勒推断，每个人都有一个嗅觉盲区。

15 mid   

adj.中央的，中间的

参考例句：

• Our mid-term exam is pending.我们就要期中考试了。
• He switched over to teaching in mid-career.他在而立之年转入教学工作。

16 cougars   

n.美洲狮( cougar的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Cougars can kill animals eight times their size. 美洲狮可以杀死八倍于自身体积的动物。 来自互联网

17 badgers   

n.獾( badger的名词复数 )；獾皮；（大写）獾州人（美国威斯康星州人的别称）；毛鼻袋熊

参考例句：

• Badgers had undermined the foundations of the church. 獾在这座教堂的地基处打了洞。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• And rams ' skins dyed red, and badgers' skins, and shittim wood. 5染红的公羊皮，海狗皮，皂荚木。 来自互联网