国家地理-2008-08-21 鸵鸟蛋·豺狼·秃鹰

Here we are on the Serengeti Plain in Africa, where an ostrich¹ has abandoned an egg and a hungry jackal means to make a meal out of it. What we’ve got here is a highly motivated animal trying and failing to figure out this culinary conundrum². It’s just a little too big, a little too slippery, a little too everything for the jackal. There’s three pounds of food in there, and it’s gonna stay in there, right? Not if this Egyptian vulture has anything to do with it.

 These birds are always on the lookout³ for edible⁴ orbs⁵ in jackal-proof packaging. Ostrich eggs are an important source of protein, and this vulture has a strategy to get at its contents. The Egyptian vulture is one of the few birds in the world that figure out how to use a stone as a tool. Some scientists feel that this isn’t intelligence so much as highly evolved instinct. Whatever it is, it works. The vulture finally cracks a hole big enough for its beak⁶. The vulture is one step closer to mealtime than the jackal, but it’s not home free yet. You see, here on the Serengeti, the sound of a cracked eggshell is like a newsflash. The word is out, and other diners are ready to line up.

 A tawny⁷ eagle shows up to share in the bounty⁸. But an even bigger customer is about to appear. Check out this lappet-faced vulture. Would you wanna mess with this bird? At nearly four feet tall, it’s the largest, most aggressive vulture on the Serengeti. When it comes to a food find like this, pecking order is strictly⁹ observed. The biggest bird gets the booty.

1 ostrich   

n.鸵鸟

参考例句：

• Ostrich is the fastest animal on two legs.驼鸟是双腿跑得最快的动物。
• The ostrich indeed inhabits continents.鸵鸟确实是生活在大陆上的。

2 conundrum   

n.谜语；难题

参考例句：

• Let me give you some history about a conundrum.让我给你们一些关于谜题的历史。
• Scientists had focused on two explanations to solve this conundrum.科学家已锁定两种解释来解开这个难题。

3 lookout   

n.注意，前途，瞭望台

参考例句：

• You can see everything around from the lookout.从了望台上你可以看清周围的一切。
• It's a bad lookout for the company if interest rates don't come down.如果利率降不下来，公司的前景可就不妙了。

4 edible   

n.食品，食物；adj.可食用的

参考例句：

• Edible wild herbs kept us from dying of starvation.我们靠着野菜才没被饿死。
• This kind of mushroom is edible,but that kind is not.这种蘑菇吃得，那种吃不得。

5 orbs   

abbr.off-reservation boarding school 在校寄宿学校n.球，天体，圆形物( orb的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• So strange did It'seem that those dark wild orbs were ignorant of the day. 那双狂热的深色眼珠竟然没有见过天日，这似乎太奇怪了。 来自辞典例句
• HELPERKALECGOSORB01.wav-> I will channel my power into the orbs! Be ready! 我会把我的力量引导进宝珠里！准备！ 来自互联网

6 beak   

n.鸟嘴，茶壶嘴，钩形鼻

参考例句：

• The bird had a worm in its beak.鸟儿嘴里叼着一条虫。
• This bird employs its beak as a weapon.这种鸟用嘴作武器。

7 tawny   

adj.茶色的，黄褐色的；n.黄褐色

参考例句：

• Her black hair springs in fine strands across her tawny,ruddy cheek.她的一头乌发分披在健康红润的脸颊旁。
• None of them noticed a large,tawny owl flutter past the window.他们谁也没注意到一只大的、褐色的猫头鹰飞过了窗户。

8 bounty   

n.慷慨的赠予物，奖金；慷慨，大方；施与

参考例句：

• He is famous for his bounty to the poor.他因对穷人慷慨相助而出名。
• We received a bounty from the government.我们收到政府给予的一笔补助金。

9 strictly   

adv.严厉地，严格地；严密地

参考例句：

• His doctor is dieting him strictly.他的医生严格规定他的饮食。
• The guests were seated strictly in order of precedence.客人严格按照地位高低就座。