纪录片《我们的地球》 第56期 淡水资源(13)

The planet's indisputable super river is the Amazon.

地球上的超级大河毫无疑问就是亚马逊河

It carries as much water as the next top 10 biggest rivers combined.

它的水量是世界十大江河中其余9条大河的总和

Rising in the Peruvian Andes, its main trunk flows eastwards¹ across Brazil.

它发源于秘鲁安第斯山区，其干流穿越整个巴西

On its way, the system drains a third of South America.

全部流域面积达到南美洲的1/3

Eventually, over 4,000 miles from its source, it empties into the Atlantic Ocean.

最终，在经过4000英里的流程之后，亚马逊河汇入了大西洋

The Amazon transports a billion tonnes of sediment² a year,

亚马逊河每年会带来10亿吨的泥沙

sediment clearly visible at the mixing of the waters,

泥沙使得河水交汇成为一道显眼的风景

where one massive tributary³, the Rio Negro, flows into the main river.

一条巨大的支流--内格罗河在此汇入干流

Its waters are wonderfully rich.

河水中的物种异常丰富

To date, over 3,000 species of their fish have been described, more than in the whole of the Atlantic Ocean.

据统计，被命名的鱼类已达到3000多种，这比整个大西洋的鱼类种数还要多

The Amazon is so large and rich in fish that it can support freshwater dolphins.

亚马逊河养育着丰富繁多的鱼类，为淡水海豚提供了生存条件。

These botos are huge, 2.5 metres long.

这些亚马逊江豚体型巨大，身长达2.5米

In these murky⁴ waters, they rely on sonar to navigate⁵ and hunt.

它们利用回声定位在昏暗的水中探路和捕食

They work together to drive shoals of fish into the shallows.

它们一起合作把鱼群赶到浅水区

1 eastwards   

adj.向东方（的），朝东（的）；n.向东的方向

参考例句：

• The current sets strongly eastwards.急流迅猛东去。
• The Changjiang River rolls on eastwards.长江滚滚向东流。

2 sediment   

n.沉淀，沉渣，沉积(物)

参考例句：

• The sediment settled and the water was clear.杂质沉淀后，水变清了。
• Sediment begins to choke the channel's opening.沉积物开始淤塞河道口。

3 tributary   

n.支流；纳贡国；adj.附庸的；辅助的；支流的

参考例句：

• There was a tributary road near the end of the village.村的尽头有条岔道。
• As the largest tributary of Jinsha river,Yalong river is abundant in hydropower resources.雅砻江是金沙江的最大支流，水力资源十分丰富。

4 murky   

adj.黑暗的，朦胧的；adv.阴暗地，混浊地；n.阴暗；昏暗

参考例句：

• She threw it into the river's murky depths.她把它扔进了混浊的河水深处。
• She had a decidedly murky past.她的历史背景令人捉摸不透。

5 navigate   

v.航行，飞行；导航，领航

参考例句：

• He was the first man to navigate the Atlantic by air.他是第一个飞越大西洋的人。
• Such boats can navigate on the Nile.这种船可以在尼罗河上航行。