纪录片《我们的地球》 第131期 辽阔平原(06)

Snow geese. They winter along the Gulf¹ of Mexico,

雪雁。它们在墨西哥湾越冬，

and in spring they fly the entire length of North America to reach the Arctic tundra².

等到春天便一路飞过北美洲，来到这里的北极苔原

Five million birds make this journey every year.

每年有五百万只雪雁都是这样迁徙。

Their marathon migration³ is almost 3,000 miles long and has taken them three months.

这场马拉松式的迁徙长达三千英里，耗时多达三个多月。

Exhausted⁴ and starving, they touch down inside the Arctic Circle,

虽然早己精疲力竭，饥肠辘辘，但它们终于返回了北极圈，

back at their traditional breeding grounds at last.

返回了它们阔别已久的繁殖地。

Snow geese pair for life.

雪雁一生只忠于一个配偶。

As soon as couples arrive, they must stake a claim to a nesting patch.

一对雪雁来了之后就必须取得自己的筑巢地。

Ideal sites are in short supply and quarrelsome neighbours are all around.

理想的地方寥寥无几，邻里纠纷时常发生。

Disputes can be vicious.

有时闹得杀气腾腾。

1 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

2 tundra   

n.苔原，冻土地带

参考例句：

• The arctic tundra is at the top of the world around the North Pole.北极冻原是指北极点周边的地区，是世界最高的地方。
• There is a large amount of methane gas under the Siberian tundra.西伯利亚的冻土地带之下有大量的甲烷气体。

3 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。

4 exhausted   

adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的

参考例句：

• It was a long haul home and we arrived exhausted.搬运回家的这段路程特别长，到家时我们已筋疲力尽。
• Jenny was exhausted by the hustle of city life.珍妮被城市生活的忙乱弄得筋疲力尽。