【一起听英语】研究稀有鸟类

有一个名词是专门用来指代负责研究稀有鸟类的人.......

BIRDS SINGING

Rob: Hello and welcome to 6 Minute English with me, Rob, and a very beautiful

sound…

Jen: Ahhh, the sound of birdsong. Hello, I’m Jennifer and that’s what we’re talking

about today – birdsong.

Rob: In Britain, this is the sound of summer – lots of different species¹ – or types – of

birds tweeting.

Jen: Tweeting? You mean they are using Twitter – the social media site?!

Rob: Of course not! Tweeting is a way of describing the sounds birds make. We

sometimes say they chirp² or trill too – making short, high-pitched sounds.

Jen: Yes, I knew that really. But a BBC radio station in the UK is playing a different

birdsong every day. They're calling it ’Tweet of the Day’ – which is a clever title.

Rob: It is and we’ll talk more about that soon. But first I need to see if you are a

twitcher – another name for a person who watches birds for a hobby. Do you

know how many species of birds there are on Britain's official bird list?

a) 396

b) 496

c) 596

Jen: Wow, there are lots but I have no idea so I will guess a) 396.

Rob: That is quite a lot, isn't it? We’ll find out if you are right at the end of the

programme. So, let’s talk more about tweeting – of the bird kind. Where I live,

there are many fields and trees and there is nothing more beautiful – and noisythan

the sound of the dawn chorus³.

Jen: That’s when all the birds start singing at sunrise – so first thing in the morning.

It’s not so beautiful if you are trying to sleep! But I know what you mean about 

6 Minute English © bbclearningenglish.com 2013

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birdsong – it makes you think about different places. Listen to this birdsong, for

example…

SEAGULL SOUND FX

Rob: Yes, the seagull - a scavenger⁴ which eats food scraps⁵ or other dead animals.

Jen: Yes, it reminds me of the seaside, although I wouldn’t describe that as a

beautiful sound – more of a screech⁶. Let’s hear another sound from one of our

feathered friends – or in other words, birds…

BLACKBIRD SOUND FX

Rob: That’s the call of a blackbird – something I hear in my back garden. It’s a very

distinctive⁷ song – easy to recognise and something you hear a lot of in the

British summer.

Jen: And how about this bird – what does it make you think of?

CUCKOO⁸ SOUND FX

Rob: That has to be a cuckoo – its call sounds like its name – ‘cuckoo’. It reminds me

of springtime because that’s when you first hear them. It’s incredible⁹ that there

are so many different birdsongs.

Jen: Well, that’s why BBC Radio 4’s Tweet of the Day features 265 different

birdsongs. Sound engineers have been outside and captured – or recorded - the

sounds of birds with strange names like the wood warbler, nightjar, lesser¹⁰

whitethroat and yellowhammer.

Rob: Great names. But listening to these strange-named birds may be enjoyable but

their tweeting could also be useful.

Jen: That’s right. Sound experts say some birdsongs can help you concentrate when

you're studying.

Rob: Yes, a writer called Julian Treasure says birdsong can relax the body and make

your mind more alert¹¹. He thinks the dawn chorus is like nature’s alarm clock –

‘it stimulates¹² us cognitively’ – so gets our brains working and thinking.

Jen: Another study found the natural sounds of birdsong might stop you getting tired

and sleepy after eating a meal. An experiment found playing birdsong to school

children after lunch made them more alert. We should try it here Rob.

6 Minute English © bbclearningenglish.com 2013

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Rob: We should. There’s even a smartphone app that plays birdsong and claims to

help you work better. But there’s no need for an app, all I need to do is open the

window and listen to the birds outside…

BIRDS SINGING

Rob: …but are they all of the bird species I asked you about earlier? My question was

how many species of birds are there on Britain's official bird list?

a) 396

b) 496

c) 596

Jen: I said a) 396.

Rob: Sorry Jen, you're wrong. Incredibly there are 596 types of species in Britain. 286

of them are rare – so not many of them left. OK Jen, there’s just time to remind

us of some of the vocabulary that we heard today:

Jen: We heard…

species

tweeting

chirp

twitcher

dawn chorus

scavenger

screech

feathered friends

captured

nature’s alarm clock

rare

Rob: Thanks. Time, now, for some more tweeting. Join us again soon for 6 Minute

English from BBC Learning English.

Both: Bye

 

1 species   

n.物种，种群

参考例句：

• Are we the only thinking species in the whole of creation?我们是万物中惟一有思想的物种吗？
• This species of bird now exists only in Africa.这种鸟现在只存在于非洲。

2 chirp   

v.(尤指鸟)唧唧喳喳的叫

参考例句：

• The birds chirp merrily at the top of tree.鸟儿在枝头欢快地啾啾鸣唱。
• The sparrows chirp outside the window every morning.麻雀每天清晨在窗外嘁嘁喳喳地叫。

3 chorus   

n.合唱，合唱队，齐声

参考例句：

• Never before have I heard this song sung in chorus.我从来没有听过这首歌的合唱。
• The children repeated the words after her in chorus.孩子们跟她齐声朗读单词。

4 scavenger   

n.以腐尸为食的动物，清扫工

参考例句：

• He's just fit for a job as scavenger.他只配当个清道夫。
• He is not a scavenger nor just a moving appetite as some sharks are.它不是食腐动物，也不像有些鲨鱼那样，只知道游来游去满足食欲。

5 scraps   

油渣

参考例句：

• Don't litter up the floor with scraps of paper. 不要在地板上乱扔纸屑。
• A patchwork quilt is a good way of using up scraps of material. 做杂拼花布棉被是利用零碎布料的好办法。

6 screech   

n./v.尖叫；(发出)刺耳的声音

参考例句：

• He heard a screech of brakes and then fell down. 他听到汽车刹车发出的尖锐的声音,然后就摔倒了。
• The screech of jet planes violated the peace of the afternoon. 喷射机的尖啸声侵犯了下午的平静。

7 distinctive   

adj.特别的，有特色的，与众不同的

参考例句：

• She has a very distinctive way of walking.她走路的样子与别人很不相同。
• This bird has several distinctive features.这个鸟具有几种突出的特征。

8 cuckoo   

n.布谷鸟，杜鹃

参考例句：

• The cuckoo lays its eggs in other birds'nests.杜鹃在别的鸟巢中产卵。
• The cuckoo is a harbinger of spring.布谷鸟预告春天的来临。

9 incredible   

adj.难以置信的，不可信的，极好的，大量的

参考例句：

• Some planets run at incredible speed.某些星球以难以置信的速度运行着。
• Her answer showed the most incredible stupidity.她的回答显示出不可思议的愚蠢。

10 lesser   

adj.次要的，较小的；adv.较小地，较少地

参考例句：

• Kept some of the lesser players out.不让那些次要的球员参加联赛。
• She has also been affected,but to a lesser degree.她也受到波及，但程度较轻。

11 alert   

adj.机警的，活泼的，机灵的；vt.使...警觉

参考例句：

• Drivers must be on the alert for traffic signals.驾驶员必须密切注意交通信号。
• The rabbIt'seems to be very alert all its life.兔子似乎一生都小心翼翼，十分警觉。

12 stimulates   

v.刺激( stimulate的第三人称单数 )；激励；使兴奋；起兴奋作用，起刺激作用，起促进作用

参考例句：

• Exercise stimulates the body. 运动促进身体健康。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Alcohol stimulates the action of the heart. 酒刺激心脏的活动。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》