英语听力精选进阶版 14422（在线收听）

BBC Learning English

Video Words in the News

26 February 2014

Sanctuary in Indonesia

Transcript:

A gentle giant in the waters off Indonesia.

Manta rays now have government protection from the threat of fishing within the archipelago's vast ocean.

Fishermen can make up to $500 for each ray caught. But studies suggest a single animal could generate up to $1 million in tourist revenue.

The government's decision has been welcomed by conservationists. Manta rays are listed as vulnerable by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature.

Vocabulary:

archipelago a group of islands

generate make, produce

revenue income

conservationists people who want to preserve nature and wildlife

vulnerable in danger, at risk of being harmed

Watch the video online: Sanctuary in Indonesia http://bbc.in/1dsTGoR

Exercise:

Use one of the words or phrases below to complete each of these sentences from news reports.

Note that you may have to change the form of a word to complete the sentence correctly.

archipelago / generate / revenue / conservationists / vulnerable

1. Profits at Sina Corp, owner of China's largest Twitter-like site Weibo, surged in the fourth quarter, boosted by a jump in advertising __________.

2. The __________ of hundreds of islands sits at least 1,000 km (600 miles) from the mainland, and is closer to the coast of Burma (Myanmar).

3. Discovering a new species can be the defining moment of a biologist's career, but for some it can also mean exposing rare and __________ animals to the dark world of the wildlife pet trade, with catastrophic results.

4. In Ethiopia, there is now a food 'safety net' scheme assisting some eight million people vulnerable to chronic food shortages. They are often supplied for food in return for work, and the idea is that many can also get access to micro-credit and to ways of helping them __________ their own income.

5. One of the iconic species for __________, the giant panda, remains listed as 'endangered', despite recent efforts in China to release captive-bred pandas into the wild.

Answers:

1. Profits at Sina Corp, owner of China's largest Twitter-like site Weibo, surged in the fourth quarter, boosted by a jump in advertising revenue. Source: Sina Weibo: Profits at 'China's Twitter' surge

2. The archipelago of hundreds of islands sits at least 1,000 km (600 miles) from the mainland, and is closer to the coast of Burma (Myanmar). Source: Tourist boat capsizes in Andaman Sea, 'killing 21'

3. Discovering a new species can be the defining moment of a biologist's career, but for some it can also mean exposing rare and vulnerable animals to the dark world of the wildlife pet trade, with catastrophic results. Source: Should the location of newly discovered species be hidden?

4. In Ethiopia, there is now a food 'safety net' scheme assisting some eight million people vulnerable to chronic food shortages. They are often supplied for food in return for work, and the idea is that many can also get access to micro-credit and to ways of helping them generate their own income.

Source: Horn of Africa tested by severe drought

5. One of the iconic species for conservationists, the giant panda, remains listed as 'endangered', despite recent efforts in China to release captive-bred pandas into the wild. Source: Concern grows for smallest bear