野生动物会议保护长颈鹿和其他濒危物种的法案

Wildlife Conference Acts to Protect Giraffes, Other Endangered Species

An international wildlife conference has approved resolutions aimed at protecting endangered animal and plant species. It also heard about the illegal international trade that threatens their survival.

Delegates have been attending the conference this week in Geneva, Switzerland. They represent countries that signed an international agreement on trade in endangered species. It is called CITES, short for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna¹ and Flora².

The United Nations reports that about 1 million animal and plant species are threatened and could disappear forever.

The conference approved resolutions aimed at protecting several species of shark and other animals, including the giraffe. The conference changed the trade rules for many wildlife species threatened by overfishing, overharvesting and overhunting. It also expanded the ability to fight illegal trade.

Ivonne Higuero is CITES’ Secretary-General. She told reporters that illegal traders are a serious problem. She praised the conference’s delegates.

“For example, you adopted decisions on strengthening enforcement efforts for tortoises and fresh water turtles. You will also support efforts to tackle illegal trade in the sub-regions of West and Central Africa. This illegal trade affects elephant ivory and species such as pangolins, parrots and rosewood.”

Higuero also praised the conference for establishing the CITES Big Cat Task Force. The task force, she said, has powers to improve enforcement, fight illegal trade and work with others on protecting tigers, lions, cheetahs³, jaguars⁴ and leopards⁵.

The illegal trade in wildlife is estimated to be worth up to $20 billion a year.

Added protection for giraffes

The move to protect giraffes brought praise from wildlife activists⁶ and criticism from some African countries.

Giraffes are only found in Africa. People often see these animals at zoos, and “think they are abundant,” notes Susan Lieberman of the Wildlife Conservation Society. “And in Southern Africa, they may be doing OK, but giraffes are critically endangered.”

Lieberman said that giraffes were mostly at risk in parts of West, Central and East Africa.

A leading African conservationist said the new protections could help stop giraffe population loss, as the move would help to document the number of giraffes.

“The giraffe has experienced over 40% loss in the last 30 years, noted⁷ Philip Muruthi of the African Wildlife Foundation. “If that…continues, it means that we are headed toward extinction⁸.”

Not all African countries supported the move, however.

Maurus Msuha is director of wildlife at the Tanzanian Ministry⁹ of Natural Resources and Tourism. He said “Tanzania has a stable and increasing population of giraffes.”

CITES says the population of wild giraffes is actually much smaller than that of wild African elephants.

“We’re talking about a few tens of thousands of giraffes and we’re talking about a few hundreds of thousands of African elephants,” said Tom De Meulenaar, chief of scientific services at CITES.

“With fewer giraffes than elephants in Africa, it was a no-brainer to simply regulate giraffe exports,” said Tanya Sanerib. She is international legal director at the Center for Biological Diversity.

The United States is the world’s biggest buyer of giraffe products, conservationists said.

Sanerib said it was important for the U.S. government to act on its own. “It’s still urgent for the Trump¹⁰ administration to protect these…animals under the U.S. Endangered Species Act,” she said in a statement.

I’m Dorothy Gundy.

Words in This Story

species – n. a group of animals or plants that are similar and can produce young animals or plants

adopt – v. to approve or accept; to take by choice

abundant – adj. plentiful¹¹

conservationist – n. a person who acts for the protection of wildlife and the environment

extinction – n. the state or situation that results when something (such as a plant or animal species) has died out completely

stable – adj. secure; strong or fixed¹²

no-brainer – n. a simple decision that does not require a lot of thinking

1 fauna   

n.(一个地区或时代的)所有动物，动物区系

参考例句：

• This National Park is an area with unique fauna and flora.该国家公园区域内具有独特的动物种群和植物种群。
• Fauna is a biological notion means all the animal life in a particular region or period. 动物群是一个生物学的概念，指的是一个特定时期或者地区的所有动物。

2 flora   

n.(某一地区的)植物群

参考例句：

• The subtropical island has a remarkably rich native flora.这个亚热带岛屿有相当丰富的乡土植物种类。
• All flora need water and light.一切草木都需要水和阳光。

3 cheetahs   

n.（奔跑极快的）非洲猎豹( cheetah的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Unlike lions or cheetahs, leopards are secretive, solitary cats. 花豹不像狮子或印度豹，是属于较神秘而隐居的大猫。 来自互联网
• Among this lot are cheetahs, lions, leopards, rhinoceroses, spotted hyenas and elephants. 印度豹、狮子、花豹、犀牛、斑点土狼、大象等，都是此地的居民。 来自互联网

4 jaguars   

n.（中、南美洲的）美洲虎( jaguar的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Jaguars are largely nocturnal creatures. 美洲虎基本上是夜行动物。 来自辞典例句
• Jaguars (Panthera onca) once ranged from southern South America to theUnited States. 美洲虎曾经分布在北美洲南部和美洲南部。 来自互联网

5 leopards   

n.豹( leopard的名词复数 )；本性难移

参考例句：

• Lions, tigers and leopards are all cats. 狮、虎和豹都是猫科动物。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• For example, airlines never ship leopards and canaries on the same flight. 例如，飞机上从来不会同时运送豹和金丝雀。 来自英语晨读30分（初三）

6 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

8 extinction   

n.熄灭，消亡，消灭，灭绝，绝种

参考例句：

• The plant is now in danger of extinction.这种植物现在有绝种的危险。
• The island's way of life is doomed to extinction.这个岛上的生活方式注定要消失。

9 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

10 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

11 plentiful   

adj.富裕的，丰富的

参考例句：

• Their family has a plentiful harvest this year.他们家今年又丰收了。
• Rainfall is plentiful in the area.这个地区雨量充足。

12 fixed   

adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的

参考例句：

• Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？
• Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。