VOA新闻杂志2022 近500头鲸鱼在新西兰搁浅死亡

Hundreds of pilot whales died this week on the beaches of the Chatham Islands, about 800 kilometers east of New Zealand.

本周，数百头领航鲸在新西兰以东约800公里的查塔姆群岛的海滩上死亡。

It is the second large stranding¹ of whales in recent weeks.

这是最近几周发生的第二起大规模鲸鱼搁浅事件。

About 200 pilot whales died in the Australian state of Tasmania in late September.

9月底，约有200头领航鲸在澳大利亚塔斯马尼亚州死亡。

New Zealand officials said the islands are home to about 600 people.

新西兰官员表示，该群岛上居住着大约600人。

Rescue groups went to help but they could not get the whales back in the water.

救援组织前去施救，但他们无法将鲸鱼放回水中。

Many of them died naturally but others were euthanized because they could not be saved.

其中许多鲸鱼是自然死亡，但也有一些鲸鱼因为无法挽救而被安乐死。

At least 477 whales are believed to have died.

据信，至少有477头鲸鱼死亡。

New Zealand’s Department of Conservation wrote about the stranded² whales on Facebook.

新西兰自然保护部在脸书上发布了有关搁浅鲸鱼的消息。

“These events are tough, challenging situations,” the department wrote.

该部门写道：“这些事件是艰难的、具有挑战性的情况。”

“Although they are natural occurrences³, they are still sad and difficult for those helping⁴.”

“虽然这是自然发生的事情，但对于那些帮助它们的人来说，他们仍然很难过，也很艰难。”

Daren Grover works for a group called Project Jonah that works to rescue whales.

达伦·格罗弗就职于一个名为“约拿计划”的组织，该组织致力于拯救鲸鱼。

He called the event a “heartbreaking” loss.

他称这一事件是“令人心碎的”损失。

He said the islands’ distance from New Zealand and the presence of sharks in the water made it hard to help the whales.

他说，该群岛距离新西兰很远，而且水中有鲨鱼，所以很难帮助鲸鱼。

Dave Lundquist is an adviser⁵ for New Zealand’s Department of Conservation.

戴夫·伦德奎斯特是新西兰自然保护部的顾问。

He said the department does not try to save whales on those islands because the sharks make it unsafe for both people and the whales.

他说，该部门没有设法拯救该群岛上的鲸鱼，因为对人类和鲸鱼来说，鲨鱼不安全。

He called euthanasia “the kindest option.”

他称安乐死是“最仁慈的选择”。

Grover said the Chatham Islands are a place where whales go to find food.

格罗弗说，查塔姆群岛是鲸鱼觅食的地方。

As the whales get closer to land, however, they can become confused.

然而，当鲸鱼越来越靠近陆地时，它们可能会变得困惑。

Strandings of large groups of whales are common in the summer, scientists say.

科学家表示，夏季大量鲸鱼搁浅是很常见的。

Grover said the whales use a system called echolocation to find food and avoid barriers underwater.

格罗弗说，鲸鱼使用一种叫做回声定位的系统来寻找食物并避开水下的障碍物。

But as they get closer to land they can lose their place if the water level changes quickly.

但当它们越来越靠近陆地时，如果水位迅速变化，它们可能会迷失方向。

“Before they know it,” Grover said, “they’re stranded on the beach.”

格罗弗说：“等它们反应过来时它们已经被困在海滩上了。”

Grover said the whale bodies will not be moved.

格罗弗说，鲸鱼的尸体不会被移动。

They will decompose⁶ naturally.

它们会自然分解。

“Nature is the great recycler,” he said.

他说：“大自然是伟大的回收者”。

I’m Dan Friedell.

丹·弗里德尔为您播报。

1 stranding   

n.（船只）搁浅v.使滞留，使搁浅( strand的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The airport had to be closed, stranding tourists. 机场被迫关闭，造成游客滞留。 来自辞典例句
• The stream of history had changed course away from him, stranding him in failure. 历史潮流已经改变方向，与他背道而驰，使他陷于失败之中。 来自辞典例句

2 stranded   

a.搁浅的，进退两难的

参考例句：

• He was stranded in a strange city without money. 他流落在一个陌生的城市里， 身无分文，一筹莫展。
• I was stranded in the strange town without money or friends. 我困在那陌生的城市，既没有钱，又没有朋友。

3 occurrences   

n.发生( occurrence的名词复数 )；出现；事件；发生的事

参考例句：

• Newspapers record the chief occurrences of the day. 报纸报道了当天发生的大事。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• None of these occurrences should be considered as errors. 这些现象没有一个应该被看做错误。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

4 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

5 adviser   

n.劝告者，顾问

参考例句：

• They employed me as an adviser.他们聘请我当顾问。
• Our department has engaged a foreign teacher as phonetic adviser.我们系已经聘请了一位外籍老师作为语音顾问。

6 decompose   

vi.分解；vt.（使）腐败，（使）腐烂

参考例句：

• The eggs began to decompose after a day in the sun.鸡蛋在太阳下放了一天后开始变坏。
• Most animals decompose very quickly after death.大多数动物死后很快腐烂。