VOA标准英语2012--Hawaii's Birds Threatened by Invasive Predators, Habitat Loss

 

Hawaii's Birds Threatened by Invasive Predators², Habitat Loss

Many people think of the Hawaiian islands as a Pacific paradise, a string of tropical islands lush with exotic flora³ and fauna⁴.

But the islands' native species - especially birds - have been under increasing pressure since humans first settled there.

"Hawaii is the bird extinction⁵ capital of the world. The 50th state has a reputation as an island paradise, but I think that a lot of people don’t realize that through a long history of animal and plant introductions, Hawaii’s bird population has been decimated," said George Wallace, a vice⁶ president at the American Bird Conservancy.

The ABC was among the first groups to sound the alarm about mongoose on the island of Kaua. The predator¹ can be devastating⁷ to water birds that come ashore⁸ to raise just one chick per year. 

"Mongoose are not great climbers of trees but they are very capable of taking the nestlings and eggs of ground-nesting birds, and that would be particularly devastating for Hawaiian water birds," Wallace said.

The mongoose have no natural enemies on the Hawaiian islands. They are a common sight along roadsides and near garbage dumps. The island of Kauai had been free of mongoose until recently so its birds are doing better than those on the other islands.

"There are over 100 species of birds that are unique to Hawaii and only exist there. Over 71 species have gone extinct and there is another 31 that are listed as threatened and endangered,” said Brad Bortner, with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Mongoose are just one of many threats facing Hawaii's birds. There are other invasive animals and plants, insect-borne diseases, and habitat destruction. Bortner says the Fish and Wildlife Service has joined with other groups to restore habitats, install predator traps and fencing and support captive breeding programs for such endangered bird species as the Hawaiian crow.

Recent surveys show that the populations of some native Hawaiian bird species - unique to the islands - are down to just a few hundred individuals.

George Wallace says the lack of resources limits the response to the crisis.

"If you look at all of the bird species listed under the Endangered Species Act, there are about 90 in the United States, one third of them occur in Hawaii, but only 4 percent of the funding for the recovery of endangered species actually goes to these birds on Hawaii,” Wallace said.

To raise public awareness⁹ about Hawaii's threatened birds, the American Bird Conservancy recently released a 30-minute documentary called Endangered Hawaii. The video is available on the Internet and is being distributed to schools and government agencies. 

1 predator   

n.捕食其它动物的动物；捕食者

参考例句：

• The final part of this chapter was devoted to a brief summary of predator species.本章最后部分简要总结了食肉动物。
• Komodo dragon is the largest living lizard and a fearsome predator.科摩多龙是目前存在的最大蜥蜴，它是一种令人恐惧的捕食性动物。

2 predators   

n.食肉动物( predator的名词复数 )；奴役他人者（尤指在财务或性关系方面）

参考例句：

• birds and their earthbound predators 鸟和地面上捕食它们的动物
• The eyes of predators are highly sensitive to the slightest movement. 捕食性动物的眼睛能感觉到最细小的动静。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 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。

4 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。

5 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。

6 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

7 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。

8 ashore   

adv.在(向)岸上，上岸

参考例句：

• The children got ashore before the tide came in.涨潮前，孩子们就上岸了。
• He laid hold of the rope and pulled the boat ashore.他抓住绳子拉船靠岸。

9 awareness   

n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智

参考例句：

• There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
• Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。