VOA标准英语2016--蜜蜂助肯尼亚农民驱赶象群

Researchers: Bees Help Kenyan Farmers Fend¹ Off Elephants 蜜蜂助肯尼亚农民驱赶象群

VOI, KENYA—

African elephants are the largest land animals on Earth, weighing as much as six tons, and measuring up to 7.5 meters long.

But despite their size, they find humans to be their greatest threat: Tens of thousands of these animals are killed every year for their ivory tusks².

Researcher Lucy King, head of the human-elephant coexistence program at Kenya-based conservation group Save the Elephants, said poaching is devastating³ animal populations across Africa.

But another major concern is human-wildlife conflict.

When elephants raid crops, it causes financial loss to the farmers and potential harm to the elephants.

'Increasing exponentially'

“The population in Africa is increasing exponentially, and the land space for elephants and other large game is shrinking exponentially,” King said. “Corridors are being blocked, infrastructure⁴ development is coming up, and so I believe the next big challenge for elephants is going to be conflict.

"And that interface⁵ between farmers and elephants is the one we’re working on, and we feel we can do something with," she said.

So she did.

King learned that when elephants heard the distinctive⁶ sound of bees, they rounded up their herd⁷ and quickly moved away.

Local farmers attested⁸ that despite the elephants’ thick skin, bees could still sting around their eyes and disturb their ears, causing them to shy away when they heard buzzing.

And the Elephants and Bees Project was born.

King and her team work near in the Taita-Taveta area of Kenya, near Tsavo East National Park, where they’ve helped 22 farmers build and maintain beehive fences, consisting of between 10 and 21 hives, depending on the size of the farmer’s plot, plus “dummy” hives to help spread out the bee concentration.

Deterrent¹⁰

The hives are strung along the periphery¹¹ of a farmer’s crops to deter⁹ the elephants from crop raiding.

The team monitors each farmer’s hives carefully, taking notes on each one and also working with the farmers to determine the elephants’ movements in the area.

King says a beehive fence features a critical difference from an electric fence.

“Electric fencing provides a shock to the body, but it’s static. So the elephants can learn, 'If I touch that, it’s going to hurt.' But they can test it, they can put their bodies against it, they can push their feet on the posts, and eventually they can work out, one quick shove and the fence will go down,” King said. “But the fence doesn’t chase them afterwards.”

Local farmer Charity Mwangome, who built her fence in 2012, believes the research buzz.

“It helps a lot because if the elephants come in and they see the fence, they stop and don’t come into the farm. They instead go around," Mwangome said.

But the beehive fence, which King said has about an 80 percent success rate, doesn’t just help with keeping out the elephants. It also provides farmers with another means to generate income, through honey production.

Boost to income

And for farmers who make on average $300 per year, less than a dollar a day, the 30 to 50 percent income boost makes a big difference.

Research center coordinator¹² Matthew Rudolph said the biggest problem is just keeping up with consumer demand for the honey, which he and other staff members process at its center here.

“People pick it up as soon as it is jarred,” Rudolph said.

And it goes fast, Rudolph and King said.

The center typically harvests the honey twice a year -- in January and May -- and produces about 500 jars. However, requests worldwide far exceed the production, the researchers said.

King said the priority is to first supply local markets so word about the beehive fences will spread.

An open-source manual for constructing a beehive fence can be found on the group’s website.  

King said she has received comments from people in at least 11 African and Asian countries who have used the plans to build their own beehives, adapting them to local conditions.

Poaching issue

Although this project helps combat human-wildlife conflict, poaching remains¹³ the No. 1 threat to elephants.

Kenya President Uhuru Kenyatta will host this month’s Giants Club Summit, which will bring dignitaries together at Mount Kenya to find solutions to combat the crisis.

Organizers expect presidents from four African countries -- Botswana, Gabon, Kenya and Uganda -- and their representatives to attend the event, to be held Thursday through Saturday.

The event will conclude in Nairobi Saturday with the destruction of 105 tons of seized ivory to prevent its economic use.

1 fend   

v.照料（自己），（自己）谋生，挡开，避开

参考例句：

• I've had to fend for myself since I was 14.我从十四岁时起就不得不照料自己。
• He raised his arm up to fend branches from his eyes.他举手将树枝从他眼前挡开。

2 tusks   

n.（象等动物的）长牙( tusk的名词复数 )；獠牙；尖形物；尖头

参考例句：

• The elephants are poached for their tusks. 为获取象牙而偷猎大象。
• Elephant tusks, monkey tails and salt were used in some parts of Africa. 非洲的一些地区则使用象牙、猴尾和盐。 来自英语晨读30分（高一）

3 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。

4 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

5 interface   

n.接合部位，分界面；v.(使)互相联系

参考例句：

• My computer has a network interface,which allows me to get to other computers.我的计算机有网络接口可以与其它计算机连在一起。
• This program has perspicuous interface and extensive application. 该程序界面明了，适用范围广。

6 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。

7 herd   

n.兽群，牧群；vt.使集中，把…赶在一起

参考例句：

• She drove the herd of cattle through the wilderness.她赶着牛群穿过荒野。
• He had no opinions of his own but simply follow the herd.他从无主见，只是人云亦云。

8 attested   

adj.经检验证明无病的，经检验证明无菌的v.证明( attest的过去式和过去分词 )；证实；声称…属实；使宣誓

参考例句：

• The handwriting expert attested to the genuineness of the signature. 笔迹专家作证该签名无讹。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Witnesses attested his account. 几名证人都证实了他的陈述是真实的。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 deter   

vt.阻止，使不敢，吓住

参考例句：

• Failure did not deter us from trying it again.失败并没有能阻挡我们再次进行试验。
• Dogs can deter unwelcome intruders.狗能够阻拦不受欢迎的闯入者。

10 deterrent   

n.阻碍物，制止物；adj.威慑的，遏制的

参考例句：

• Large fines act as a deterrent to motorists.高额罚款是对开车的人的制约。
• I put a net over my strawberries as a deterrent to the birds.我在草莓上罩了网，免得鸟歇上去。

11 periphery   

n.(圆体的)外面；周围

参考例句：

• Geographically, the UK is on the periphery of Europe.从地理位置上讲，英国处于欧洲边缘。
• The periphery of the retina is very sensitive to motion.视网膜的外围对运动非常敏感。

12 coordinator   

n.协调人

参考例句：

• The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, headed by the Emergency Relief Coordinator, coordinates all UN emergency relief. 联合国人道主义事务协调厅在紧急救济协调员领导下，负责协调联合国的所有紧急救济工作。
• How am I supposed to find the client-relations coordinator? 我怎么才能找到客户关系协调员的办公室？

13 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。