VOA常速英语2018-- 非害虫昆虫的减少引起科学家们的担忧

Scientists Fear Non-Pest Insects are Declinin

Butterflies are as beautiful as the flowers they feed on.But they appear to be less abundant than in years past and that has scientists worried.Because butterflies, bees and other beneficial bugs pollinate plants and are crucial to as much as eighty percent of what we eat.

蝴蝶和它们赖以生存的花朵一样美丽。但它们的数量似乎比过去少了许多，这引起了科学家们的担忧。因为蝴蝶、蜜蜂和其他有益的昆虫给植物授粉，这对我们百分之八十的食物至关重要。

Our ecosystems depend not just in a minor way but in a major way on a diversity of insects doing a diversity of things.And when we decrease the number of individuals and the number of species, we were devastating ecosystem function.Why does that matter because it is ecosystems that support humans.

我们的生态系统在很大程度上依赖于各种昆虫做各种各样的事情。当个体和物种数量减少时，生态系统的功能就会受到破坏。这很重要，因为支持人类生存的就是生态系统。

But those life support systems that keep us alive even if we live in a city are produced by healthy ecosystems and none of those ecosystems will run well without insects.Insects rely on weeds and native plants for food and shelter.And both of those are dwindling in the United States as manicured lawns and single crop agriculture spread across the landscape.But entomologist Doug Ptolemy says more and more Americans are following his lead by letting their gardens go wild.A lot of homeowners are interested in doing this: how can I increase the ecological integrity of my landscape.

但是即使我们生活在城市，那些维持我们生存的生命支持系统也是由健康的生态系统产生的，没有昆虫，这些生态系统就无法良好运转。昆虫以杂草和本地植物为食物和栖身之所，而在美国，随着修剪整齐的草坪和单一作物的农业遍布各地，这两种作物都在减少。但是昆虫学家道格·托勒密说，越来越多的美国人跟随他的脚步，放任自己的花园生长。很多业主对此很感兴趣，即自己如何才能提高景观的生态完整性。

How can I get my landscape to contribute to local ecosystems instead of degrading them?That’s growing interest.And many US states are trying to help by creating bug friendly habitats along highways.As part of a three-year study, Maryland is seeing how roadsides which are often just grassy strips can come back to life with less mowing,be friendly native wildflowers and targeted herbicide use.We’re also seeing a lot of bees coming back.Many we’ve had over seventy different species that we’ve reported on the roadsides now and a couple new county records.The efforts to support a healthy and diverse ecosystem will help bees, butterflies and people.

如何才能使自己的景观为当地的生态系统做出贡献而不是降低它们的价值，这正引起人们越来越多的兴趣。美国的许多州正试图通过在高速公路上建立对昆虫栖息地来提供帮助。作为一项为期三年的研究的一部分，马里兰州正在研究如何通过减少割草，呵护本土野花和有针对性的除草剂的使用，使那些通常只是草带的路旁恢复生机。我们还看到很多蜜蜂回来了，我们现在已经在路旁报道过七十多种蜜蜂，还有一些新的县级记录。对健康多样的生态系统的支持将有益于蜜蜂、蝴蝶和人们。