CNN 2012-07-09

 it is a small caterpillar¹ fungus² that is believed to boost sexual performance naturally. Then it is found only in the high altitudes of the Hymalayas, and earning the nickname Himalayan Viagra. So, it doesn't pop out in the backyard. You won't find it there. People are flocking to that region now in search of what they think is a wonder drug. Kyle Knight³ is a journalist. He's stationed in Nepal, but joins by phone from Italy. Kyle, first of all, tell us about this fungus - what it looks like, how it's found and how it's consumed. 

 

Well, it’s a extremely small specimen⁴ that sticks out of the ground and looks essentially⁵ like a thick blade of grass. What happens before this is that a parasitic⁶ fungus kills and mummifies a caterpillar underground and then it grows up out of its brain and sticks out to the ground and this is what people are looking for. They are essentially looking for a piece of fungus that is attached to a caterpillar corpse⁷ that is sticking out of the ground about anywhere between one and four centimetres. 

 

Yeah, and why wouldn't you want to eat that? And that we should, should’ve mentioned that the caterpillar fungus is about more than just the later aphrodisiac, it’s also been around in traditional healing for a long time, right?

 

Yes, it's been used for a number of different ailments⁸, illnesses throughout its history, and the history isn’t particularly well documented. It’s early on the outside of ten years that the sort of aphrodisiac quality has been marketed around the world. 

 

Mh, now, there is the downside of course. Explain how getting this fungus is affecting the Himalayan grasslands¹⁰. 

 

Well, it only grows at certain altitudes and again, this is understudied, so it’s not exactly known where, however, when, you know, in one particular district of Nepal I did research, the police estimate 40,000 people will migrate this year for the harvest, and the harvest takes place about over the course of a month that actually just ended this week. So when you have all of the people coming, it means more garbage. It means more people trampling¹¹ on the grasslands and crawling around. And also the harvesting method itself involves digging about an 8-inch diameter hole, and sifting¹² through the soil that way. So it leaves the grassland⁹ sort of pockmarks and also tracks just from the general increase in population.

 

I can only imagine. What does that mean to the people who used those lands traditionally? 

 

Well, I had people counting in interviews that it means that their yaks¹³ and their cows are not getting enough grass during the warm month. So that they are thinner going into the winter and they tend to die more often. And so this means the local livestock¹⁴ are suffering. It also means in general, for some people can make more of a profit from the harvest itself, by opening up a small store or a guesthouse or something like that. So, you get mixed reactions from this influx¹⁵ of the outsiders in these regions. 

 

Well, that’s an extraordinary tale. Kyle, thanks so much. Kyle Knight there, a journalist who's normally in Nepal Joining us here from Italy, believe it or not. Well, when you think of Saudi Arabian fashion,

1 caterpillar   

n.毛虫，蝴蝶的幼虫

参考例句：

• A butterfly is produced by metamorphosis from a caterpillar.蝴蝶是由毛虫脱胎变成的。
• A caterpillar must pass through the cocoon stage to become a butterfly.毛毛虫必须经过茧的阶段才能变成蝴蝶。

2 fungus   

n.真菌，真菌类植物

参考例句：

• Mushrooms are a type of fungus.蘑菇是一种真菌。
• This fungus can just be detected by the unaided eye.这种真菌只用肉眼就能检查出。

3 knight   

n.骑士，武士；爵士

参考例句：

• He was made an honourary knight.他被授予荣誉爵士称号。
• A knight rode on his richly caparisoned steed.一个骑士骑在装饰华丽的马上。

4 specimen   

n.样本，标本

参考例句：

• You'll need tweezers to hold up the specimen.你要用镊子来夹这标本。
• This specimen is richly variegated in colour.这件标本上有很多颜色。

5 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

6 parasitic   

adj.寄生的

参考例句：

• Will global warming mean the spread of tropical parasitic diseases?全球变暖是否意味着热带寄生虫病会蔓延呢？
• By definition,this way of life is parasitic.从其含义来说，这是种寄生虫的生活方式。

7 corpse   

n.尸体，死尸

参考例句：

• What she saw was just an unfeeling corpse.她见到的只是一具全无感觉的尸体。
• The corpse was preserved from decay by embalming.尸体用香料涂抹以防腐烂。

8 ailments   

疾病（尤指慢性病），不适( ailment的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His ailments include a mild heart attack and arthritis. 他患有轻度心脏病和关节炎。
• He hospitalizes patients for minor ailments. 他把只有小病的患者也送进医院。

9 grassland   

n.牧场，草地，草原

参考例句：

• There is a reach of grassland in the distance.远处是连绵一片的草原。
• The snowstorm swept the vast expanse of grassland.暴风雪袭击了辽阔的草原。

10 grasslands   

n.草原，牧场( grassland的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Songs were heard ringing loud and clear over the grasslands. 草原上扬起清亮激越的歌声。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Grasslands have been broken and planted to wheat. 草原已经开垦出来，种上了小麦。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 trampling   

踩( trample的现在分词 )； 践踏； 无视； 侵犯

参考例句：

• Diplomats denounced the leaders for trampling their citizens' civil rights. 外交官谴责这些领导人践踏其公民的公民权。
• They don't want people trampling the grass, pitching tents or building fires. 他们不希望人们踩踏草坪、支帐篷或生火。

12 sifting   

n.筛，过滤v.筛( sift的现在分词 )；筛滤；细查；详审

参考例句：

• He lay on the beach, sifting the sand through his fingers. 他躺在沙滩上用手筛砂子玩。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I was sifting the cinders when she came in. 她进来时，我正在筛煤渣。 来自辞典例句

13 yaks   

牦牛( yak的名词复数 )； 笑话

参考例句：

• The jokes get yaks. 那笑话引人发笑。
• Social species including birds, fish and yaks must have companionship. 习惯群居的生物，包括鸟类、鱼类和（牛毛）牛必须有伙伴。

14 livestock   

n.家畜，牲畜

参考例句：

• Both men and livestock are flourishing.人畜两旺。
• The heavy rains and flooding killed scores of livestock.暴雨和大水淹死了许多牲口。

15 influx   

n.流入，注入

参考例句：

• The country simply cannot absorb this influx of refugees.这个国家实在不能接纳这么多涌入的难民。
• Textile workers favoured protection because they feared an influx of cheap cloth.纺织工人拥护贸易保护措施，因为他们担心涌入廉价纺织品。