英语听力—环球英语 1389 Protecting the Albatross

 　　Voice 1

 

　　Welcome to Spotlight¹. I’m Liz Waid.

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　And I’m Nick Page. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　The fierce storm is violently pushing the boat. Ellen fights back. She manages to gain control of the boat. She turns it into the waves and sails into the distance. A large bird flies beside her. Today’s Spotlight is on this large bird, the albatross.

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　Ellen MacArthur is a famous sailor. She has sailed in boats around the world several times. And in 2004 she set a world record for sailing around the world alone. This trip took many months. And it was very difficult. Ellen battled her way through stormy seas. She had little food to eat, and water to drink. But Ellen says that being lonely was the hardest thing. In these months, she was far from home. She only had a radio and sea birds for company. The huge albatross sea birds often chose to fly close to Ellen’s boat. She remembers looking at them. She told the BBC.

 

　　Voice 3

 

　　‘They are such graceful² birds. When you see them out at sea, so far away from land, you feel you are not alone.

 

　　I remember my first trip around the world. I was at the front of the boat. I looked up and a few feet away, there was an albatross. It was looking right at me.

 

　　There was a communication between me and that bird. To feel that, in the middle of the ocean, when I had not seen land for weeks, it was extraordinary.”

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　The albatross birds gave Ellen hope. She believes that seeing them helped her to fight through difficult times during her around-the-world trip. But now the albatross has its own fight to win. Many kinds of albatross are now in danger of extinction³. They may all die and not exist in the world anymore. Ellen MacArthur is just one person who is joining the battle to save these special birds.

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　Most albatrosses live in the South Pacific area. But some, like the Wandering Albatross, are found in the North Pacific. They mainly eat fish. And they can fly long distances without stopping.

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　There are many different kinds of albatross. The largest is the Albatross Diomedea Exulans, or Wandering Albatross. Its wingspread measures over three meters. It can weigh nearly ten kilograms. This makes it one of the largest flying birds alive today.

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　At mating time, albatrosses gather in large groups, called colonies⁴. They do this to protect the young birds. The female⁵ bird produces a single white egg. Both male and female birds look after the egg. They will guard the egg for two or three months. They will also share the responsibility of caring for their young.

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　The albatross is so heavy that it needs a strong wind to fly. So in calm weather sailors do not usually see the albatross in the sky. Many years ago sailors thought that albatrosses controlled the wind.

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　For this reason, sailors considered it very back luck to kill an albatross. Samuel Taylor Coleridge wrote a famous poem called ‘The Rime⁶ of the Ancient Mariner’. In this poem crew members on a sailing ship punished a sailor for killing⁷ an albatross. They made him wear the dead bird around his neck.

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　Because of this poem people use the word ‘albatross’ to describe guilt⁸. People may say to one another, “He is guilty - he looks as if he has an albatross around his neck.”

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　But today, albatross birds are facing a serious threat. This threat to albatrosses comes mainly from the fishing industry. In particular, it comes from longline fishing. The aim of longline fishing is to catch tuna fish. Fishermen get a lot of money for this kind of fish. Longline fishing involves putting out a long line of metal fishing hooks¹⁰. Each hook⁹ is baited¹¹ - it has food on the end. Fish eat the food and swallow the hooks. Then, they are caught. Longlines may stretch for over 120 kilometres. They contain thousands of hooks.

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　It is a very effective way of fishing. But it also creates great dangers to birds like the albatross. Experts have observed that the albatrosses fly thousands of kilometres every year to their mating area. Here the birds produce and raise their young. But during their long travels they have to eat. They catch fish. The long fishing lines float close to the surface of the water. When the albatrosses dive into the water for fish they become caught in the longlines. They either die from their injuries or drown. Experts estimate¹² that over 100,000 albatrosses die this way every year.

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　In the United Kingdom, the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds is working to help the albatross. The RSPB says that simple changes in the way people fish can help save the birds. The RSPB has set up a group called ‘Operation Ocean Task Force’. This group will help train fishermen in new fishing methods. Many of the ideas are easy. They do not cost a lot of money. For example, attaching weights to the long fishing lines will help them to sink. This will help stop the birds from becoming trapped. And if the correct weights are used, the fishermen will still catch their tuna.

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　Many important and famous people are supporting the RSPB, including Ellen MacArthur. At an event for the albatross, Prince Charles, from the United Kingdom, said:

 

　　Voice 4

 

　　“To me the problems caused to albatrosses may be the biggest test for mankind. Are we serious about looking after our world? Are we able to co-exist on this planet¹³ with other creatures?”

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　The RSPB is not alone in its struggle to save albatrosses. Many countries across the world also want to help. Leaders from 13 different countries have signed an agreement. It is called the ‘Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels’ or A-CAP. A-CAP members do research projects to save the birds. They have agreed to protect the colonies of young birds. A-CAP members have also agreed to work with the fishing industry. They have agreed to develop new ideas for fishing that are safe for birds.

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　Ellen MacArthur supports the work of A-CAP. She says that losing the albatross bird would be tragic¹⁴. She says:

 

　　Voice 3

 

　　“Albatrosses live in the middle of nowhere - they do not affect man, but man is affecting them.

 

　　I would be really sad, and so would many other people, if the albatross disappeared.”

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　The writer of today’s programme was Elizabeth Lickiss. The producer was Michio Ozaki. The voices you heard were from the United States and the United Kingdom. All quotes were adapted for this program and voiced by Spotlight. You can listen to this program again, and read it, on the internet at http://www.radioenglish.net The p.rogramme is called ‘Protecting the Albatross’.

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　We hope you can join us again for the next Spotlight program. Goodbye.

1 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

2 graceful   

adj.优美的，优雅的；得体的

参考例句：

• His movements on the parallel bars were very graceful.他的双杠动作可帅了!
• The ballet dancer is so graceful.芭蕾舞演员的姿态是如此的优美。

3 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。

4 colonies   

n.殖民地( colony的名词复数 )；（侨民等）聚居区；（动植物的）群体；（来自同一地方，职业或兴趣相同的）聚居人群

参考例句：

• They amassed huge wealth by plundering the colonies. 他们通过掠夺殖民地聚敛了大笔的财富。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• But throughout the colonies, people relied primarily on small farms and self-sufficiency. 但就整个殖民地来说，人们主要依靠小型农场，过着自给自足的生活。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件

5 female   

adj.雌的，女(性)的；n.雌性的动物，女子

参考例句：

• We only employ female workers.我们只雇用女工。
• The animal in the picture was a female elephant.照片上的动物是头母象。

6 rime   

n.白霜；v.使蒙霜

参考例句：

• The field was covered with rime in the early morning.清晨地里覆盖着一层白霜。
• Coleridge contributed the famous Rime of the Ancient Mariner.柯勒律治贡献了著名的《老水手之歌》。

7 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

8 guilt   

n.犯罪；内疚；过失，罪责

参考例句：

• She tried to cover up her guilt by lying.她企图用谎言掩饰自己的罪行。
• Don't lay a guilt trip on your child about schoolwork.别因为功课责备孩子而使他觉得很内疚。

9 hook   

vt.钩住；n.钩子，钩状物

参考例句：

• The blacksmith forged a bar of iron into a hook.铁匠把一根铁条锻造成一个钩子。
• He hangs up his scarf on the hook behind the door.他把围巾挂在门后的衣钩上。

10 hooks   

钩拳( hook的名词复数 )； 挂钩； 转弯处； 曲线球

参考例句：

• I want to buy the hams hanging on the hooks. 我想买挂在钩子上的火腿。
• This dress hooks at the back, not at the side. 这件衣服是在背后而不是在旁边扣钩。

11 baited   

置诱饵于…（bait的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• A soldier baited a captured enemy by laughing at him. 一位士兵嘲笑一个俘虏来惹怒他。
• He baited the broker by promises of higher commissions. 他答应给更高的佣金来引诱那位经纪人。

12 estimate   

n.估计，估量；评价，看法；vt.估计，估量

参考例句：

• We estimate the cost to be five thousand dollars.我们估计费用为5000美元。
• The lowest estimate would put the worth of the jewel at ＄200.按最低的评估这块宝石也值200美元。

13 planet   

n.行星

参考例句：

• Neptune is the furthest planet from the sun. 海王星是离太阳最远的行星。
• Rubbish, however, is only part of the problem of polluting our planet. 然而, 垃圾只是我们这个星球的污染问题的一个方面。

14 tragic   

adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的

参考例句：

• The effect of the pollution on the beaches is absolutely tragic.污染海滩后果可悲。
• Charles was a man doomed to tragic issues.查理是个注定不得善终的人。