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Recovery of Different Kinds of At-risk Animals Can Raise Conflicts

时间:2022-08-29 08:59:22

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Recovery of Different Kinds of At-risk Animals Can Raise Conflicts

Wildlife experts in the United States are struggling with a problem: As some kinds of threatened animals increase in number, they put pressure on other at-risk creatures.

Experts say these kinds of situations involve tradeoffs. But they do not necessarily show problems with special protection programs or the U.S. Endangered Species Act.

These tradeoffs show the importance of protecting what some scientists call biological communities, rather than individual species.

Winners and losers

The famous bald eagle's comeback has pressured rare water birds. Peregrine falcons1 are also making a comeback. But they threaten the birds called the California least tern and Western snowy plover2. And, off the California coast, attacks from protected white sharks are hurting the recovery of threatened sea otters3.

Stuart Pimm is with Duke University in North Carolina. He is an extinction4 specialist.

"Clearly there are occasions when we get these conflicts between species that we're trying to protect," Pimm said. "But is it a major worry in conservation? No," he added.

Conservation means the protection of animals, plants, and natural resources.

Bruce Stein is a scientist with the National Wildlife Federation5.

Stein suggested that animal recoveries can produce tradeoffs. That is because some animals are more adaptable6 than others to changes in the climate or land.

Stein said, "A lot of ecosystems7 where these things are occurring are a little out of whack8 to begin with because we've altered them in some way." He added, "With climate change, there are going to be winners and losers. The losers will tend to have specific habitat requirements, narrow ecological9 niches10, and often will be the ones already declining."

Nature at work

Recovery of America's national bird, the bald eagle, is a success. But in one area of Maine, the large bird creates a problem for the only U.S. breeding population of another kind of bird: great cormorants12.

"When they're disturbed by eagles, the adult cormorants will...leave their nests," said Don Lyons, a scientist at the National Audubon Society's Seabird Institute.

Then gulls13, crows, and other birds fly in to eat cormorant11 eggs and young. "If this happens repeatedly, an entire colony can fail," Lyons said.

Lyons' team organizes volunteers to camp near cormorant gatherings14 to keep away eagles.

But conflicts between recovering species and ones still in trouble do not always mean something is wrong, scientists say. Such conflicts could be a return to how things were before humans got involved.

John Fitzpatrick of Cornell University's Laboratory of Ornithology15 said, "When a population gets back to where it's having the same interactions with other organisms as before it went down, that's nature at work."

Lyons of the Audubon Society said the bald eagle is "challenging our...notions about what's normal" for prey16 such as great cormorants in New England. Cormorants might have been less numerous before eagles declined, he said.

Lyons noted17 that the eagle's recovery "complicates19 the conservation of certain other species." But he added that "their recovery is...a welcome complication."

Relationships between different animals are complex, said Stein of the National Wildlife Federation. He said it is often wiser to place effort on protecting and reconnecting habitats to support natural movements.

Words in This Story

tradeoff – n. : a situation in which you must choose between or balance two things that are opposite or cannot be had at the same time — often + between

species –n. (pl.) a group of animals or plants that are similar and can produce young animals or plants

extinction – n. : the state or situation that results when something (such as a plant or animal species) has died out completely

adaptable – adj. able to change or be changed in order to fit or work better in some situation or for some purpose : able to adapt or be adapted

alter – v. to change (something)

habitat – n. the place or type of place where a plant or animal naturally or normally lives or grows

disturb –v. to prevent someone or something from doing what it normally does

interaction – n. the act of coming together and having an effect on each other — often + with

notion – n. an idea or opinion

complicate18 – v. to make (something) more difficult or less simple


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1 falcons 1090843cfc7d8664c201d9881ebf16b9     
n.猎鹰( falcon的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Peregrine falcons usually pluck the feathers and strip the flesh off their bird prey. 游隼捕到鸟类猎物时,通常是先拔掉它们的羽毛,再把肉撕下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Though he doubted the wisdom of using falcons, Dr. de la Fuente undertook the project. 虽然德·拉·富恩特博士怀疑使用游隼是否明智,但他还是执行了这项计划。 来自辞典例句
2 plover HlLz11     
n.珩,珩科鸟,千鸟
参考例句:
  • He wondered if the plover was the fastest bird.他想知道千鸟是不是最快的鸟。
  • American plover of inland waters and fields having a distinctive cry.美洲内陆水域和牧场的鸻,叫声特别。
3 otters c7b1b011f1aba54879393a220705a840     
n.(水)獭( otter的名词复数 );獭皮
参考例句:
  • An attempt is being made to entice otters back to the river. 人们正试图把水獭引诱回河里去。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Otters are believed to have been on Earth for 90 million years. 水獭被认为存活在地球上已经9千多万年。 来自互联网
4 extinction sPwzP     
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。
5 federation htCzMS     
n.同盟,联邦,联合,联盟,联合会
参考例句:
  • It is a federation of 10 regional unions.它是由十个地方工会结合成的联合会。
  • Mr.Putin was inaugurated as the President of the Russian Federation.普京正式就任俄罗斯联邦总统。
6 adaptable vJDyI     
adj.能适应的,适应性强的,可改编的
参考例句:
  • He is an adaptable man and will soon learn the new work.他是个适应性很强的人,很快就将学会这种工作。
  • The soil is adaptable to the growth of peanuts.这土壤适宜于花生的生长。
7 ecosystems 94cb0e40a815bea1157ac8aab9a5380d     
n.生态系统( ecosystem的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • There are highly sensitive and delicately balanced ecosystems in the forest. 森林里有高度敏感、灵敏平衡的各种生态系统。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Madagascar's ecosystems range from rainforest to semi-desert. 马达加斯加生态系统类型多样,从雨林到半荒漠等不一而足。 来自辞典例句
8 whack kMKze     
v.敲击,重打,瓜分;n.重击,重打,尝试,一份
参考例句:
  • After years of dieting,Carol's metabolism was completely out of whack.经过数年的节食,卡罗尔的新陈代谢完全紊乱了。
  • He gave me a whack on the back to wake me up.他为把我弄醒,在我背上猛拍一下。
9 ecological IrRxX     
adj.生态的,生态学的
参考例句:
  • The region has been declared an ecological disaster zone.这个地区已经宣布为生态灾难区。
  • Each animal has its ecological niche.每种动物都有自己的生态位.
10 niches 8500e82896dd104177b4cfd5842b1a09     
壁龛( niche的名词复数 ); 合适的位置[工作等]; (产品的)商机; 生态位(一个生物所占据的生境的最小单位)
参考例句:
  • Some larvae extend the galleries to form niches. 许多幼虫将坑道延伸扩大成壁龛。
  • In his view differences in adaptation are insufficient to create niches commensurate in number and kind. 按照他的观点,适应的差异不足以在数量上和种类上形成同量的小生境。
11 cormorant laCyd     
n.鸬鹚,贪婪的人
参考例句:
  • The cormorant is a large,long-necked,dark-colored bird which lives near sea coasts and eats fish.鸬鹚是一种长脖子黑颜色的大鸟,生活在海滨而且以吃鱼为生。
  • The exciting cormorant fishing performance is over there.那边有令人刺激的鱼鹰捕鱼表演。
12 cormorants 7fd38480459c8ed62f89f1d9bb497e3e     
鸬鹚,贪婪的人( cormorant的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • The birds are trained cormorants. 那些鸟是受过训练的鸬鹚。
  • The cormorants swim down and catch the fish, and bring them back the raft. 鸬鹚又下去捉住鱼,再返回竹筏。
13 gulls 6fb3fed3efaafee48092b1fa6f548167     
n.鸥( gull的名词复数 )v.欺骗某人( gull的第三人称单数 )
参考例句:
  • A flock of sea gulls are hovering over the deck. 一群海鸥在甲板上空飞翔。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • The gulls which haunted the outlying rocks in a prodigious number. 数不清的海鸥在遥远的岩石上栖息。 来自辞典例句
14 gatherings 400b026348cc2270e0046708acff2352     
聚集( gathering的名词复数 ); 收集; 采集; 搜集
参考例句:
  • His conduct at social gatherings created a lot of comment. 他在社交聚会上的表现引起许多闲话。
  • During one of these gatherings a pupil caught stealing. 有一次,其中一名弟子偷窃被抓住。
15 ornithology HJCxh     
n.鸟类学
参考例句:
  • He found his vocation in ornithology.他发现自己适于专攻鸟类学。
  • His main interests are botany and ornithology.他主要对植物学和鸟类学感兴趣。
16 prey g1czH     
n.被掠食者,牺牲者,掠食;v.捕食,掠夺,折磨
参考例句:
  • Stronger animals prey on weaker ones.弱肉强食。
  • The lion was hunting for its prey.狮子在寻找猎物。
17 noted 5n4zXc     
adj.著名的,知名的
参考例句:
  • The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
  • Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。
18 complicate zX1yA     
vt.使复杂化,使混乱,使难懂
参考例句:
  • There is no need to complicate matters.没有必要使问题复杂化。
  • These events will greatly complicate the situation.这些事件将使局势变得极其复杂。
19 complicates 5877af381de63ddbd027e178c8d214f1     
使复杂化( complicate的第三人称单数 )
参考例句:
  • What complicates the issue is the burden of history. 历史的重负使问题复杂化了。
  • Russia as a great and ambitious power gravely complicates the situation. 俄国作为一个强大而有野心的国家,使得局势异常复杂。

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