《英语流行话题阅读:语境识词3500》Unit98:野猪

（单词翻译）

　　Unit 98
Wild Pigs
Not especially nice and very competitive the wild pi is a dangerous little animal, congregating¹ more in places with many trees although a few can be seen on plains. Covering the world over is this species of nasty, tusked² and ill-tempered creatures. They are not native animals in most areas. The wild pigs in most regions are descendants of domestic pigs brought here by the original homesteaders. Over the years, some of these domestic animals escaped and went wild. Today, their descendants may be found in various locations.
Wild pigs have twin tusks³ which are used for impaling⁴ or hitting or just to sit there and look threatening. It has four legs with a swishing, thin tail, and black or brown fur. Wild pigs tend to be a bit fat and bulky making them very economical for eating. Their eyes, usually black, are sunk into their head giving them a rather large blind spots on both sides.
The wild pig is a fast creature. In a full charge at top speed a strong boar is capable of plowing⁵ through the wall of normal, on brick, house. Another special ability which is probably not very fun for the pigs is their delicious taste and plentifulness⁶.
Wild pigs are protective, unafraid, and extremely competitive. Wild pigs are the leading cause of death among wild pigs, with them fighting each other over mates, or food, or just because a good battle helps fight off the cold. Despite all this fighting though, pigs are pack animals and live in groups of ten to twenty, although they often seek to gain more advantages for themselves than for the group.
Wild pigs eat grass, berries, flowers, and that sort of thing. They eat quite a lot but there is plenty to go around; the pigs don't think there is but Pigs aren't especially smart.
When pigs mate, they mate for life. If a pig loses it's mate it will never mate again. They usually have two litters a year which finish maturing within four months. Males usually fight for a mate. Initially⁷, many pig fatalities⁸ originate from these battles.
Hunting wild pig is a common practice. Oftentimes teams of up to hundreds of men will all crash into a forest and decrease the pig population. This is done because pigs are not only relatively⁹ tasty meat but also because it is cheap. Pigs are almost everywhere and there is enough meat on them that a small family can easily live by killing¹⁰ two wild pigs a month with no difficulty. Pig hunting has grown so much that it is often done for fun instead of necessity angering some townsfolk who respect the beast.