新奇事件簿 百花齐放创纪录（在线收听）

Botanists in the U.K. are amazed at how many flowers are in bloom this winter. They said that in normal years, between 20 and 30 species of flowers and plants are open. However, on New Year's Day, scientists found 368 different species in bloom. Scientists believe the record number of flowers in bloom is because of climate change. Last year was the warmest year Britain has ever had. Botanist Dr Tim Rich told the BBC about his surprise at the number of flowers he saw at the start of this year. He said: "Fifty years ago, people looking for plants in flower at the start of the year found 20 species. This year the total has amazed us. We are stunned." He said some flowers were in bloom five months early.

英国的植物学家对今年冬天的百花盛开感到惊奇。他们说按正常时节来说，大约有20-30种花朵和植物会开放。但是，就在新年这一天，科学家发现有368中不同种类的植物和花朵争先开放。科学家相信这一创纪录的事件是由于气候变化所导致的。去年是英国史上最暖和的一年。植物学家蒂姆·里奇博士告诉了BBC他对这一事件所表示的惊讶度。他说：“50年前，新年时期，人们会找到20种盛开的花朵。但是，今年的数字让我感到震惊。我们惊呆了。”他说许多花在五个月前就盛开了。

Doctor Rich explained how the changing weather was affecting flowers that are usually killed by the cold in December. He said: "We are now in our fourth mild winter. Normally flowers get frosted off by Christmas but this year it hasn't happened." He added: "We thought that the snow and hard frosts before Christmas would have finished most flowering…but it seems not to be the case." The most common plants in flower were daisies and dandelions. Britain's weather agency, the Meteorological Office, described the climate for last year. It said: "All months except August were warmer than average, and this was the warmest year on record for the UK. It was also wetter than average for many locations."

里奇博士向我们讲述了环境变化对花朵的影响，这些花通常都会因为12月份的寒冷而死掉。他说：“我们迎来了第四个暖冬。通常情况下，花朵都会在圣诞节死掉，但是今年却没有发生。”他补充到：“我们认为圣诞节前夕的大雪和霜冻就会让花朵死亡，但是事实却不是这样的。”花朵中最普通的要数雏菊和蒲公英了。英国环境协会的气候办公室去年就天气状况做了汇报。他们说：“除了8月份以外，所有月份的温度都高于平均值，去年是英国史上最暖和的一年。在有些地方比以往更加潮湿。”