VOA慢速英语2018 弗吉尼亚商店出售珍稀昂贵的鹦鹉

Rare and Costly¹ Parrots for Sale at Virginia Store

Small or large, costly and even rare birds can be found at a pet store in the American community of Falls Church, Virginia.

And it is clear from the name of the store what kind of birds are available for sale: “Parrots, Parrots, Parrots, just Parrots”.

The small business is filled with many bright-colored parrots, from cockatoos to giant macaws and small parakeets.

"Hello."

Ed Willis is the owner of the pet store. Willis says he received his first parrot when he was 18 years old. Since then, he has not spent another day without a parrot.

Willis says the birds make wonderful pets and can develop strong feelings toward² people.

"It's a unique partnership³ between a parrot and a person. They are independent, but they are still needy⁴. They are happy to see you when you come home. It's a really special pet relationship."

Willis opened his store in 1988. Today, it is one of just two businesses in the Washington, D.C. area that only sell parrots.

The Hyacinth macaw, a rare parrot, costs almost $17,000. There are only about 6,500 of these birds left in the world. The parrot in Ed Willis’ store is young, and has a long life ahead of it. Macaws can live up to 100 years.

"From the neck up, they like to have their feathers ruffled… and then from the neck down, she likes when you smooth them…"

Willis' arms are covered with claw marks and bites from holding and caring for the big birds.

"They're not really trying to hurt me, sometimes it's just playfulness and sometimes they fear they might fall…"

The store is a busy place. Children and adults alike⁶ come to the store to see the different kinds of parrots.

But not all the birds at the store are for sale. Some have become like family to Willis and his daughter Kelsey. One such bird is a cockatoo named Snowball. Willis says he got Snowball when the bird was small.

“Snowball is not really a typical cockatoo. He is actually very quiet and very friendly. A lot of the cockatoos are known for being extremely loud and he has not been, so a lot of people are interested in this bird."

I’m Jonathan Evans.

Words in This Story

pet – n. an animal such as a dog, cat, bird, or fish that people keep mainly for pleasure

ruffle⁵ – v. to move or lift something so that it is no longer smooth

claw – n. a sharp body part on the toe of an animal

1 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

2 toward   

prep.对于，关于，接近，将近，向，朝

参考例句：

• Suddenly I saw a tall figure approaching toward the policeman.突然间我看到一个高大的身影朝警察靠近。
• Upon seeing her,I smiled and ran toward her. 看到她我笑了，并跑了过去。

3 partnership   

n.合作关系，伙伴关系

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。

4 needy   

adj.贫穷的，贫困的，生活艰苦的

参考例句：

• Although he was poor,he was quite generous to his needy friends.他虽穷，但对贫苦的朋友很慷慨。
• They awarded scholarships to needy students.他们给贫苦学生颁发奖学金。

5 ruffle   

v.弄皱，弄乱；激怒，扰乱；n.褶裥饰边

参考例句：

• Don't ruffle my hair.I've just combed it.别把我的头发弄乱了。我刚刚梳好了的。
• You shouldn't ruffle so easily.你不该那么容易发脾气。

6 alike   

adj.同样的，相像的；adv.一样地；同程度地　

参考例句：

• The twins are so alike that I can't tell which is which.这对双胞胎一模一样，我分辨不出谁是谁。
• All stories seemed dreadfully alike,no matter who told them.看来，不管谁讲，故事都是千篇一律的。