VOA健康报道2023 在海边游泳真的不用怕鲨鱼?

Recent shark bites in Florida and Hawaii and a suspected case in New Jersey¹ have raised an age-old summer question for beachgoers — is it safe to go in the water?

最近在佛罗里达州和夏威夷发生的鲨鱼咬人事件以及在新泽西州发生的一起疑似鲨鱼咬人事件使得海滩游客提出了一个由来已久的夏季问题——下水安全吗？

Scientists and researchers who study sharks said the answer to that question is yes, it is safe.

科学家和研究鲨鱼的研究人员表示，这个问题的答案是肯定的，下水是安全的。

Dangerous interactions between humans and sharks are uncommon², and serious injuries and deaths from the bites are rare and growing rarer, scientists said.

科学家表示，人类和鲨鱼之间的危险互动并不常见，鲨鱼咬人造成的严重伤害和死亡事件也很少见，而且越来越罕见。

Still, the extraordinary nature of shark bites and the stories of survivors³ capture the imagination.

尽管如此，鲨鱼咬人的非同寻常的性质和幸存者的故事仍然激发了人们的想象力。

In April, the story of a Hawaii surfer fighting off a shark got widespread public attention, for example.

例如，今年4月，一名夏威夷冲浪者与鲨鱼搏斗的故事引起了公众的广泛关注。

But, it is a good idea to remember just how rare shark bites truly are, scientists said.

但是，科学家表示，记住鲨鱼咬人的情况非常罕见是一个好主意。

There have been around 70 to 80 unprovoked shark bites yearly, worldwide, over the past 10 years.

在过去的10年里，全世界每年大约有70到80起鲨鱼无端咬人事件。

And not only are shark bites rare, they have been especially rare recently.

鲨鱼咬人很罕见，最近尤其罕见。

There were only 57 unprovoked bites last year, and just five of them were deadly, reports the University of Florida's International Shark Attack File.

据佛罗里达大学国际鲨鱼攻击档案报道，去年只发生了57起无端咬人事件，其中只有5起是致命的。

There had been nine such deaths in 2021.

2021年发生了9起鲨鱼咬人致死事件。

The shark attack file reported a year ago that one reason for the drop in bites might be the decrease of shark populations around the world.

国际鲨鱼攻击档案一年前报告称，咬人事件减少的一个原因可能是世界各地鲨鱼数量的减少。

It is too early in the warm season to get an idea of how active this year will be for interactions between humans and sharks, said Greg Skomal.

格雷格·斯科马尔说，在温暖的季节，要想知道今年人类和鲨鱼之间的互动会有多活跃还为时过早。

He is a shark expert with the Massachusetts Division of Marine⁴ Fisheries.

他是马萨诸塞州海洋渔业局的鲨鱼专家。

"If we get lots of bait fish and forage⁵ fish species close to shore, we have a super hot summer that draws people to beaches, more people in the water, then we can determine the risk," Skomal said.

斯科马尔说：“如果海岸附近有大量的诱饵鱼和饲料鱼，且夏天超级炎热，吸引人们去海滩，更多的人在水中，那么我们就可以确定风险。”

The United States and Australia are the sites of the most reported shark bites.

据报道，美国和澳大利亚是发生鲨鱼咬人事件最多的地区。

The state of Florida led the world last year with 16 unprovoked bites, the shark attack file said.

国际鲨鱼攻击档案称，佛罗里达州去年发生了16起无端咬人事件，位居世界首位。

This month, two Florida fishermen were bitten by sharks in separate incidents less than 36 hours apart.

本月，佛罗里达州的两名渔民在相隔不到36小时的不同事件中被鲨鱼咬伤。

The rate of shark bites has stayed steady in recent years.

近年来，鲨鱼咬人率一直保持稳定。

But, people may think attacks are more common because of new technology to report shark sightings, said Nick Whitney, a lead scientist at the New England Aquarium⁶ in Boston.

但是，波士顿新英格兰水族馆的首席科学家尼克·惠特尼说，人们可能认为鲨鱼袭击事件更常见，因为有了报道看见鲨鱼的新技术。

Recently developed smartphone apps permit users to report shark sightings in real time.

最近开发的智能手机应用程序允许用户实时报道看到的鲨鱼。

White sharks, bull sharks and tiger sharks are the sharks most cited by the International Shark Attack File for unprovoked bites.

大白鲨、牛鲨和虎鲨是国际鲨鱼攻击档案最常被引用的无端咬人的鲨鱼。

They are large sharks that also cause the most deaths.

它们是导致死亡人数最多的大型鲨鱼。

However, remember that many interactions with sharks are with smaller species that are unlikely to cause serious injuries, said James Sulikowski, director of the Coastal⁷ Oregon Marine Experiment Station at Oregon State University.

然而，俄勒冈州立大学俄勒冈海岸海洋实验站主任詹姆斯·苏利科夫斯基表示，要记住，与鲨鱼互动的大多是较小的物种，这些物种不太可能造成严重伤害。

Those sharks might bite a human, realize we are not their desired prey⁸ and move on, he said.

他说，那些鲨鱼可能会咬人，意识到我们不是它们想要的猎物时，它们就会继续前进。

You are at much greater risk of getting hurt in a car accident on the way to the ocean than you are to get seriously injured by a shark bite when you are there.

你在去海边的路上发生车祸受伤的风险比你在海里被鲨鱼咬伤的风险要大得多。

Millions of people go to the ocean in the summer as the weather heats up, and that raises the possibility of interacting with a shark.

随着夏天天气变暖，数百万人会去海边，这增加了与鲨鱼互动的可能性。

But by taking simple steps, visitors can reduce any chance of a dangerous interaction with a shark, Sulikowski said.

但苏利科夫斯基说，通过采取简单的措施，游客可以减少与鲨鱼发生危险互动的可能性。

Such steps include avoiding the water early and late in the day when most sharks hunt for food.

这些措施包括避免在一天的早、晚时段下水，因为这两个时段是大多数鲨鱼捕食的时间。

You should also not carry anything shiny into the water.

你也不应该携带任何闪闪发光的东西下水。

"We are intruders in their environment. What we can do is be logical and safe about that and avoid areas where sharks are going to be feeding," Sulikowski said.

苏利科夫斯基说：“我们是它们环境的入侵者。我们所能做的是合理而安全地避开鲨鱼捕食的区域。”

"When an interaction occurs, it's mistaken identity — we are in an area where a shark is looking to eat."

当互动发生时，这是错误的特征——我们在一个鲨鱼寻找东西吃的地方。

1 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

2 uncommon   

adj.罕见的，非凡的，不平常的

参考例句：

• Such attitudes were not at all uncommon thirty years ago.这些看法在30年前很常见。
• Phil has uncommon intelligence.菲尔智力超群。

3 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

4 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

5 forage   

n.(牛马的)饲料，粮草；v.搜寻，翻寻

参考例句：

• They were forced to forage for clothing and fuel.他们不得不去寻找衣服和燃料。
• Now the nutritive value of the forage is reduced.此时牧草的营养价值也下降了。

6 aquarium   

n.水族馆，养鱼池，玻璃缸

参考例句：

• The first time I saw seals was in an aquarium.我第一次看见海豹是在水族馆里。
• I'm going to the aquarium with my parents this Sunday.这个星期天，我要和父母一起到水族馆去。

7 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

8 prey   

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。