第一册

Unit 5

A

Understanding ideas

课文再现

 

 

英汉对照

The Monarch’s Journey

黑脉金斑蝶的旅程

Many animals move from one place to another at certain times of the year. This annual movement is called migration. They migrate to find food, seek a partner, or in search of warmer weather. One of the most wonderful migrations in nature is that of the North American monarch butterfly.

许多动物都会在每年的特定时间从一个地方迁移到另一个地方。这种一年一度的行为叫做“迁徙”。它们为了觅食、寻找伴侣或温暖的环境而迁徙。自然界中最壮观的迁徙之一是北美洲黑脉金斑蝶的迁徙。

Every autumn, millions of these beautiful insects with fine black and orange wings begin a long and difficult journey. Somehow they manage to travel around 4,000 kilometres south and find their way to California or Mexico. However, until recently no one knew how they did this.

每年秋天，数百万这种翅膀橙黑相间的美丽昆虫都会开始漫长而艰辛的旅程。它们总是设法完成大约4000公里的南行之旅，成功到达加利福尼亚或墨西哥。然而，直到最近人们才明白它们是如何做到的。

A team of scientists led by Professor Eli Shlizerman at the University of Washington has now found the answer. They have found out that the monarch is able to tell the time of day. It uses its eyes to measure the position of the sun. These two pieces of information — the time of day and the point where the sun is in the sky — allow the butterfly to determine the way to go. Eventually, it manages to reach the places where it will spend the winter.

一支由伊莱·史莱泽曼教授领导的来自华盛顿大学的科学家团队现已找到了答案。他们发现，黑脉金斑蝶可以判断时间，并能用眼睛来测量太阳的位置。这两条信息——一天中的时间和太阳在天空中的位置——让黑脉金斑蝶判定前进方向，最终成功抵达过冬的地点。

The solution to the mystery of the monarch’s amazing ability comes at a time when it is in serious trouble. Its population has crashed by as much as 90 per cent in the last few years. Sadly, human activity is the main reason why the number of monarch butterflies is falling. In many of the places where the butterfly can be found, people are destroying the natural environment. They cut down trees and use chemicals that kill the plants that monarch caterpillars eat.

黑脉金斑蝶这一惊人能力的奥秘被揭晓时，这一生物正处于水深火热的生存状态中。其数量在近几年内减少了百分之九十之多。可悲的是，人类活动是黑脉金斑蝶数量下降的主要原因。在黑脉金斑蝶生存的许多地方，人们正破坏着那里的自然环境。他们砍伐树木，他们所用的化学制剂杀死了黑脉金斑蝶幼虫食用的植物。

The research on the monarch’s behaviour has however led to a greater awareness of this creature. People have been working together to record its migration and make sure that there are enough plants for it to feed on. If this works, there may come a time when the number of monarch butterflies increases once again. The more we know about this lovely creature, the greater the chance it will survive and keep its place in the natural world for a long time to come.

不过，对黑脉金斑蝶行为的研究也使得人们对这种生物有了更多的认识。人们已经在共同努力，记录它的迁徙，并确保它有足够的食物。如果这些努力产生效果，黑脉金斑蝶的数量在未来有可能会再次回升。我们对这个可爱的生物了解越多，它们在自然界中得以长久生存并保持其地位的可能性就越大。

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