英语畅谈世界文化lesson6 袋鼠 Kangaroos
- 听力原文
- 参考译文
K: Karen C: Charlotte
K: What's your favourite animal? I like koalas the most.
C: Funny you should say that, I like kangaroos. How very antipodean of us!
K: I think kangaroos are funny looking animals.
C: Kangaroos are part of a special category of animals, called marsupials.
K: Kangaroos usually have small deer-like heads with wide set eyes and binocular vision, prominent upright ears which rotate to hear in all directions.
C: Yes, and a moderately long muzzle with a split upper lip, short forelimbs with mobile grasping forepaws that can hold food, open its pouch and box just like a boxer!
K: They are very skilled at using their little arms! And when they have a little baby in the pouch it looks adorable.
C: A joey.
K: A what?
C: A joey, that's what a baby kangaroo's called. Another interesting thing about them is their long hind limbs, with the characteristic long narrow feet which gives them the name of "macropod" or "big-foot".
K: So, because they have short forelimbs and long hindlimbs, they can jump easily, quickly and for long distances.
C: Right. Taking off on their hind feet, landing on their fore limbs and tail, pushing off again with their hind limbs. The elongated and very strong fourth toe of the hind foot serves as a lever to propel the animal along and bears the animal's weight when it stands.
K; I see. Long legs increase the stride when hopping. Forelimbs and tails prop them up when they crawl slowly to feed. Powerful hind limbs and a large heavy tail serve for balance and support.
C: But tree kangaroos have shorter prehensile tails and climb rather than hop. Many kangaroo species are grazers and browsers adapted to living in dry desert habitats.
K: Just like me! I'm always eating and gazing at what's going on around me. The desert is so dry, what can they eat?
C: They usually eat any grass they can find, even very hard grass.
K: They must have food, strong teeth too.
C: Some, such as several tree kangaroos, my particular favourite, are threatened with survival, but others, like the grey and red kangaroos, have flourished and are now considered to be pests.
funny you should say that 说起来还真有意思
be very skilled at 很善于
take off 起跳
be threatened with survival 生存受到威胁，濒临灭绝
K: 卡伦 C: 夏洛特
K：你最喜欢什么动物？我最喜欢的是考拉。
C：说起来还真有意思。我喜欢的是袋鼠。我们真是截然不同啊！
K：我认为袋鼠的样子看上去很好玩。
C：它是一种特殊的动物，叫做有袋动物。
K：它的小脑袋象麋鹿，但眼睛大且双眼都有视力，耳朵高高竖起，还可以转动以便听到四面八方的声音。
C：是的，它的口鼻长度中等，上唇裂开，前肢短小。它前爪灵活，可以抓事物，打开袋子，并且象拳击手一样打架。
K：它们还很善于运用短臂！它们的育儿袋里放着小袋鼠时看起来非常可爱。
C：一只幼兽。
K：一只什么？
C：一只幼兽，也就是小袋鼠。袋鼠的另外一个有意思的地方就是它们的后腿很长，而脚是又长又细，因此又被称作“长脚”或“大脚”。
K：正是因为袋鼠前肢很短而后肢又很长，所以它们才能跳得又快又远。
C：没错。袋鼠用后脚起跳，用前肢和尾巴着地，然后用他们的后肢推动再次跳起。袋鼠后脚的第4个脚趾长而有力，作为向前跳时的支撑点，还承担着自己站立时的体重。
K：我知道了。长腿使它们跳得更远，而缓慢爬行进食时，它们的前肢和尾巴又起着支撑作用。它们强有力的后退和粗重的尾巴也起着平衡和支撑作用。
C：但是树袋鼠的尾巴较短，有捕捉力，适合爬而不适合跳。许多袋鼠都是食草和嫩叶的动物，喜欢四处觅食，适合在干旱的沙漠环境中生活。
K：就象我一样！我总是一边吃东西一边注意观察身边发生的事。不过沙漠这么干，袋鼠都吃些什么呢？
C：能找到的所有草类，它们通常都吃，哪怕是那些很坚硬难啃的草。
K：它们的牙齿也一定都坚硬耐磨。
C：有些袋鼠，比如一些树袋鼠，也是我最喜欢的那种，现在正濒临灭绝；但另外一些种类，比如红袋鼠和灰袋鼠，现在因繁殖过多而被当成祸害。
