英语听力：美洲大平原-13

A lone wolf weighs as much as four coyotes, but one on one it's still no match for a bison. Wolves, though, live and hunt in packs of up to 15 and when they launch a cooperative attack, they're devastating.

First they get the bison on the run, then filter out the weak and vulnerable and select the perfect target. Striking together, wolves can bring down prey many times their own size. A million such chases must have taken place across these plains and we can still find echoes of these distant life-or-death encounters.

Not all evidence lies locked in bone and rock. These pronghorn antelopes among the great survivors of the ice age reveal a lot about the distant past. As well as being tough enough to stand extremes of temperature, they're famous for their speed.

A sprinting pronghorn can top 60 miles an hour and cruise at 30 for several hours. This kind of speed requires a very finely tuned physique. Pronghorn have a massive heart and run with their mouths gaping open, forcing extra air into their huge lungs.

But what's the point? No predator can run this fast. Even the wolves can only manage 40 miles an hour. So why do pronghorn feel this need for speed? This is why—once there was a predator here that could outrun the pronghorn a cheetah.

1 lone

adj.孤寂的，单独的;唯一的

参考例句：

A lone sea gull flew across the sky.一只孤独的海鸥在空中飞过。

She could see a lone figure on the deserted beach.她在空旷的海滩上能看到一个孤独的身影。

2 devastating

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。

Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。

3 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。

4 antelopes

羚羊( antelope的名词复数 ); 羚羊皮革

参考例句：

One jump, and you're out, and we'll run for it like antelopes.' 你只要一跳就出来了，我们可以像羚羊那样飞快地逃掉。”

Most antelopes can withhold their young for weeks, even months. 绝大部分羚羊能把分娩期推迟几个星期，甚至几个月。

5 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

6 sprinting

v.短距离疾跑( sprint的现在分词 )

参考例句：

Stride length and frequency are the most important elements of sprinting. 步长和步频是短跑最重要的因素。 来自互联网

Xiaoming won the gold medal for sprinting in the school sports meeting. 小明在学校运动会上夺得了短跑金牌。 来自互联网

7 tuned

adj.调谐的，已调谐的v.调音( tune的过去式和过去分词 );调整;(给收音机、电视等)调谐;使协调

参考例句：

The resort is tuned in to the tastes of young and old alike. 这个度假胜地适合各种口味，老少皆宜。

The instruments should be tuned up before each performance. 每次演出开始前都应将乐器调好音。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 gaping

adj.口的;张口的;敞口的;多洞穴的v.目瞪口呆地凝视( gape的现在分词 );张开，张大

参考例句：

Ahead of them was a gaping abyss. 他们前面是一个巨大的深渊。

The antelope could not escape the crocodile's gaping jaws. 那只羚羊无法从鱷鱼张开的大口中逃脱。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 predator

n.捕食其它动物的动物;捕食者

参考例句：

The final part of this chapter was devoted to a brief summary of predator species.本章最后部分简要总结了食肉动物。

Komodo dragon is the largest living lizard and a fearsome predator.科摩多龙是目前存在的最大蜥蜴，它是一种令人恐惧的捕食性动物。

10 cheetah

n.(动物)猎豹

参考例句：

The cheetah is generally credited as the world's fastest animal.猎豹被公认是世界上跑得最快的动物。

The distribution of the cheetah ranges from Africa to Central Asia.印度豹的足迹遍及从非洲到中亚的广大地区。