Actions to“ rewild”“再野生化”

涂丽平

主題语境：生态保护措施 篇幅：341词 建议用时：7分钟

1 Animal and plant species are disappearing at frightening rates. The problem has ledto efforts to“ rewild” places where such life existed before human development， pollutionand climate change forced it out. The American city of Detroit is an example of how humanactions can increase rewilding， which generally means helping natural systems in damagedlocations， removing dams or building tunnels to reconnect animal pathways cut by roads.

2 Detroit's population reached 1.8 million inthe 1950s. Then the population began dropping. By2000， there were fewer than one million peopleliving in the city. Thousands of houses and otherbuildings were left empty over the years. Somestructures were destroyed， leaving empty areas thatplants and animals regained as habitats. Nonprofitgroups have also planted trees and community gardens in these areas. Bald eagles foundtheir way back as bans on DDT and some other insect poisons were put in place nationwide.Anti?pollution laws and government?supported cleanups made nearby rivers better for fishand native plants.

3 Now， Detroit is home to 300 bird species and is a busy visiting place for ducks andothers during migration. Additionally， this city offers a special way to study plants and animalsin urban settings. Unlike most big cities， its population is decreasing， but its streets and buildings remain in place. And there are many kinds of habitats， including large lakes，rivers and human neighborhoods. Detroit's parklands are so quiet that people don't evenknow they're in the city.

“4 It used to be that you had to go to some remote locations to get close to nature，” saidJohn Hartig， a professor of University of Windsor.“ Now thats not the case. Like it or not，rewilding will occur. The question is how we can prepare communities and environments toanticipate the presence of more and more wildlife. After all， many city people have no forwildlife. To really make a difference in dealing with the biodiversity crisis， you're going tohave to have people on board.”

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1. Which of the following is rewilding？

A. The restoration of natural habitats.

B. The destruction of human settlements.

C. The building of new animal pathways.

D. The introduction of new wild species.

2. What can we learn from the example of Detroit？

A. It's government efforts that really matter.

B. Humans are to blame for the worsening environment.

C. Humans' efforts can make a difference in rewilding.

D. It's hard for humans and wildlife to live in harmony.

3. What is John Hartig's opinion on rewilding？

A. He believes it is unnecessary.

B. He believes it will happen naturally.

C. He thinks it will be difficult to achieve.

D. He thinks it will be harmful to the urban environment.

4. What does the underlined word“ anticipate” in paragraph 4 mean？

A. Preserve. B. Draw. C. Imagine. D. Expect.

Language

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Ⅰ. 日積月累

frightening adj. 令人害怕的

habitat n. 栖息地

ban n. 禁令

cleanup n. 清洁行动

migration n. 迁徙

decrease v. 减少

tolerance n. 容忍

natural systems 自然系统

insect poisons 杀虫剂

biodiversity crisis 生物多样性危机

Ⅱ. 语法填空

Located up to 4600 meters above sea level， Hoh Xil is China's largest uninhabitedarea. The view of mountains， glaciers and lakes all in the same area makes 1._________aparadise in terms of natural 2. _________（beautiful）.

At the 41st session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee 3.__________（hold） inPoland on July 7， Hoh Xil 4.__________（approve） as a new world heritage site， becoming the51st world heritage site in China. It is home to more than 230 species of wildlife， includingthe endangered Tibetan antelope. 5.__________the fierce weather， the poaching of Tibetanantelopes used to be a serious problem in the 1990s. The wool of Tibetan antelopes， softand warm， can be obtained 6.__________hurting the animals. But poachers would choose to7. __________（simple） kill them before taking the wool， 8.__________caused the number ofTibetan antelopes to drop rapidly. The struggle 9.__________（stop） illegal hunting was portrayedin the 2004 film Kekexili： Mountain Patrol.

Now that Hoh Xil has made it onto the UNESCO list， the protection of the region'swild animals and ecosystem will be 10.__________（effective） than ever before.