Feral deer in the headlines: Australia's 'slow-moving plague' is finally being noticed
野生鹿上了头条：澳大利亚“缓慢移动的瘟疫”终于被注意到了
Australians have increasingly become used to the idea that deer will turn up in places that they shouldn't, including near and in major cities. This week, two men were reportedly startled by a deer while sunbathing on a beach in the Royal national park south of Sydney.
鹿会出现在它们不该出现的地方，包括市郊以及各大城市的市区。对此，澳大利亚人已经越来越习以为常了。据报道，本周两名男子在皇家国家公园（位于悉尼南部）的沙滩上晒太阳时，被一只鹿给吓坏了。
While they may have been in the headlines recently, feral deer have not had the same profile as other invasive species — think cats, foxes and pigs — but they have had a similarly destructive impact on vulnerable ecosystems. They also pose a biosecurity threat as potential carriers of disease and are a road safety risk in and around towns and cities.
虽然最近野鹿登上了新闻头条，但它们的形象和其他入侵物种有所不同——想想野猫、野狐还有野猪，不过野鹿对脆弱的生态系统造成了类似的破坏性影响。作为潜在的疾病携带者，野鹿还对人们构成了生物安全上的威胁，并且给城镇及其周边地区的道路安全带来了风险。
Annelise Wiebkin, who is an ecologist with a biosecurity background, says although deer have been present in Australia for a long time, the problem really emerged in the past 20 years after the peak in deer farming in the 1990s.
安妮丝·韦布金是一位具有生物安全背景的生态学家，她指出，虽然鹿在澳大利亚已经存在了很长时间，但在 20 世纪 90 年代鹿业养殖达到顶峰后的 20 年里，这个问题才真正显现出来。
As a result of deer being released or translocated, seed populations had formed in many places and numbers had grown, she said. In some breeding seasons, populations can grow by as much as 35%, meaning a significant number of animals have to be culled just to keep populations at the same level.
韦布金说，鹿的放生或转移导致许多地方形成了种子种群，继而使鹿的数量有所增加。在某些繁殖季节，鹿的种群数量增幅可达 35%，这意味着人们必须捕杀大量的鹿，才能让种群数量保持在同等水平。
There's currently no bait registered in Australia for deer, but Wiebkin says there will be research into this in the near future. "I would like to see more tools available for land managers," she says. "Aerial culls in parks or on private land will continue and are a very effective way to drop numbers."
目前，澳大利亚还没有为猎杀鹿而登记注册的诱饵，但是韦布金表示，人们在不久的将来会对此进行研究。“我希望看到更多可供土地管理者使用的工具，”她说，“公园和私人领地的空中扑杀活动将继续进行，这是减少鹿群数量的一种非常有效的方法。”
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主编：Amy
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审核：Jojo
Photo Credit：
T. R. Shankar Raman, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
重点词汇
feral
/ˈfer.əl/
adj. 野生的（尤指原为家养的动物）；狂野的，桀骜不驯的
搭配短语：a feral grin（狂野的）
(be) in the headlines
（成为）报纸（或电视）上的新闻头条
相关词汇：headline（n.（报纸的）大字标题）
相关词汇：head（n. 顶端，上端）
相关词汇：line（n. 字行）
例句：The scandal was in the headlines for several days.
近义词组：make / grab the headlines
例句：The actor has grabbed the headlines with his new movie.
plague
/pleɪɡ/
n. 瘟疫；灾难，灾祸（古英语）
词性拓展：plague（v. 困扰，折磨）
英文释义：to cause pain or trouble to sb. or sth. over a period of time
例句：The American West has been plagued by drought recently.
reportedly
/rıˈpoɚtədli/
adv. 据说，据报道
英文释义：according to what some people say
例句：Japan is reportedly set to declare a fresh Covid-19 state of emergency in Tokyo.
startle
/ˈstɑːr.t̬əl/
v. 使受惊，使吓一跳
词义辨析：startle, frighten
和 frighten 相比，startle 的惊愕程度更重，受惊者往往会作出向后撤退、跳起等反应动作。比如：Startled by the sudden whistle of the train, the horse broke away.，意思是“火车突然鸣笛，吓得那匹马脱缰而逃。”
相关词汇：startling（adj. 惊人的，令人震惊的）
搭配短语：a startling discovery
sunbathe
/ˈsʌn.beɪð/
v. 晒太阳，沐日光浴
相关词汇：sunbath（n. 日光浴）
音标：/ˈsʌn.bæθ/
例句：We spent the holiday sunbathing and relaxing on the beach.
profile
/ˈproʊ.faɪl/
n. 印象，形象；（人的）侧影，侧面轮廓；简介，概况
搭配短语：a picture of the president in profile（侧影）
搭配短语：the job profile（简介）
搭配短语：high profile（引入注目，高调）
例句：The company enjoyed a high profile with its new operating system.
反义词组：low profile（低调）
invasive
/ɪnˈveɪ.sɪv/
adj.（来自其他地区，对当地有危害的生物）侵入的
相关词汇：invade（v. 入侵，侵略）
例句：The Romans invaded Britain around 2000 years ago.
vulnerable
/ˈvʌl.nɚ.ə.bəl/
adj. 易受伤的，脆弱的
搭配短语：vulnerable groups
pose
/poʊz/
v. 造成，引起（尤指问题或困难）
词性拓展：pose（n.（为拍照等摆的）姿势）
英文释义：to cause something, especially a problem or difficulty
搭配短语：pose a threat / problem / risk
例句：Rising unemployment is posing serious problems for the U.S. government.
biosecurity
/ˌbaɪ.oʊ.sɪˈkjʊr.ə.t̬i/
n. 生物安全
相关词汇：security（n. 安全（保障））
词根词缀：bio-（表示“生物的，与生物有关的”）
相关词汇：biology（n. 生物学）
相关词汇：bioengineering（n. 生物工程）
release
/rɪˈliːs/
v. 释放，放走；宣泄（情感）；发行，上映
例句：Physical exercise is a good way of releasing stress.（宣泄）
例句：The movie will be released next month.（上映）
近义词：free（v. 释放，使自由）
translocate
/trænsˈloʊkeɪt/
v. 移动，转移
拓展发音：/trænzləʊˈkeɪt/
相关词汇：locate（v. 确定……的位置）
搭配短语：to locate yourself with a mapping app
词根词缀：trans-（表示“横穿，穿过”）
population
/ˌpɑː.pjəˈleɪ.ʃən/
n.（一定范围内的）动物总数；人口
breeding
/ˈbriː.dɪŋ/
n.（动物的）繁殖，饲养
相关词汇：breed（v.（动物的）交配繁殖）
例句：Pandas breed only at certain times of the year.
cull
/kʌl/
v.（为限制数量而对动物进行）选择性宰杀；挑选，收集（信息）
英文释义：to find or choose information from many different places
搭配短语：cull A from B
例句：The data had been culled from a variety of sources.
bait
/beɪt/
n. 饵，诱饵；诱惑物
搭配短语：take the bait
例句：Some people took the bait and lost their life savings.
aerial
/ˈer.i.əl/
adj. 空中的，空气中的
词根词缀：aer-（在希腊语中相当于 air，表示“空气”）
drop
/drɑːp/
v.（使）下降，（使）降低；掉下，落下
例句：Temperatures could drop quite dramatically at night.
