The oldest desert

甘肃天祝藏族自治县第一中学 王曰福

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难词探意

1.oryx/'ɒrɪks/n.大羚羊

2.ambush/'æmbʊʃ/n.埋伏；伏击

3.gravel/'ɡrævl/n.沙砾

4.sparse/spɑːs/adj.稀疏的

5.lichen/'laɪkən/n.地衣

Imagine a world where temperatures rise to 120 degrees Fahrenheit,where there's no escape from sun,wind and dust.Imagine a world with almost no food or water.These arethe conditions in one third of the lands of our planet.To live here demands the most extraordinary survival strategies.This is the oldest desert in the world,the Namib in south-west Africa.It is home to a number of unusual species of plants and animals that are found nowhere else in the world.Most of the animals and plants that survive in the Namib by unique adaptations.

It's been dry for 55 million years.Life here for a hunter is hard.A pride of lions is one of the very few thatenduresthisdesert's high temperatures and lack of water. Hunting here presents special problems.A herd oforyxis the only prey within 20 miles.Out here,there is no cover for anambush.It'll have to be a straight chase.They have failed,and each failed hunt brings the lions closer to starvation.To find enough to eat,the pride continually searches an area the size of Switzerland.

Three days and 100 miles later,and there is still no kill.These are desperate times.A dry riverbed is on the edge of their territory.The only animals here are giraffes,but these giants could kill a lion with a single kick.Lions seldom attack them,but this pride can't go on much longer without food.The whole pride must work together as a team if they're to succeed.Two lionesses lead the chase.Others race to cut off possible escape routes.The giraffe has the speed and strength to outrun the pride,but it's being chased into a trap.Up ahead,the lead female waits.It's now up to her.Most lion hunts end in failure.But no lions fail more often than those that live in the desert.Once again,the pride must continue their search...

A major threat to the Namib Desert is the influence of off-road driving,which is mostly on thegravelplains where depressions left by vehiclesremain formore than forty years because the rainfall is toosparseto erase them.These tracks are unsightly and cause longlasting damage to thelichenfields.Lichens are particularly sensitive to mechanical damage as they grow extremely slowly and cannot quickly recover.Most of the damage is done by mining company vehicles on prospecting expeditions.

Reading Check

1.What is paragraph 1 mainly about?

A.The species in deserts. B.The temperature of deserts.

C.The environment of deserts. D.The survival strategies in deserts.

2.The underlined part in paragraph 2 refers to ___________.

A.lions B.lichens C.giraffes D.oryx

3.What threatens the Namib Desert most?

A.Rare rainfall. B.Poor transport.

C.Mining vehicles. D.Rich lichen fields.

Language Study

Sentence for writing

To live here demands the most extraordinary survival strategies.在这里生存下去需要最非凡的求生技能。

【信息提取】动词不定式to do作主语，谓语动词用单数。

【句式仿写】学好英语并不容易。