我们能做的，还有很多

贺艳琼

毫无疑问，非洲的生物多样性令人惊叹。不幸的是，近年来，越来越多的非洲野生动物面临灭绝的危险……

1 Without doubt， Africa includes some of the most diverse and powerful wildlife in the world. Its what keeps tourists coming back and environmentalists impassioned  （充满激情的）. Unfortunately， much of the wildlife that Africa is famous for has come under threat in recent years， as more and more African animals are at the risk of dying out.

2 Rhinos， the large yet gentle animals are currently considered greatly endangered in Africa. This is mostly due to poaching on a large scale and habitat destruction， although there are many contributing factors. Shockingly， World Wildlife Fund （WWF） states that there were 500，000 rhinos in Africa at the start of the 20th century. However， only 29，000 remain in the wild today.

3 The African mountain gorilla （大猩猩） has faced wars， civil unrest （动乱） and habitat destruction over the years. Today， there may be as few as 700 mountain gorillas left in the wild. In fact， according to WWF， the future for mountain gorillas was once thought to be so hopeless that many people thought the species would be entirely extinct by the end of the 20th century. Luckily， things have been looking up in recent years thanks to conservation efforts， as the population has shown a slow but steady increase.

4 Leopards （豹） are powerful creatures. They have seen a major population decrease in recent years， and can be found in many continents across the globe， including Africa， Asia and Russia. Despite this， the leopard is currently considered rather endangered. According to the International Society for Endangered Cats （ISEC） Canada， nearly 37 percent of leopards have been wiped out of their African range.

5 Unfortunately， the list of endangered wildlife in Africa goes on. It seems that there is no animal free from the threat of extinction in Africa. There is so much we can do to help. For a full list of tips and tricks on how we can help endangered wildlife in our area and the world， head to www.worldwildlife.org.

[Reading][Check]

1. What do the mentioned animals have in common？

A. All of them are at the risk of extinction.

B. All of them are well protected by WWF.

C. All of them have suffered from wars and killing.

D. All of them have enough food to eat.

2. What can be learned about leopards according to the text？

A. They are widely spread over the world.

B. Half of them have been killed so far.

C. They are now driven out of Africa.

D. More than half of the animals live in Russia.

3. What is the authors attitude to the protection of wildlife？

A. Curious. B. Indifferent. C. Hopeful. D. Concerned.

4. Where is this text probably taken from？

A. A magazine. B. A newspaper. C. A report. D. A website.

[Language][Study]

Useful expressions

diverse wildlife 多樣的野生动物

be famous for 因……而闻名

under threat 遭受威胁

at risk of dying out 面临灭绝的危险

due to 由于

poach on a large scale 大量偷猎

habitat destruction 栖息地的破坏

It seems that... 似乎……