Long fishing ban improves biodiversity in Yangtze River

河南 刘同功

近30 年来，长江江豚数量急剧下降。如今“长江十年禁渔计划”措施效果初现：江豚数量持续减少的势头不仅被逆转，而且江豚数量实现了增长。

主题语境：生态保护 篇幅：345词 建议用时：6分钟

1 In the scorching summer sun, 65-year-old photographer Yang He patiently awaits at the bank of the Yangtze River in Yichang City of central China's Hubei Province every noon to capture finless porpoises (江豚) with his camera.

2 Yang said that finless porpoises are a reminder of his childhood.“I have vivid memories of playing by the riverbank and witnessing herds of finless porpoises playing in the water,” recalled Yang, adding that as human activity increased in the Yichang section of the Yangtze River over the years, it became increasingly challenging to catch sight of these magnificent mammals.Known as the “giant panda of the water”, the Yangtze finless porpoise is under top-level state protection and serves as a symbol of the Yangtze River ecology.

3 To restore the biodiversity along the river, China imposed a full fishing ban in 332 areas of the Yangtze River basin in January 2020.The move has since been expanded to a 10-year ban along the river's main streams and major branches.The fishing ban and removal of the big polluters have improved biodiversity in the Yangtze River.The species has been more frequently spotted in Poyang Lake, Dongting Lake, and the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River.

4 “Back in 2017, capturing even a single photograph of finless porpoises in Yichang throughout the entire year was a challenge,” said Yang.“However, things took a turn in 2020 as more sightings of finless porpoises began to be reported.Once I saw a pod of five or six of them and tirelessly searched along the river for months until I eventually discovered that they had settled in Dianjun District.Now I can put my hand on my heart and say that I can capture finless porpoises with my camera every day.”

5 Other bioresources in the key waters of the Yangtze River have also seen a recovery.According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, in 2022, 193 varieties of fish were spotted in these waters, marking an increase of 25 varieties from 2020.

Reading Check

Detail1.When did the 10-year fishing ban formally start?

A.In 2017.

B.In 2020.

C.In 2021.

D.In 2022.

Detail2.What caused the terrible situation of finless porpoises according to Yang?

A.Climate change.

B.Natural enemies.

C.Human activity.

D.Water pollution.

Inference3.What can be concluded about the 10-year fishing ban from paragraph 3?

A.It has so far proved very effective.

B.It is restricted to the Yangtze River basin.

C.It's intended to protect finless porpoises.

D.It's carried out in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River.

Inference 4.Why did Yang once search along the Yangtze River for months?

A.To discover more fish species.

B.To discover finless porpoises.

C.To report on biodiversity along the river.

D.To rescue a family of finless porpoises.

Language Study

Ⅰ.Difficult sentence in the text

Once I saw a pod of five or six of them and tirelessly searched along the river for months until I eventually discovered that they had settled in Dianjun District.一次，我发现了一个由五六只个体组成的江豚群，我不知疲倦地沿江搜寻了好几个月，最后才发现它们定居在点军区。

【点石成金】本句是一个主从复合句。主句中的and连接并列谓语saw和searched；until引导时间状语从句，该从句中含有一个that引导的宾语从句。

Ⅱ.Text-centered chunks

catch sight of 看见；瞥见

be known as 作为……而出名

serve as 充当……

take a turn 发生转变