This amazing animal could disappear from the wild in our lifetime.老虎的未来。这种令人惊奇的动物有可能在我们有生之年就从野外消失踪影。
One hundred years ago, over 100,000 tigers wandered the earth, but today there are less than 4,000 in the wild. Even more alarming is the fact that unless immediate answers are found, the tiger could become extinct within a decade.
Tiger basics
Traditionally tigers have been admired for their strength, size, beauty and bold colors. Tigers may look alike, but no two tigers have the same pattern of stripes. They are the largest of the big cats, with bodies as long as two meters and one-meter-long tails.
Tigers are powerful, muscular - weighing up to 363 kilograms - and incredibly fast. They can run at speeds up to 56 kilometers per hour. This speed and strength gives them an advantage over their prey, allowing them to kill much larger animals for food. Tigers have excellent eyesight and hunt in the dark. They hunt alone and travel over a wide area in search of food. Yet in spite of these qualities, nothing has been able to prevent the rapid decline of this beautiful beast.
The threats
In the 20th century alone, three subspecies became extinct: the Bali tiger, the Caspian tiger and the Javan tiger. From the 1930s through the 1980s, one of these subspecies of tigers disappeared nearly every 20 years. Up until the 1930s, tiger hunting was the greatest menace, but since then, loss of habitat has become a major threat. In the past, tigers roamed from Siberia to Bali and from Turkey to the Russian and Chinese coastlines. Today only about seven percent of their original habitat remains, resulting in fewer tigers in the wild.
As more forests are converted into zones for agricultural or building sites, the tigers' hunting and mating grounds are increasingly lost. The clearing and selling of timber is another factor that is leading to disappearing territory for the tigers.
However, loss of habitat is only one of the reasons why these big cats are endangered. Poachers hunt and kill the animals for various body parts that are sold and used in traditional Asian medicines. Tigers are also widely hunted for their fur. Agencies around the world are searching for ways to save this magnificent animal, but will the solutions come in time?
How can we make a difference?
How can we help governments and agencies like the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) who are working hard to save the tigers?
* Encourage friends and family members to never use anything made from illegal tiger parts. Spread the word that governments have found and approved other sources of traditional medicine made without tiger parts.
* Contact officials and ask for stricter laws against poachers and private owners.
* Pledge to buy wood and paper products made only from legally cleared forests. Look for products that carry the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) label, guaranteeing that the item comes from legal sources.
* Take a tiger vacation. Traveling to tiger reserves in India and elsewhere helps provide desperately needed income and builds support for tiger protection.
WWF hopes to help double the number of tigers in the wild by 2022, the next Year of the Tiger. Let's do our part before it's too late to save these amazing animals.
Grammar Tips:
Tigers may look alike, but no two tigers have the same pattern of orange and black stripes.
"but no two tigers have the same pattern..."\
"no two...." (directly and straightly specking) - there is not even two has alike.
No two snowflakes are alike.
No two people have the same handwriting.
" no two " - talk about what people can not do.
No two students may share a bus pass, each student must have his or her own bus pass.
Vocabulary Tips:
extinct - no longer exist. 灭种的，灭绝的。 "ex" -有“向外”之意。
*Due to rapid climate changes, this kind of butterfly is almost extinct now.
extinction (n)-灭种。绝迹。
*Congo mountain gorillas are facing extinction. 人猿
muscular - well developed muscles. 肌肉发达的，健壮的。肌肉的。
*The model is tall and muscular.
*Derek has been working out a lot, hoping to be more muscular for the game.
muscular pain -肌肉疼（医）
muscle -肌肉
*These exercises are aimed to train stomach muscles.腹肌。
decline - reduce, gradually decrease. 减少，下降，衰退。
*Hanna's health condition started to decline after she was hospitalized.
*Unemployment rates have been declining for the past three months.
*The exchange rate of the US dollars declined rapidly last year.
prey (n) - they are his hunting target of food. victim. 掠物，掠食的对象。
eyesight - seeing ability.
beast - big, large, strong animals.野兽
bold color - bright and contrast in color.
disappear - no long can be seen.
alarm - be aware of..
stripe -strip line of black and orange. 条纹。
menace - cause harm.威胁,危害。
*You can't ignore the growing menace of global warming.
*Stray dogs are considered a menace to the public.
*You could feel a hint of menace as he talked. 他说话。。有威胁的成分。
roam - Tiger moves or travels around in certain field to find food.漫游，慢步，在某个地方流浪。
*Buffalos used to roam this field, but now there are only a few left.漫游
*Tourists roam the streets of the village on weekends.
converted - exchange, exchange to... , exchange into...转变，变换，。成(to ,into)什么。。
*The garage was converted into a study.
*Shirley knew the formula for converting pounds to kilos when she was six.
thread -that cause danger or harm.
subspecies - a group of plant or animal are related but in a certain way.
poacher -people who illegally catch animals or enter into other properties. poach (vi) -采取不当手段，成泥泞，加水调匀，侵入。。（(vt) 滚煮，践踏，欺骗，(vi/vt) 偷猎）
endanger - a few left, very soon they become extinction .频临灭种的
timber - lumber, wood. lumberjack logging trees.
mating ground - an friendly environment for tiger to produce babies. 生育繁殖的环境。
habitat -栖息地,自然繁殖地，住所。 habitation (n) －住所，住宅，居住
inhabitant -居民，居住者，栖居的动物。inhabitancy (n)-居住，住所。
wildlife - animal live in nature without the help form human.野生生物。
*Richard is devoted to the conservation of wildlife in Africa. 。。野生生物的保育。
*Wildlife in this area was harmed by polluted soil and water.
pledge (v) - strong, serious promise.发誓，保证，承诺。(n)-承诺，保证。
*I pledged to exercise three times a week.
*He pledged never to come home until he became successful.
*The voters will examine the candidate's election pledges.候选人的选举承诺。。被选民检视。
desperately (adv) - 孤注一掷地，拼命地，不顾一切地。desperate (adj)-情急的，迫切的。
*The contestant desperately tried to impress the judges.
*The man fell in the water desperately trying to stay above the water.
illegal - is not legal; is against the law. You are not allowed.
strict - seriously follow the law. stricter -more strict.
private owner - is not "zoo". is refer to people privately own, feed, take care of ..
stewardship - you are responsible it and figure out how to use it.
council - a group of people or an organization in charge of the place.
Char Room:
look alike - (two words) -一抹一样的人或物。
Tigers may look alike.
look-alike (n) (one word) -看起来很像。。。
a celebrity look-alike: 有明星脸的人。
look-alike = forgery.
forgery -假货，假的，膺品。
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territory -领土，区域，地盘。
disappearing territory - （老虎）逐渐消失的活动范围。
territory -学问的领域。
unfamiliar territory -不熟悉的领域。
Computer problems are unfamiliar territory for me.
come with the territory = It's part of the job. 工作的一部分。如警察深夜出巡任务，军人调动地区，父母亲深夜起来喂婴儿吃奶等，都是职责的一部分。
－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－
tiger -老虎。
paper tiger -seeing dangerous but is really not harm. 指中国俗话所谓的“纸老虎”。
two tigers, one is without ear, and one is without tail,。。。 means "the thing is very strange". 中国童谣“两支老虎。。。真奇怪。
have tiger by the tail - means you have something more than you can handle.
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lose / loose / loss / lost :
loss- (n) －损失，失去，丢失，损耗，丧失，损毁，伤亡（人数），错过，浪费，降低。。。
loose - (lus) （adj) not tight, unclear...松，宽的，不严格的，不明确的，暧昧的，散放的，没加约束的，不结实的，散慢，放荡的。。。
lose (luz) (vi)-受损失，赔钱，破坏，损失。失去，抓不住。。失败。。something is missing.
lost -lose 过去式。
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on time / in time:
on time -准时
in time - 及时
just in time - 正好及时。
He arrived just in time for the opening ceremony.
Agencies around the world are searching for ways to save this magnificent animal but will the solutions come in time? 解决办法会能及时吗？能来得及吗？
out of time -not enough time, time is running out.
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