Making friends with gorillas

湖南江華縣第一中學(xué) 何高倫

題材約776 14分鐘動物 記敘文體裁 文章詞數(shù) 建議用時

難詞探意

1.acquainted /?'kwe?nt?d/ adj.熟悉的

2.roam /r??m/ v.閑逛；漫步

3.buckle /'b?kl/ n.搭扣；鎖扣

4.elicit /i'l?s?t/ v.引出；誘出

5.doom /du?m/ v.使……注定失敗（或遭殃、死亡等）

6.encounter /?n'ka?nt?(r)/ n.相遇；邂逅

7.therein /,ee?r'?n/ adv.在其中；在那里

8.infest /?n'fest/ v.大批出沒于；大量滋生

9.encroachment /?n'kr??t?m?nt/ n.侵犯；侵占

10.concerted /k?n'sз?t?d/ adj.努力的； 同心協(xié)力的

Part Ⅰ

Over the past three years I have spent most of my days with wild mountain gorillas.Their home, and mine, have been the misty wooded slopes of the Virunga range, eight lofty volcanoes shared by three African nations, Rwanda, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

During this time I have become wellacquaintedwith many of the gorillas.Theyroamthe mountain slopes in groups, and several groups now accept my presence almost as a member.I can approach to within a few feet of them, and some, especially the young adults, have come even closer, picked up my camera strap, and examined thebuckleon my backpack.One has even played with the laces on my boots.

I know the gorillas as individuals, each with his own traits and personality, and, mainly for identification in my hundreds of pages of notes, I have given many of them names: Rafiki, Uncle Bert,Icarus, and so on.This familiarity was not easily won.The textbook instruction for such studies is merely to sit and observe.I wasn't satisfied with this approach; I felt that the gorillas would be doubly suspicious of any alien object that only sat and stared.Instead, I tried toelicittheir confidence and curiosity by acting like a gorilla.I imitated their behavior, and later, when I was sure what they meant, I copied their vocalizations, including some unusual deep belching(打嗝) noises.Many times, I hit my chest rhythmically, or sit about pretending to eat a stalk of wild celery as though it were the most delicious food in the world like a fool.Luckily, all the efforts finally paid off.The gorillas have responded favorably.

Gorillas are the largest of the great apes.A mature male may be six feet tall and weigh 400 pounds or more.His enormous arms can span eight feet.The mountain gorilla's range is limited to a small area of wet forests in central Africa.Only a few thousand remain there, leading a dangerous existence.Part of the territory they occupy has been set aside as parkland, and gorillas are strictly protected.But in fact they are being pushed into ever-smaller ranges, chiefly by poachers.Unless a better-planned and more-determined effort is made to save the mountain gorilla, it isdoomedto extinction within the next two or three decades.

Reading Check

1.What can be learned from the second paragraph?

A.Mountain gorillas often live on wooded slopes.

B.A large number of gorillas have been found in Africa.

C.Mountain gorillas accept the author's presence gradually.

D.There is something wrong with the author's camera.

2.What's the instruction from the textbook for gorilla studies?

A.Using cameras to take photos of gorillas.

B.Taking notes after observation.

C.Focusing on what gorillas eat.

D.Sitting and observing.

3.Why did the author act like a gorilla?

A.To follow the instruction from the textbook.

B.To arouse gorillas' curiosity and gain their trust.

C.To experience gorillas' life in person.

D.To respond to gorillas.

Language Study

Sentence for writing

Over the past three years I have spent most of my days with wild mountain gorillas.

【信息提取】有“over+時間段”結(jié)構(gòu)的句子常用現(xiàn)在完成時。

【句式仿寫】這些年來她沒有多大變化。

Part Ⅱ

My study of the wild gorilla is not yet finished, and even when it is complete, it will contribute only a small part toward man's understanding of his closest animal relatives, the great apes.

After more than 2,000 hours of direct observation, I can explain in less than five minutes of what might be called “aggressive” behavior.That was, I am sure, my most dramaticencounter, in which five large males charged at me, roaring wildly.They stopped—the leader was only three feet away—when I simply spread my arms wide and shouted “Whoa! ”

Naturally an animal is going to try to protect itself, and there are a number of recorded instances of gorillas attacking humans when the latter hunted them.The fact is that when man moves in, in numbers, the gorilla moves out, andthereinlies the threat to his existence.The Parc des Volcans in Rwanda, where I conduct most of my studies, is heavilyinfestedwith poachers, whose cattle eat grass right through my camp area.Park boundaries have no meaning to these tribesmen.

The poachers are of two kinds.First there are the honey gatherers living near the forest,whose worst crime is cutting trees that harbor bee nests.The other poachers are usually members of the Pygmoid tribe known as Batwa.Their main prey is normally a small red forest antelope.They set traps that may leave the animals hanging up in the air by one leg for days.They do not hunt gorillas deliberately, though occasionally one does get caught in a trap.But the sounds of the hunt terrify the gorillas; they flee from the hunters, and in one instance that I observed, it took two days for a group to get back together.

Thus the mountain gorilla faces serious danger of extinction, primarily because of theencroachmentsof native man upon its habitat—and neglect by civilized man, who does not protect even the limited areas now for the gorilla's survival.

Money alone will not solve the problem.Conservation groups and political authority must join inconcertedprograms if this area and its wildlife are to be saved from human trespassers.Such help is overdue.I only hope that my forest friends can survive until it comes.

Reading Check

1.Why do gorillas attack humans?

A.To protect themselves.

B.To struggle for their habitats.

C.To get more food.

D.To show their existence.

2.What's the fourth paragraph mainly about?

A.Types of traps from poachers.

B.Different kinds of poachers.

C.Gorillas' escape from poachers.

D.Sounds of poachers' hunt.

3.What's the meaning of the underlined word “trespassers” in the last paragraph?

A.People who raise gorillas for a living.

B.People who trade gorillas illegally.

C.People who raise gorillas as pets.

D.People who enter a certain area without permission.

4.What's the author's attitude to gorillas' situation at present?

A.Positive.

B.Neutral.

C.Worried.

D.Unclear.

Language Study

Sentence for writing

First there are the honey gatherers living near the forest, whose worst crime is cutting trees that harbor bee nests.

【信息提取】whose在該句中引導(dǎo)非限制性定語從句，對honey gatherers進(jìn)行補(bǔ)充說明。

【句式仿寫】我非常喜歡這個房間，它的窗戶面朝大海。