首页
外语
计算机
考研
公务员
职业资格
财经
工程
司法
医学
专升本
自考
实用职业技能
登录
外语
Most people think of lions as strictly African beasts, but only because they’ve been killed off almost everywhere else. Ten thou
Most people think of lions as strictly African beasts, but only because they’ve been killed off almost everywhere else. Ten thou
admin
2010-06-18
65
问题
Most people think of lions as strictly African beasts, but only because they’ve been killed off almost everywhere else. Ten thousand years ago lions spanned vast sections of the globe, and so did people, who--as they multiplied and organized—put pressure on competitors at the top of the food chain. Now lions hold only a small fraction of their former habitat, and Asiatic lions, a subspecies that split from African lions perhaps 100,000 years ago, hang on to an almost impossibly small slice of their former domain.
India is the proud steward of these 300 or so lions, which live primarily in a 560-square-mile (1,450-square-kilometer) sanctuary. It took me a year and a half to get a permit to explore the entire Gir Forest—and no time at all to see why these lions became symbols of royalty and greatness. A tiger will slink through the forest unseen, but a lion stands its ground, curious and unafraid—lionhearted. Though they told me in subtle ways when I got too close, Gir’s lions allowed me unique glimpses into their lives during my three months in the forest. It’s odd to think that they are threatened by extinction; Gir has as many lions as it can hold—too many, in fact. With territory in short supply, lions prowl the periphery of the forest and even leave it altogether, often clashing with people. That’s one reason India is creating a second sanctuary. There are other pressing reasons: outbreaks of disease or natural disasters. In 1994 canine distemper killed more than a third of Africa’ s Serengeti ]ions—a thousand animals—a fate that could easily befall Gir’s cats. These lions, saved by a prince at the turn of the 20th century, are especially vulnerable to disease because they descend from as few as a dozen individuals. "If you do a DNA fingerprint, Asiatic lions actually look like identical twins," says Stephen O’Brien, a geneticist who has studied them. Yet the perils are hidden, and you wouldn’t suspect them by watching these lords of the forest. The lions exude vitality, and no small measure of charm.
Though the gentle intimacy of play vanishes when it’s time to eat, meals in Gir are not necessarily frenzied affairs. For a mother and cub sharing a deer, or a young male relishing an antelope, there’s no need to fight for a cut of the kill. Prey animals are generally smaller in Gir than they are in Africa, and hunting groups tend to be smaller as well. The lions themselves aren’t as big as African lions, and they have shorter manes and a long fold of skin on their undersides that many lions in Africa don’t have.
Why are the lions in the Git Forest especially vulnerable to disease?
选项
A、They are physically weaker than the African lions.
B、They are small in size.
C、They do not have enough to eat.
D、They have descended from a dozen or so ancestors.
答案
D
解析
转载请注明原文地址:https://www.kaotiyun.com/show/Y1lO777K
0
专业英语八级
相关试题推荐
IntheruinsofthePalmBeachHotelyougetapowerfulsensethataneraisdrawingtoaclosethatIsrael’sattempttosettle
IntheruinsofthePalmBeachHotelyougetapowerfulsensethataneraisdrawingtoaclosethatIsrael’sattempttosettle
InAustralia,reportsaboutAboriginalpeopleoftenmakefordepressingreading.Justafewdaysago,thelatestofficialreport
LincolnexpectedthatAmericawouldbecomeanationdoubtfulaboutitsheroesanditshistory.Inhisastonishingaddresstothe
InearlyJune,theOrganizationforEconomicCooperationandDevelopment(OECD)—thecluboftheworld’swealthyandalmostwealt
InearlyJune,theOrganizationforEconomicCooperationandDevelopment(OECD)—thecluboftheworld’swealthyandalmostwealt
Howisurbanizationnegativelyaffectingoursociety?Theanswertothisquestionisnotasimpleone.Urbanism【C1】______,polit
Goodmorning.Thediscussiontopicfortoday’sseminaris"HomelessnessinAmerica."IntheUnitedStates,homelessnesshas【C1】
A、Americaneducatorshavespentagreatdealonclassroomcomputers.B、EuropeanandAsianeducatorswillnotfollowAmericancou
WhichisthelargestfreshwaterlakeintheUnitedStates?
随机试题
屋外配电装置软导体选择,请选出条件正确的。软导体截面选择和校验为()。
格式条款的解释应坚持的原则有()
溶血反应主要是用来检测
《人民币银行结算账户管理办法》规定,存款人不得发生的行为包括()。
生漆
2010年10月,甲企业接到一份服装加工的订单,由于资金不足,甲企业与提供原材料的乙公司签订合同,以本企业所有的一辆奔驰轿车(价值80万元)作抵押,为应付的50万元原材料货款提供担保。双方在合同中约定:如甲企业到期不能支付货款,则该奔驰车归乙公司所有。由于
防止遗忘最根本的方法是________。
根据以下资料,回答下题。根据所给资料,下列说法中正确的是:
将强化分为直接强化、替代性强化、自我强化的心理学家是()
请在当前状态下,从第1张幻灯片开始放映,从第1张幻灯片到第3张幻灯片进行排练计时,时间(秒)分别为4、10、6,在第4张幻灯片放映结束,并保留本次的排练计时
最新回复
(
0
)