2017年06月六级第3套仔细阅读 Passage 2 原文翻译及答案解析

Massive rubbish dumps and sprawling landfills constitute one of the more uncomfortable impacts that humans have on wildlife. They have led some birds to give up on migration. Instead of flying thousands of miles in search of food, they make the waste sites their winter feeding grounds.

大规模垃圾堆和蔓延的垃圾填埋场构成了人类对野生动物更令人不安的影响之一。它们已导致一些鸟类放弃迁徙。这些鸟类不再飞行数千英里寻找食物，而是将废物站点作为它们的冬季觅食地。

Researchers in Germany used miniature GPS tags to track the migrations of 70 white storks from different sites across Europe and Asia during the first five months of their lives. While many birds travelled along well-known routes to warmer climates, others stopped short and spent the winter on landfills, feeding on food waste, and the multitudes of insects that thrive on the dumps.

德国的研究人员使用微型GPS标签追踪了70只白鹳在生命头五个月从欧洲和亚洲不同地点的迁徙。虽然许多鸟类沿着已知路线飞往更温暖的气候区，但其他鸟类中途停止，在垃圾填埋场过冬，以食物残渣和大量滋生在垃圾堆上的昆虫为食。

In the short-term, the birds seem to benefit from overwintering (过冬) on rubbish dumps. Andrea Flack of the Max Planck Institute found that birds following traditional migration routes were more likely to die than German storks that flew only as far as northern Morocco, and spent the winter there on rubbish dumps. "For the birds it's a very convenient way to get food. There are huge clusters of organic waste they can feed on," said Flack. The meals are not particularly appetising, or even safe. Much of the waste is discarded rotten meat, mixed in with other human debris such as plastic bags and old toys.

短期内，鸟类似乎从在垃圾堆上过冬中受益。马克斯·普朗克研究所的安德烈亚·弗拉克发现，遵循传统迁徙路线的鸟类比那些只飞到北非摩洛哥并在那里垃圾堆过冬的德国白鹳更有可能死亡。弗拉克说：“对鸟类来说，这是一种获取食物的便捷方式。有大量有机废物可供它们取食。”这些食物并不特别开胃，甚至不安全。大部分废物是丢弃的腐肉，混杂着其他人类残余物，如塑料袋和旧玩具。

"It's very risky. The birds can easily eat pieces of plastic or rubber bands and they can die," said Flack. "And we don't know about the long-term consequences. They might eat something toxic and damage their health. We cannot estimate that yet."

弗拉克说：“这非常危险。鸟类很容易吃下塑料片或橡皮筋，它们可能会死亡。而且我们不知道长期后果。它们可能吃下有毒物质，损害健康。我们目前还无法估计。”

The scientists tracked white storks from different colonies in Europe and Africa. The Russian, Greek and Polish storks flew as far as South Africa, while those from Spain, Tunisia and Germany flew only as far as the Sahel.

科学家追踪了来自欧洲和非洲不同群体的白鹳。俄罗斯、希腊和波兰的白鹳飞到了南非，而来自西班牙、突尼斯和德国的白鹳只飞到了萨赫勒地区。

Landfill sites on the Iberian peninsula have long attracted local white storks, but all of the Spanish birds tagged in the study flew across the Sahara desert to the western Sahel. Writing in the journal, the scientists describe how the storks from Germany were clearly affected by the presence of waste sites, with four out of six birds that survived for at least five months overwintering on rubbish dumps in northern Morocco, instead of migrating to the Sahel.

伊比利亚半岛的垃圾填埋场长期以来吸引了当地的白鹳，但该研究中所有被标记的西班牙白鹳都飞越撒哈拉沙漠到了萨赫勒西部。科学家在期刊中写道，来自德国的白鹳明显受到废物站点存在的影响，六只中至少存活五个月的四只白鹳在北非摩洛哥的垃圾堆过冬，而不是迁徙到萨赫勒地区。

Flack said it was too early to know whether the benefits of plentiful food outweighed the risks of feeding on landfills. But that's not the only uncertainty. Migrating birds affect ecosystems both at home and at their winter destinations, and disrupting the traditional routes could have unexpected side effects. White storks feed on (螳虫) and other insects that can become pests if their numbers get out of hand. "They provide a useful service," said Flack.

弗拉克说，现在还为时过早，无法知道丰富食物的好处是否超过了在垃圾填埋场觅食的风险。但这并不是唯一的不确定性。迁徙鸟类影响着家乡和冬季目的地的生态系统，扰乱传统路线可能产生意想不到的副作用。白鹳以（蝗虫）和其他昆虫为食，如果这些昆虫数量失控，它们可能会成为害虫。弗拉克说：“它们提供了一种有用的服务。”