Bird Flu Spreads to More Countries
禽流感全球肆虐:多国进入紧急状态
Avian flu has reached new areas of the world and has become a year-round problem, animal and disease experts warn.
动物和疾病专家警告说,禽流感已经蔓延到世界上新的地区,并已成为一个全年的问题。
More than 20 experts and farmers on four continents spoke to the Reuters news agency about the problem.
来自四大洲的20多名专家和农民就这一问题接受了路透社的采访。
They suggested that record outbreaks will not stop soon on poultry farms.
他们表示,创纪录的禽流感疫情不会很快在家禽养殖场停止。
They also warned that farmers must view the disease as a serious risk all year, instead of doing prevention efforts during spring movement seasons for wild birds.
他们还警告说,农民必须全年都将这种疾病视为严重风险,而不是仅仅在野生鸟类的春季迁徙季节进行预防工作。
The outbreaks of the virus have continued through the summer heat and winter cold in North and South America, Europe, Asia and Africa.
该病毒在北美和南美、欧洲、亚洲和非洲持续爆发,经历了夏季炎热和冬季寒冷。
Egg prices set records after the disease killed tens of millions of chickens last year.
去年禽流感导致数千万只鸡死亡后,鸡蛋价格创下新高。
These record prices, at a time of worldwide economic problems, are especially damaging to people who use eggs as a main source of protein.
在全球经济出现问题之际,这些创纪录的价格对那些把鸡蛋作为蛋白质主要来源的人来说尤其不利。
Wild birds are mainly responsible for spreading the virus, experts say. Waterfowl like ducks can carry the disease without dying and pass it to poultry through contaminated waste, saliva and other means.
专家说,野生鸟类是传播病毒的主要原因。像鸭子这样的水禽可以携带这种疾病而不死亡,并通过受污染的粪便、唾液和其他方式将其传播给家禽。
Farmers' best efforts to protect their birds are falling short.
农民为保护家禽所做的最大努力还不够。
The U.S., Britain, France and Japan are among the countries that have suffered record losses of poultry over the past year, leaving some farmers feeling helpless.
美国、英国、法国和日本等国家在过去一年中遭受了创纪录的家禽损失,这让一些农民感到无助。
重点词汇
More than 非常,极其 ; 超过,超出,超出……的 ; 比……更 ; 比……更重要 ; 超出需要,超乎寻常
news agency 通讯社
instead of 而不是 ; 代替,作为……的替换
last year 去年 ; 上年 ; 那个俱乐部去年解散了
at a time 依次 ; 每次