High in the Andes Mountains in South America lives a unique animal—chinchillas. About a foot long, this fuzzy creature looks like a mix of a rabbit, a squirrel, and other rodents, with a tail between three and six inches. You might think of them as the size of a small kitten or a large, fat squirrel.
Chinchillas were named after the Chincha people, who once wore coats made from chinchillas’ fur. In fact, these furry animals have the densestfur of all mammals that live on land. This explains why humans hunt them for their fur. Actually, there are two kinds of chinchilla: the long-tailed chinchilla and the short-tailed chinchilla. Both are currently recognized as endangered species due to human hunting.
Living in burrows or along rocky hillsides, chinchillas tend to move in groups. A herd of chinchillas may have as many as 100 members. They live in packs for both social reasons and protection from their enemies, such as hawks, foxes, and snakes. When they run into trouble, chinchillas have a few tricks up their sleeves. First, they release their fur if bitten. Second, they pee on their attackers. When faced with humans, however, they can only hide.
Words & Phrases
1. adorable [ əˋdorəb! ] a. 可愛的，討喜的 That dog is so adorable that Josh wants to take it home. 那隻狗太可愛了，使得喬許想要帶牠回家。
★ 2. creature [ ˋkritʃɚ ] n. 動物；生物 There are many creatures living in the forest. 有許多動物居住在森林裡。
3. think of A as B 視 A 為 B The teacher thinks of Bill as the smartest student in class. 老師認為比爾是班上最聰明的學生。
★ 4. fur [ fɝ ] n.（動物的）毛 furry [ ˋfɝɪ ] a. 毛茸茸的
Mary likes the cat whose fur is white. 瑪莉喜歡那隻白毛的貓。 Noah can’t sleep without his furry teddy bear. 諾亞沒有他的毛茸茸泰迪熊玩偶就睡不著。
★ 5. dense [ dɛns ] a. 濃密的；密集的 Be careful when you drive in dense fog. 你在濃霧中開車要小心點。
6. currently [ ˋkɝəntlɪ ] adv. 目前，現今 There are currently over 7.9 billion people in the world. 目前全世界有超過七十九億人口。
7. protection [ prəˋtɛkʃən ] n. 防護，保護 This jacket provides protection from the wind and rain. 這件外套防風又防雨。
8. be faced with... 面臨∕面對…… Don’t panic when you’re faced with challenges. 當你面臨挑戰時，不要慌張。
Tips in Use
「一群……」怎麼說？ 在英文用字中，不同種類的動物群體會使用不同的量詞。以下為常見的組合：
1. 形容馬、牛、象等群居動物的一群時，可用 herd，本文即屬此用法。 a herd of horses / cattle / elephants 一群馬∕牛∕象
2. 形容一群狼、狗等犬科動物時，用 pack。 a pack of wolves / dogs 一群狼∕狗
3. 形容鳥禽類或羊的群體時，用 flock。 a flock of birds / chickens / goats / sheep 一群鳥∕雞∕山羊∕綿羊
4. 形容魚群或海生動物群時，用 school。 a school of fish / dolphins / whales 一群魚∕海豚∕鯨魚
5. 形容螞蟻、蜜蜂等有組織的群體時，用 colony。 a colony of ants / bees 一窩（群）螞蟻∕蜜蜂
Extra Words & Phrases
► squirrel [ ˋskwɝəl ] n. 松鼠 ► hawk [ hɔk ] n. 鷹，隼 ► have... up one’s sleeve 藏有……（妙招等） sleeve [ sliv ] n. 袖子
You Can Do This
請依句意在空格內填入適當的字詞
1. 艾瑞克覺得毛茸茸的小狗很可愛。 Eric finds furry puppies __________.
2. 這間公司目前正面臨一個巨大的危機。 The company is currently ____________ a huge crisis.
3. 蜜雅視她爸爸為她的模範。 Mia ____________ her father as her role model.
答案: 1. adorable 2. faced with 3. thinks of
中文翻譯
Fuzzy Little Chinchillas毛茸茸呆萌小生物 ——絨毛鼠 了解這個可愛的南美洲齧齒動物。 Day 1 南美洲的安地斯山脈高山上住著一種奇特的動物 —— 絨毛鼠。這種大約有一英尺長的絨毛動物看起來像是兔子、松鼠和其他齧齒動物的綜合體，還有著三到六英寸的尾巴。你可以把牠們視為一隻小貓或是一隻又大又肥的松鼠的大小。
