Comparative View of the Antarctic and Arctic Regions.—Inferiority of Climate of the former.—Its Causes.—The New Shetland Islands.—South Georgia.—The Peruvian Stream.—Sea-birds.—The Giant Petrel.—The Albatross.—The Penguin1.—The Austral Whale.—The Hunchback.—The Fin2-back.—The Grampus.—Battle with a Whale.—The Sea-elephant.—The Southern Sea-bear.—The Sea-leopard.—Antarctic Fishes.
The Antarctic regions are far more desolate3 and barren than the Arctic. Here we have no energetic hunters, like the Esquimaux, chasing the seal or the walrus4; no herdsmen following, like the Samoïedes or the Lapps, their reindeer6 to the brink7 of the icy ocean; but all is one dreary8, uninhabitable waste. While within the Arctic Circle the musk-ox enjoys an abundance of food, and the lemming is still found thriving on the bleakest9 islands, not a single land quadruped exists beyond 56° of southern latitude11.
Summer flowers gladden the sight of the Arctic navigator in the most northern lands yet reached; but no plant of any description—not even a moss12 or a lichen—has been observed beyond Cockburn Island in 64° 12´ S. lat.; and while even in Spitzbergen vegetation ascends13 the mountain slopes to a height of 3000 feet the snow-line descends14 to the water’s edge in every land within or near the Antarctic Circle.
An open sea, extending towards the northern pole as far as the eye can reach, points out the path to future discovery; but the Antarctic navigators, with one single exception, have invariably seen their progress arrested by barriers of ice, and none have ever penetrated17 beyond the comparatively low latitude of 78° 10´.
Even in Spitzbergen and East Greenland, Scoresby sometimes found the heat of summer very great; but the annals of Antarctic navigation invariably speak of a frigid18 temperature. In 1773, when Captain Phipps visited Spitzbergen, the thermometer once rose to +58½°; and on July 15, 1820, when the “Hecla” left her winter-quarters in Melville Island (74° 47´ N.), she enjoyed a warmth of +56°. But during the summer months spent by Sir James Ross in the Antarctic Polar area, the temperature of the air never once exceeded +41° 5´. In Northumberland Sound (76° 42´ N.), probably the coldest spot hitherto visited in the north, the mean of the three summer months was found to be +30° 8´, while within the Antarctic Circle it only amounted to +27° 3´.
The reader may possibly wonder why the climate of the southern polar regions is so much more severe than that of the high northern latitudes20; or why coasts and valleys, at equal distances from the equator, should in one case be found green with vegetation, and in another mere21 wastes of snow and ice; but the predominance of land in the north, and of sea in the south, fully22 answers392 the question. Within the Arctic Circle we see vast continental23 masses projecting far to the north, so as to form an almost continuous belt round the icy sea; while in the southern hemisphere, the continents taper24 down in a vast extent of open ocean. In the north, the plains of Siberia and of the Hudson’s Bay territories, warmed by the sunbeams of summer, become at that season centres of radiating heat, so that in many parts the growth of forests, or even the culture of the cereals, advances as high as 70° of latitude; while the Antarctic lands are of a comparatively small extent, and isolated26 in the midst of frigid waters, whose temperature scarcely varies from +29° 2´ even in the height of summer. Mostly situated27 within the Antarctic Circle, and constantly chilled by cold sea-winds, they act at every season as refrigerators of the atmosphere.
In the north, the formation of icebergs28 is confined to a few mountainous countries, such as the west coast of Greenland or Spitzbergen; but the Antarctic coast-lands generally tower to a considerable height above the level of the sea, and the vast fragments which are constantly detaching themselves from their glaciers30 keep up the low temperature of the seas.
In the north, the cold currents of the Polar Ocean, with their drift-ice and bergs, have but the two wide gates of the Greenland Sea and Davis’s Strait through which they can emerge to the south, so that their influence is confined within comparatively narrow limits, while the gelid streams of the Antarctic seas branch out freely on all sides, and convey their floating ice-masses far and wide within the temperate31 seas. It is only to the west of Newfoundland that single icebergs have ever been known to descend15 as low as 39° of latitude; but in the southern hemisphere they have been met with in the vicinity of the Cape32 of Good Hope (35° S. lat.), near Tristan d’Acunha, opposite to the mouth of the Rio de la Plata, and within a hundred leagues of Tasmania. In the north, finally, we find the Gulf33 Stream conveying warmth even to the shores of Spitzbergen and Nova Zembla; while in the opposite regions of the globe, no traces of warm currents have been observed beyond 55° of latitude.
Thus the predominance of vast tracts34 of flat land in the boreal hemisphere, and of an immense expanse of ocean in the Antarctic regions, sufficiently35 accounts for the æstival warmth of the former, and the comparatively low summer temperature of the latter.
It is unnecessary to describe in detail each of the desolate lands which modern navigators have discovered among the Antarctic ice-fields, but it may not be uninteresting to compare one or two of these dreary wastes with the lands of the north, situated in analogous36 latitudes.
The New Shetland Islands, situated between 61° and 63° of Southern latitude, were originally discovered by Dirck Gheritz, a Dutch navigator, who, in attempting to round Cape Horn, was carried by tempestuous37 weather within sight of their mountainous coasts. Long forgotten, they were re-discovered in 1819 by Mr. Smith, a master in the royal navy—whom a storm had likewise carried thither—and in the following year more accurately38 examined by Edward Bransfield, whose name survives in the strait which separates them from D’Urville’s Louis Philippe Land.
393 In 1829, the “Chanticleer,” Captain Forster, was sent to New Shetland for the purpose of making magnetic and other physical observations, and remained for several months at Deception39 Island, which was selected as a station from its affording the best harbor in South Shetland.
Though these islands are situated at about the same distance from the pole as the Faroe Islands which boast of numerous flocks of sheep, and where the sea never freezes, yet, when the “Chanticleer” approached Deception Island, on January 5 (a month corresponding to our July), so many icebergs were scattered40 about, that Forster counted at one time no fewer than eighty-one. A gale41 having arisen, accompanied by a thick fog, great care was needed to avoid running foul42 of these floating cliffs. After entering the harbor—a work of no slight difficulty, from the violence of the wind—the fogs were so frequent that, for the first ten days, neither sun nor stars were seen; and it was withal so raw and cold, that Lieutenant43 Kendal, to whom we owe a short narrative44 of the expedition, did not recollect45 having suffered more at any time in the Arctic regions, even at the lowest range of the thermometer. In this desolate land, frozen water becomes an integral portion of the soil; for this volcanic46 island is composed chiefly of alternate layers of ashes and ice, as if the snow of each winter, during a series of years, had been prevented from melting in the following summer, by the ejection of cinders47 and ashes from some part where volcanic action still goes on. Early in March (the September of the north) the freezing over of the cove16 in which the ship was secured gave warning that it was high time for her to quit this desolate port. With much difficulty and severe labor48, from the fury of the gales49, they managed to get away, and we may fully credit Lieutenant Kendal’s assertion, that it was a day of rejoicing to all on board when the shores of Deception faded from their view.
In 1775 Cook, on his second voyage, discovered the large island of South Georgia, situated in latitude 54° and 55°, a situation corresponding to that of Scarborough or Durham. But what a difference in the climate, for “we saw not a river or stream of water,” says the great navigator, “on all the coast of Georgia. The head of the bay, as well as two places on each side, was terminated by perpendicular50 icebergs of considerable height. Pieces were continually breaking off and floating out to sea, and a great fall happened while we were in the bay, which made a noise like a cannon51. The inner parts of the country were not less savage52 and horrible. The wild rocks raised their lofty summits till they were lost in the clouds, and the valley lay covered with everlasting53 snow. Not a tree was to be seen, not a shrub54 even big enough to make a toothpick. The only vegetation was a coarse strong-bladed grass growing in tufts, wild burnet, and a plant like moss, which sprang from the rocks. The lands, or rather rocks, bordering on the sea-coast were not covered with snow like the inland parts, but all the vegetation we could see on the clear places was the grass above mentioned.” To find scenes of a similar wintry desolation, we must travel in the north as far as Nova Zembla or Spitzbergen, which are 20° or 24° nearer to the pole!
Thus the influence of the cold Antarctic waters extends far within the temperate zone. We can trace their chilling effects in Kerguelen Land (50° S.394 lat.), which when visited by Cook in the height of summer was found covered with snow, and where only five plants in flower were collected; in Tierra del Fuego (53° S. lat.), where the mean summer temperature is fully 9½° lower than that of Dublin (53° 21´ N. lat.); in the Falkland Islands (51° 30´), which, though flat and low and near Patagonia, have, according to Mr. Darwin, a climate similar to that which is experienced at the height of between one and two thousand feet on the mountains of North Wales, with less sunshine and less frost, but more wind and rain; and finally along the south-west coast of America, where the Peruvian current and the cold sea-winds so considerably55 depress the snow-line, that while in Europe the most southern glacier29 which comes down to the sea is met with, according to Von Buch, on the coast of Norway in lat. 67°; the “Beagle” found a glacier fifteen miles long and in one part seven miles broad descending56 to the sea-coast in the gulf of Penas, in a latitude (46° 50´) nearly corresponding with that of the Lake of Geneva.
“The position of this glacier,” says Mr. Darwin, “may be put even in a more striking point of view, for it descends to the sea-coast within less than 9° from where palms grow; within 4½° of a region where the jaguar57 and puma58 range over the plains, less than 2½° from arborescent grasses, and (looking to the westward59 in the same hemisphere) less than 2° from orchideous parasites60, and within a single degree of tree-ferns!” As the influence of the tropical gulf stream reaches as far as Spitzbergen, so that of the cold Peruvian stream, which issues from the Antarctic Seas, extends even to the equator, and not seldom reduces the temperature of the waters about the Galapagos to less than +58½°, so that reef-building corals, which require a minimum warmth of +60°, are unable to grow near islands situated directly under the line.
Though the Antarctic lands are so bleak10 and inclement61 that not a single quadruped is to be found within 60° of latitude, yet they are the resort of innumerable sea-birds which, belonging to the same families as those of the north, generally form distinct genera or species, for with rare exceptions no bird is found to inhabit both the Arctic and the Antarctic regions.
Thus in the petrel family we find the fulmar (Procellaria glacialis) and the glacial petrel (P. gelida) of the high north represented in the Antarctic Seas by the giant petrel (Procellaria gigantea), which extends its flight from Patagonia to the ice-banks of the south, where the Antarctic and the snowy petrels (P. antarctica et nivea) first appear, cold-loving birds which never leave those dreary waters, and are often seen in vast flocks floating upon the drift-ice.
The giant petrel, which has received from the Spaniards the significant appellation62 of “quebranta huesos,” or “break-bones,” is a more powerful bird than the fulmar. It is larger than a goose, with a strong beak63 4½ inches long. Its color is a dirty black, white below, and with white spots on the neck and back. In its habits and manner of flight it closely resembles the albatross, and, as with the albatross, a spectator may watch it for hours together without seeing on what it feeds. Like the fulmar it feasts upon fishes, or the carcasses of seals and cetaceans, but it also chases other birds. At Port Saint Antonio it was seen by some of the officers of the “Beagle” pursuing a diver, which tried to escape by diving and flying, but was continually struck down, and at last killed by a blow395 on its head. Such is its voracity64 that it does not even spare its own kind, for a gigantic petrel having been badly wounded by a shot from the “Terror,” and falling at too great a distance for a boat to be sent after it, was immediately attacked by two others of the same kind and torn to pieces. It is a common bird both in the open sea and in the inland channels of Tierra del Fuego, and the south-west coast of America.
The wandering albatross (Diomedea exulans), closely allied65 to the petrels, and rivalling the condor66 in size and strength of wing, may truly be ranked among the Antarctic birds, as it is seldom seen in a lower latitude than 36°, and increases in numbers towards the south. Freyssinet saw it most frequently between 55° and 59° S. lat., and it probably knows no other limits than those of the Polar ice. It is found in every meridian67 of this enormous zone, but the regions of storms—the Cape of Good Hope and Cape Horn—are its favorite resorts. Here it may frequently be seen in the full majesty68 of its flight.
The auks of the northern hemisphere are represented, in the austral regions, by the penguins69, who, as Buffon remarks, are the least bird-like of all birds. Their small wing-stumps, covered with short rigid19 scale-like feathers, are altogether incapable70 of raising the body in the air, but serve as admirable paddles in the water, and on land as fore25 feet, with whose help they so alertly scale the grassy71 cliffs that they might easily be mistaken for quadrupeds. Their feet, like those of the auks, are placed so far back that the body is quite upright when the bird is standing72 on the ground, a position which renders their gait uncommonly73 slow and awkward, but greatly facilitates their movements in the water. When at sea and fishing, the penguin comes to the surface for the purpose of breathing with such a spring, and dives again so instantaneously, that at first sight no one can be sure that it is not a fish leaping for sport. Other sea-birds generally keep a considerable part of their body out of the water while swimming, but this is not the case with the penguin, whose head alone appears above the surface, and thus rowing at the same time with its wings and feet, it swims so quickly that many fishes would fail to keep up with it. Sir James Ross once saw two penguins paddling away a thousand miles from the nearest land. Protected against the cold by a thick layer of fat and a warm great-coat of feathers, it remains74 for months on the high seas, and seeks land only in the summer for the purpose of breeding. At this time it is found in vast numbers on the Falkland Islands, Kerguelen’s Land, New Shetland, or wherever in the Antarctic Seas, perhaps even to the pole itself, a convenient coast invites its stay. On Possession Island, for instance, a desolate rock, discovered by Sir James Ross in lat. 71° 56´, myriads75 of penguins covered the whole surface of the land, along the ledges76 of the precipices77, and even to the summit of the hills. Undaunted by the presence of beings whom they had never seen before, the birds vigorously attacked the British seamen78 as they waded79 through their ranks, and pecked at them with their sharp beaks80, a reception which, together with their loud coarse notes, and the insupportable stench of their guano, made our countrymen but too happy to depart, after having loaded their boat with geological specimens81 and penguins. There are several species of this singular bird. The largest and rarest (Aptenodytes Forsteri) is generally found singly,397 while the smaller species always associate in vast numbers. Several were caught in lat. 77° by Sir James Ross and brought on board alive; indeed it was a very difficult and a cruel operation to kill them, until hydrocyanic acid was resorted to, of which a tablespoonful effectually accomplished82 the purpose in less than a minute. These enormous birds varied83 in weight from sixty to seventy-five pounds. They are remarkably84 stupid, and allow a man to approach them so near as to strike them on the head with a bludgeon, and sometimes, if knocked off the ice into the water, they will almost immediately leap upon it again as if eager for a fight, though without the smallest means either of offense85 or defense86. They were first discovered during Captain Cook’s voyage to the Antarctic regions, but Sir James Ross was fortunate in bringing the first perfect specimens to England, some of which were preserved entire in casks of strong pickle87, that the physiologist88 and comparative anatomist might have an opportunity of thoroughly89 examining their structure. The principal food of the great penguin consists of various species of crustaceous animals, and in its stomach are frequently found from two to ten pounds’ weight of pebbles90, swallowed no doubt to promote digestion91. “Its capture,” says Sir James Ross, “afforded great amusement to our people, for when alarmed and endeavoring to escape, it makes its way over deep snow faster than they could follow it: by lying down on its belly92 and impelling93 itself by its powerful feet, it slides along upon the surface of the snow at a great pace, steadying itself by extending its fin-like wings, which alternately touch the ground on the side opposite to the propelling leg.”
122. THE ALBATROSS.
Though the Antarctic Seas possess neither the narwhal nor the morse, they abound94, perhaps even more than the Arctic waters, in whales, dolphins, and seals, at least in the higher latitudes.
The austral smooth-backed whale (Balæna australis) differs from his Greenland relative in many respects: the head is comparatively smaller, being only about one-fourth of the total length, the mouth is broader, the baleen95 shorter, the pectoral fins96 are larger and pointed97, and the color is almost totally black, the white on the lower surface being confined to a small part of the abdomen98. The skull99 is also differently formed; and while the Greenland whale has only thirteen pairs of ribs100, the austral smooth-back has fifteen.
According to Mr. Bennett, the austral smooth-back seldom attains101 a greater length than fifty feet; but as it yields on an average from eighty to ninety barrels of oil, its capture amply rewards the whaler’s trouble. Though met with in the highest latitudes, and roaming over the whole extent of the Antarctic Seas, it resorts in spring to the sheltered bays of New Zealand, Australia, Kerguelen’s Land, Chili102, the Falkland Islands, Algoa Bay, etc., for the purpose of bringing forth103 its young. This of course makes its capture easier, but must at the same time lead to its extirpation104, or drive it to the most inaccessible105 regions of the Polar Ocean. Even now the whale-fishery of the southern seas, which twenty or thirty years ago employed hundreds of vessels106, has much diminished in importance: it is chiefly carried on by the Americans, the French, and our Australian colonies, which have the advantage of being more conveniently situated than the mother-country.
398 In the higher latitudes of the Antarctic zone the hunch-back and fin-back whales abound; but as the former is meagre and hardly worth the boiling, and the latter, like the rorquals of the north, dives with such rapidity that he snaps the harpoon-line or drags the boat along with him into the water, they are seldom hunted. Hence they will most likely continue to prosper107 in their native seas, unless the improved missiles recently introduced in the whale-fishery can be made to conquer them. The hunch-back is distinguished108 by the great length of his pectoral fins, which extend to full eighteen feet, while these organs are comparatively small in the fin-back. A kind of broad-nosed whale likewise makes its appearance in the Antarctic Seas, but it is not yet determined109 whether all these fin-backed whales of the south are distinct species from those of the Arctic waters. A circumstance which seems to speak for their identity is that fin-backs are met with in the intervening temperate and tropical seas, so that no limits appear to have been set to their excursions.
The sperm110 whale, or cachalot, though partial to the equinoctial ocean, is also found in the cold Antarctic waters. It was met with by Sir James Ross among the icebergs in 63° 20´ S. lat.; and near Possession Island (71° 50´ S. lat.), where the hunch-backs were so abundant that thirty were counted at one time in various directions, and during the whole day wherever the eyes turned their blasts were to be seen. A few sperm whales were also distinguished among them by their peculiar111 manner of blowing or spouting112.
Among the dolphins of the Antarctic Ocean we find a species of grampus no less formidable and voracious113 than that of the northern seas. On January 20, 1840, the American ship “Peacock,” while cruising in the Antarctic waters, witnessed a conflict between one of them and a whale. The sea was perfectly114 smooth, so that the whole combat could be distinctly seen. At first the whale was perceived at some distance from the ship lashing115 the water into foam116, and apparently117 making desperate efforts to shake off some invisible enemy. On approaching, they found that an enormous grampus had seized it with its jaws118. The whale vainly turned and twisted itself in every direction, and its blood tinged119 the water far around. The grampus had evidently the advantage, and the other whales, of which there were many in sight, instead of assisting their comrade, seemed only intent on their own safety. The grampus had a brown back, a white abdomen, and a large fin on its back. The speed at which the monstrous120 animals shot through the water prevented the Americans from witnessing the issue of the fight. The classical dolphin of the ancients has been seen near the Cape of Good Hope, and most likely wanders far to the south, as he is proverbial for his arrow-like rapidity, and can easily traverse a couple of hundred miles in a single day. In the Strait of Magellan and about Cape Horn are frequently seen the Delphinus superciliosus, whose turned-up mouth-corners give his countenance121 a peculiarly benevolent122 and friendly expression, belied123 by his ravenous124 propensities125, and the Delphinus leucoramphus, who, like the bjeluga of the north, has no dorsal126 fin, and by the liveliness of his movements emulates127 the classical dolphin of the Mediterranean128.
The seal family plays a no less important part in the zoology129 of the Antarctic Seas than in that of the northern waters. Here we find the monstrous sea-elephant399 (Macrorhinus elephantinus), so called not only from his size attaining130 a length of twenty-five feet, and a girth at the largest part of the body of from fifteen to eighteen, but also from the singular structure of his elongated131 nostrils132, which hang down when he is in a state of repose133, but swell134 out to a proboscis135 a foot long when he is enraged136. This gives the animal a very formidable appearance, which, along with his bellowing137 and his widely-gaping jaws armed with tusk-like canines138, might strike terror into the boldest heart. But in reality the sea-elephant is a most defenseless creature, for on land it moves its unwieldy carcass with the utmost difficulty, and a single blow upon the snout with a club suffices to stretch it lifeless on the ground. It used to be met with in considerable numbers on all the flat shores or islands between 35° and 62° S. lat., but as it yields a large quantity of excellent oil, and as its skin, though merely covered with thick short bristles139, is of some value from its great strength and thickness, incessant140 persecution141 has greatly thinned its ranks, and in some parts extirpated142 it. Thus Sir James Ross relates that the sea-elephant and several other species of seals, which were formerly143 in great abundance at Kerguelen’s Land, annually144 drew a number of fishing-vessels to its shores. But at the time of his visit (1840), after so many years of slaughter145, they had quite deserted146 the place. The flesh of the sea-elephant is black, and of an oily taste, but Anson and his companions, after having been tossed about for several months on a tempestuous sea and reduced to great distress147 by scurvy148, relished149 it at Juan Fernandez. The tongue is said to be a great delicacy150.
As the soft jet-black fur of the young southern sea-bear (Arctocephalus falclandicus) is no less valuable than that of its northern relative, the eagerness with which it is pursued may easily be imagined. Formerly vast herds5 of sea-bears used to resort every summer to the New Shetland Islands, but soon after the rediscovery of the group the American and English sealers made their appearance on its desolate shores, and in the short time of four years extirpated the ursine151 seals, thus destroying by wasteful152 destruction what might have been a permanent source of profit.
The southern sea-lion (Otaria jubata) is a larger animal than his northern namesake; and while the latter is furnished only with an erect153 and curly hair-tuft at the neck, a complete mane flows round his breast. The remainder of the tawny154 body is covered with short smooth hairs or bristles. The sea-lioness, who is much smaller than her mate, has no mane; and as she is of a darker color and has a differently shaped head, is frequently mistaken for another species, and called wolf, or lobo, by the inhabitants of the south-western coast of America. The fore flippers of the sea-lion have the appearance of large pieces of black tough leather, showing, instead of nails, slight horny elevations155; the hind156 fins, which are likewise black, have a closer resemblance to feet, and the five toes are furnished with small nails. It is a formidable-looking beast, particularly when full grown to a length of ten feet and more. The sea-leopard (Leptonyx Weddelli), which owes its name to its spotted157 skin, is peculiar to the southern seas. This large seal is from eight to nine feet long; the hind feet have no nails, and greatly resemble the tail of a fish.
The Antarctic seals, dolphins, and petrels chiefly prey158 upon a genus of fish400 discovered at Kerguelen’s Land, and named Notothenia by Dr. Richardson. These fish, which are of an elongated eel-like shape, conceal159 themselves from the persecutions of their enemies in the small cracks and cavities of the pack-ice, and were frequently noticed by Sir James Ross when driven from shelter by the ship as it struck and passed over their protecting pieces of ice. They in their turn live upon the smaller cancri and limacinæ, and these again upon creatures of a still more diminutive160 size, until finally the chain of created beings terminates in the diatoms,23 which are found filling these seas with the minutest forms of organic life.
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1
penguin
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| n.企鹅 | |
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fin
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| n.鳍；(飞机的)安定翼 | |
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desolate
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| adj.荒凉的，荒芜的；孤独的，凄凉的；v.使荒芜，使孤寂 | |
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walrus
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| n.海象 | |
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herds
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| 兽群( herd的名词复数 )； 牧群； 人群； 群众 | |
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reindeer
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| n.驯鹿 | |
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brink
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| n.(悬崖、河流等的)边缘，边沿 | |
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dreary
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| adj.令人沮丧的，沉闷的，单调乏味的 | |
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bleakest
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| 阴冷的( bleak的最高级 )； （状况）无望的； 没有希望的； 光秃的 | |
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bleak
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| adj.(天气)阴冷的；凄凉的；暗淡的 | |
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latitude
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| n.纬度，行动或言论的自由(范围)，(pl.)地区 | |
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moss
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| n.苔，藓，地衣 | |
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ascends
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| v.上升，攀登( ascend的第三人称单数 ) | |
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descends
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| v.下来( descend的第三人称单数 )；下去；下降；下斜 | |
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descend
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| vt./vi.传下来，下来，下降 | |
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cove
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| n.小海湾，小峡谷 | |
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penetrated
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| adj. 击穿的，鞭辟入里的 动词penetrate的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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frigid
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| adj.寒冷的，凛冽的；冷淡的；拘禁的 | |
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rigid
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| adj.严格的，死板的；刚硬的，僵硬的 | |
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latitudes
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| 纬度 | |
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mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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fully
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| adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地 | |
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continental
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| adj.大陆的，大陆性的，欧洲大陆的 | |
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taper
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| n.小蜡烛，尖细，渐弱；adj.尖细的；v.逐渐变小 | |
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fore
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| adv.在前面；adj.先前的；在前部的；n.前部 | |
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isolated
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| adj.与世隔绝的 | |
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situated
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| adj.坐落在...的，处于某种境地的 | |
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28
icebergs
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| n.冰山，流冰( iceberg的名词复数 ) | |
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29
glacier
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| n.冰川，冰河 | |
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30
glaciers
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| 冰河，冰川( glacier的名词复数 ) | |
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31
temperate
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| adj.温和的，温带的，自我克制的，不过分的 | |
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32
cape
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| n.海角，岬；披肩，短披风 | |
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33
gulf
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| n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂 | |
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34
tracts
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| 大片土地( tract的名词复数 )； 地带； （体内的）道； （尤指宣扬宗教、伦理或政治的）短文 | |
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35
sufficiently
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| adv.足够地，充分地 | |
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36
analogous
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| adj.相似的；类似的 | |
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37
tempestuous
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| adj.狂暴的 | |
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38
accurately
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| adv.准确地，精确地 | |
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39
deception
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| n.欺骗，欺诈；骗局，诡计 | |
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40
scattered
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| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
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41
gale
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| n.大风，强风，一阵闹声（尤指笑声等） | |
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42
foul
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| adj.污秽的；邪恶的；v.弄脏；妨害；犯规；n.犯规 | |
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43
lieutenant
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| n.陆军中尉，海军上尉；代理官员，副职官员 | |
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44
narrative
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| n.叙述，故事；adj.叙事的，故事体的 | |
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45
recollect
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| v.回忆，想起，记起，忆起，记得 | |
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46
volcanic
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|
| adj.火山的；象火山的；由火山引起的 | |
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47
cinders
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| n.煤渣( cinder的名词复数 )；炭渣；煤渣路；煤渣跑道 | |
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48
labor
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|
| n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦 | |
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49
gales
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| 龙猫 | |
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50
perpendicular
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| adj.垂直的，直立的；n.垂直线，垂直的位置 | |
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51
cannon
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| n.大炮，火炮；飞机上的机关炮 | |
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52
savage
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| adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人 | |
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53
everlasting
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|
| adj.永恒的，持久的，无止境的 | |
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54
shrub
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| n.灌木，灌木丛 | |
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55
considerably
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|
| adv.极大地；相当大地；在很大程度上 | |
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56
descending
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|
| n. 下行 adj. 下降的 | |
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57
jaguar
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| n.美洲虎 | |
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58
puma
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| 美洲豹 | |
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59
westward
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|
| n.西方，西部；adj.西方的，向西的；adv.向西 | |
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60
parasites
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| 寄生物( parasite的名词复数 )； 靠他人为生的人； 诸虫 | |
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61
inclement
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| adj.严酷的，严厉的，恶劣的 | |
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62
appellation
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| n.名称，称呼 | |
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63
beak
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| n.鸟嘴，茶壶嘴，钩形鼻 | |
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64
voracity
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| n.贪食，贪婪 | |
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65
allied
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|
| adj.协约国的；同盟国的 | |
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66
condor
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| n.秃鹰；秃鹰金币 | |
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67
meridian
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| adj.子午线的；全盛期的 | |
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68
majesty
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|
| n.雄伟，壮丽，庄严，威严；最高权威，王权 | |
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69
penguins
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| n.企鹅( penguin的名词复数 ) | |
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70
incapable
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| adj.无能力的，不能做某事的 | |
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71
grassy
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| adj.盖满草的；长满草的 | |
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72
standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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73
uncommonly
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| adv. 稀罕(极，非常) | |
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74
remains
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| n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹 | |
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75
myriads
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| n.无数，极大数量( myriad的名词复数 ) | |
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76
ledges
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| n.（墙壁，悬崖等）突出的狭长部分( ledge的名词复数 )；（平窄的）壁架；横档；（尤指）窗台 | |
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77
precipices
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| n.悬崖，峭壁( precipice的名词复数 ) | |
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78
seamen
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| n.海员 | |
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79
waded
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| （从水、泥等）蹚，走过，跋( wade的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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80
beaks
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| n.鸟嘴( beak的名词复数 )；鹰钩嘴；尖鼻子；掌权者 | |
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81
specimens
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|
| n.样品( specimen的名词复数 )；范例；（化验的）抽样；某种类型的人 | |
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82
accomplished
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|
| adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的 | |
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83
varied
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|
| adj.多样的，多变化的 | |
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84
remarkably
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|
| ad.不同寻常地，相当地 | |
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85
offense
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| n.犯规，违法行为；冒犯，得罪 | |
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86
defense
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| n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩 | |
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87
pickle
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|
| n.腌汁，泡菜；v.腌，泡 | |
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88
physiologist
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| n.生理学家 | |
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89
thoroughly
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|
| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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90
pebbles
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| [复数]鹅卵石； 沙砾； 卵石，小圆石( pebble的名词复数 ) | |
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91
digestion
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| n.消化，吸收 | |
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92
belly
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|
| n.肚子，腹部；(像肚子一样)鼓起的部分，膛 | |
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93
impelling
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|
| adj.迫使性的，强有力的v.推动、推进或敦促某人做某事( impel的现在分词 ) | |
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94
abound
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| vi.大量存在；(in，with)充满，富于 | |
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95
baleen
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| n.鲸须 | |
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96
fins
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| [医]散热片；鱼鳍；飞边；鸭掌 | |
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97
pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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98
abdomen
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| n.腹，下腹(胸部到腿部的部分) | |
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99
skull
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| n.头骨；颅骨 | |
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100
ribs
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|
| n.肋骨( rib的名词复数 )；（船或屋顶等的）肋拱；肋骨状的东西；（织物的）凸条花纹 | |
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101
attains
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|
| （通常经过努力）实现( attain的第三人称单数 )； 达到； 获得； 达到（某年龄、水平、状况） | |
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102
chili
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| n.辣椒 | |
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103
forth
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|
| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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104
extirpation
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|
| n.消灭，根除，毁灭；摘除 | |
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105
inaccessible
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|
| adj.达不到的，难接近的 | |
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106
vessels
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|
| n.血管( vessel的名词复数 )；船；容器；（具有特殊品质或接受特殊品质的）人 | |
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107
prosper
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|
| v.成功，兴隆，昌盛；使成功，使昌隆，繁荣 | |
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108
distinguished
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|
| adj.卓越的，杰出的，著名的 | |
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109
determined
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|
| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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110
sperm
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| n.精子，精液 | |
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111
peculiar
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|
| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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112
spouting
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| n.水落管系统v.（指液体）喷出( spout的现在分词 )；滔滔不绝地讲；喋喋不休地说；喷水 | |
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113
voracious
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|
| adj.狼吞虎咽的，贪婪的 | |
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114
perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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115
lashing
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| n.鞭打；痛斥；大量；许多v.鞭打( lash的现在分词 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥 | |
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116
foam
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| v./n.泡沫，起泡沫 | |
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117
apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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118
jaws
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| n.口部；嘴 | |
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119
tinged
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| v.（使）发丁丁声( ting的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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120
monstrous
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|
| adj.巨大的；恐怖的；可耻的，丢脸的 | |
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121
countenance
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| n.脸色，面容；面部表情；vt.支持，赞同 | |
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122
benevolent
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| adj.仁慈的，乐善好施的 | |
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123
belied
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| v.掩饰( belie的过去式和过去分词 )；证明（或显示）…为虚假；辜负；就…扯谎 | |
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124
ravenous
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| adj.极饿的，贪婪的 | |
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125
propensities
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| n.倾向，习性( propensity的名词复数 ) | |
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126
dorsal
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| adj.背部的，背脊的 | |
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127
emulates
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| v.与…竞争( emulate的第三人称单数 )；努力赶上；计算机程序等仿真；模仿 | |
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128
Mediterranean
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|
| adj.地中海的；地中海沿岸的 | |
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129
zoology
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| n.动物学，生态 | |
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130
attaining
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| （通常经过努力）实现( attain的现在分词 )； 达到； 获得； 达到（某年龄、水平、状况） | |
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131
elongated
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| v.延长，加长( elongate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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132
nostrils
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| 鼻孔( nostril的名词复数 ) | |
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133
repose
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| v.(使)休息；n.安息 | |
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134
swell
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| vi.膨胀，肿胀；增长，增强 | |
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135
proboscis
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| n.（象的）长鼻 | |
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136
enraged
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| 使暴怒( enrage的过去式和过去分词 )； 歜； 激愤 | |
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137
bellowing
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|
| v.发出吼叫声，咆哮（尤指因痛苦）( bellow的现在分词 )；（愤怒地）说出（某事），大叫 | |
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138
canines
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| n.犬齿( canine的名词复数 )；犬牙；犬科动物 | |
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139
bristles
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| 短而硬的毛发，刷子毛( bristle的名词复数 ) | |
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140
incessant
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|
| adj.不停的，连续的 | |
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141
persecution
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| n. 迫害,烦扰 | |
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142
extirpated
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| v.消灭，灭绝( extirpate的过去式和过去分词 )；根除 | |
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143
formerly
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| adv.从前，以前 | |
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144
annually
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|
| adv.一年一次，每年 | |
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145
slaughter
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|
| n.屠杀，屠宰；vt.屠杀，宰杀 | |
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146
deserted
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|
| adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的 | |
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147
distress
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|
| n.苦恼，痛苦，不舒适；不幸；vt.使悲痛 | |
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148
scurvy
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|
| adj.下流的，卑鄙的，无礼的；n.坏血病 | |
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149
relished
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| v.欣赏( relish的过去式和过去分词 )；从…获得乐趣；渴望 | |
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150
delicacy
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|
| n.精致，细微，微妙，精良；美味，佳肴 | |
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151
ursine
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|
| adj.似熊的，熊的 | |
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152
wasteful
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|
| adj.（造成）浪费的，挥霍的 | |
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153
erect
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|
| n./v.树立，建立，使竖立；adj.直立的，垂直的 | |
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154
tawny
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|
| adj.茶色的，黄褐色的；n.黄褐色 | |
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155
elevations
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|
| （水平或数量）提高( elevation的名词复数 )； 高地； 海拔； 提升 | |
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156
hind
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| adj.后面的，后部的 | |
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157
spotted
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| adj.有斑点的，斑纹的，弄污了的 | |
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158
prey
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| n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨 | |
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159
conceal
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| v.隐藏，隐瞒，隐蔽 | |
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160
diminutive
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| adj.小巧可爱的，小的 | |
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