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Chapter 3 The First Days
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From the outset, we knew that it was going to be tough.
Employ twenty staff members, when we had neveremployed staff before? Take care of two hundred wild andexotic animals? The house we had moved into was as rundownas the zoo over which it looked. Though once agrand, twelve-bedroom mansion1, now its plumbinggroaned, its paper peeled, its floor-boards creaked—but itwas home. Most people, especially at Mum’s age, arelooking to downsize their lives, but we were upsizingdramatically, into an utterly2 unfamiliar3 avenue of work, andthe stakes were high. Everything, frankly4, that my mum anddad had worked for over fifty years together was on thetable. And still we needed more—half a million more—justto be able to take the chance that the zoo might be able toreopen, and that when it did, it would work. Normally thislevel of uncertainty5 over something so important wouldseem impossibly crazy, but the late legal challenge from ourown side had forced our hand, leaving us uncertain,penniless, and paddling like mad to find some money. Yet,in the context of the last six months of negotiations6, it simplyseemed like just another bad but probably weatherabledevelopment.
We were also comforted by the fact that although wehadn’t done anything like this before—and we didn’t have alicense to trade nor even a particular curator in mind (Suzyin Australia was having health problems, which put her outof the picture)—at least we owned the entire place outright7.
This, surely, stood us in good stead with creditors8. Plus wehad a whole £4,000 left over.
The meticulously9 researched business plan I had evolvedwith Jim—or, more accurately10, Jim had put intospreadsheets based on his business knowledge andrumors I’d picked up from the twenty or so leadingattractions in Devon—was now very much hypothetical. Theurgent spending that was due to commence as we arrivedwas now delayed as we searched for new lenders, whocircled again, sniffing11 with renewed interest, since, asholders of actual assets, we had lurched to a new statuswith their backroom boys.
As it turned out, the backroom boys remained less thanimpressed. We could hear their collective eyebrows12 creakup, releasing small puffs14 of dust, but the calculators werequickly deployed15, and though some offers were tentativelymade, all were swiftly withdrawn16. This problem was goingto catch up with us fast, so with phones glued to our ears,we set about trying to solve immediate18 crises on the groundwithout actually spending any money. In those first few dayswe walked in wonder around the park, meeting the animals,gathering information, marveling at the bears, wolves, lions,and tigers, getting to know the keepers, and grinning wildlyover our new life.
The first time I met Kelly I got a surprise. As with Hannah,she was one of the two dedicated19 cat keepers who hadstayed on against the odds20 to look after the animals,sometimes not being paid, and having to pay for vitaminsupplements for the animals (and rudimentary sundries—like flashlight batteries and toilet paper) out of their ownpockets. “Are you the new owner?” she asked, wide-eyedand intense, to which I replied I was one of them. “Can youplease do something about the situation with these tigers?”
I had no idea what situation Kelly was talking about, but shesoon filled me in.
The top tiger enclosure is a moated range of 2,100square meters called Tiger Rock, after the enormousStonehenge-like boulder21 construction that is itscenterpiece. It contained three tigers: Spar, at nineteen theelderly patriarch of the park; and two sisters, Tammy andTasmin, ten and eleven. But only two tigers were ever out inthe enclosure at any one time. This was because Spar,though old, was still a red-blooded male, and occasionallytried to mate with the two girls, even though his back legswere arthritic22 and wobbly and they were hisgranddaughters. Five years earlier, Tammy and Tasminwere given contraceptive injections to prevent inbreeding(and because Ellis was not allowed to breed tigersanymore, having recently been prosecuted23 for thirty-twocounts of illegal tiger breeding). The unfortunate result ofthis hormonal24 change in the two sisters was that theysuddenly hated each other and began to fight, and fightingtigers are very difficult to separate; it could only end indeath. So, one of the sisters was always locked in the tigerhouse for twenty-four hours at a time while the other playedfondly with her granddad. Then the other tiger would belocked away for twenty-four hours, allowing her sister adaylong taste of freedom. As Kelly explained this to me,she drew my attention to the arrhythmic banging comingfrom the tiger house, which I had assumed was somemaintenance work. In fact it was Tammy, frustrated25 by herconfinement in a two-by-three-meter (six-by-twelve-foot)cell, banging on the metal door to get out. Kelly was on thebrink of tears as she told me that this had been going on forfive years, causing enormous suffering to the tigers (andkeepers), and making them much more dangerous tohandle. “It’s unacceptable in a modern zoo,” Kelly ended,somewhat unnecessarily, as even an amateur like me couldappreciate this. I immediately promised her that we woulddo whatever was necessary to rectify26 the situation, whichturned out to be finding one of the warring sisters a newhome. A new tiger enclosure was expensive and unfeasible(we already had two), and would have meant permanentisolation for one of the girls. I asked Kelly to research newhomes for whichever tiger was most suitable to pass on,and walked away from the encounter amazed that such anongoing systemic problem had not arisen in thenegotiations to buy the zoo. On the bright side, it was a bigimprovement we could make for almost no cost, but it wasone we hadn’t been expecting, and it was worrying that wehadn’t known about it before we bought the zoo. Why hadPeter Wearden or Mike Thomas not told me about this?
What else would emerge?
It was all the more surprising given that Peter and Mikehad not been shy about throwing me in at the deep end withdifficult animal-management decisions already. On thephone from France, probably about three months before webought the park, Peter sprang something on me as the lastbidder planning to run the place as a zoo. “What are yougoing to do about the two female jaguars28?” he asked. Er,they’re lovely. What’s the problem? “The house fails to meetwith industry standards and there is a serious concernabout the possibility of an escape.” Can’t it be rebuilt, orrefurbished? “It’s been patched up too many times already,and rebuilding it with the animals in the enclosure isunfeasible. They have to be moved. If you’re going to be thenew owner, you have to decide now what you are going todo.”
Standing29 barefoot in my hot, dusty, French barn office,looking out over sun-drenched vineyards throbbing30 withcicada song seven hundred miles away from this unfamiliarproblem, I was taken aback. I wriggled31 for a bit, suggestingwe rehouse them in the puma32 enclosure and move the lessdangerous pumas33 elsewhere, desperately34 searching for away of keeping these two gorgeous big cats on the site.
Hand-reared from cubs35, they were particularly responsiveto humans, answered to their names and rubbed up againstthe wire like epic37 versions of domestic house cats.
Sovereign, the male jaguar27 housed separately, only got onwith one of the females, who could be tried with him, but thesister cats were inseparable from birth and would pine foreach other. As a keeper of cats (albeit domestic ones)since childhood, I understood the very real suffering thiswould cause, and instinctively38 shied away from that option.
In the end I realized that this was a test, and the correctresponse was to roll with it, however uncomfortable it felt.
For the good of the animals, and in the interests ofdemonstrating a break from the past to the council, I askedPeter what he recommended. “Donate them permanently39 toanother zoo as soon as you take over,” he said. “MikeThomas will organize it for you.” I canvassed40 Mike and Rob,the head keeper currently responsible for the jags, and theyboth said the same thing: To prevent the very real risk of anescape, we should donate them as soon as possible. Witha very deep sigh, I eventually agreed. “That’s the rightanswer,” said Mike. “For that, you can probably get acouple of those zebras you’ve been on about, some waydown the line, when you’re ready to receive them. Andprobably a breeding female for Sovereign later on.” This Iliked—spots for stripes—and it made me feel a little closerto the zoo world, knowing I had made a tough decisioneveryone approved of and was building credibility.
But with two prime big cats going, the Tammy/Tasminquestion loomed41 large. In the first few days it also came outthat a wolf and three of the seven vervet monkeys had alsobeen ostracized42 by their groups and needed rehousing.
Would we have any animals left by the time we reopened?
One well-meaning relative called to helpfully explain that Ihad made an elementary blunder with the jaguars. “If you’regoing to run a zoo, it has to have animals in it,” she said.
The sense of siege from all sides was tightening44, but I wassure that I’d made the right decision with all the informationavailable to me on the ground, and it only made me moredetermined.
In these very early days a lot of time was spent clearingout the house and grounds of junk, and burning it on a hugefire in the yard. This was cathartic45 for us and the park as awhole, but must have been hard for relatives of Ellis, likeRob, his grandson, who had to help haul the nowdilapidated furniture that he had grown up with onto thepyre. I’d already agreed that Rob could stay in the run-downcottage on site, and offered him anything he wanted tosalvage, but generally, he seemed relieved by the process.
Rob was extremely positive and helpful toward us.
But then, four days after we took over Dartmoor WildlifePark, while chatting with Rob about what to do with oursurplus stock, the unthinkable happened. In a catastrophicblunder, a junior keeper accidentally let one of the mostdangerous animals on the park, Sovereign, out of hisenclosure. At about 5:30 PM I was sitting with Rob in thekitchen when Duncan burst in, shouted, “ONE OF THE BIGCATS IS OUT! THIS IS NOT A DRILL!” and then ran offagain. Now, Duncan doesn’t normally shout or get agitated48,but here he was, clearly doing both. Rob disappeared likea puff13 of smoke, and I knew he’d gone to get the guns andorganize the staff’s response. I sat for an increasinglysurreal moment and then decided49 that, as a director of azoo, I probably ought to go and see exactly what was goingon. I started making my way toward the part of the parkwhere the big cats are kept. This was one of the strangestmoments of my life. All I knew was that a big cat—a lion, atiger?—was out, somewhere, and might be about to comebounding around the corner like an energetic Tigger but notnearly so much fun. I saw a shovel50 and picked it up, but itfelt like an anvil51 in my hand. What was the point? I thought,and dropped it, and began walking toward the sound ofscreaming. Was I about to see someone being eatenalive? I had images of someone still alive but fatallymauled, rib52 cage asunder53, being consumed before ahorrified audience. Then a car pulled up with Duncan andRob in it. “GET IN THE CAR!” I was told, and gladlycomplied.
At the top tiger enclosure it was clear that the jaguar,Sovereign, was inside with a tiger, Tammy. Both animalswere agitated and the keepers were shouting todiscourage them from fighting. My first thought was reliefthat the animals were contained and no one was injured. Iconferred with Rob, now backed up by his brother Johnarmed with a high-powered rifle, and we began to build upa picture of what had happened. If the animals beganfighting he would have to shoot one of them, and wedecided it should be the tiger, because she was moredangerous and also the less-endangered animal, but hewould fire a warning shot first to try to separate them. Iasked that he only do this as an absolute last resort, asletting guns off would seriously up the ante for theassembled personnel, who at the moment were all tensebut calm.
Suddenly the jaguar lunged at the tiger’s hindquarters,and the tiger turned and swiped the jaguar’s head, spinninghim like a doll. At half her weight, Sovereign was instantlydiscouraged. From that point both animals stayed apart,encouraged by the coaxing54 of the keepers. But the tigerwas reluctant to surrender her territory. Sovereign pacedpurposefully along the right-hand perimeter55, tracking akeeper who was moving up and down the fence to keep hisattention. Tammy took up a position on top of a rock andscowled and bellowed57 at Sovereign. Twenty minutes earlierI’d been having a nice cup of tea, and now I was witnessingan intense standoff that could only be ended by a dart46 froma gun. Unfortunately, the one in our gun room didn’t work,and had never worked, despite being on the inventory58 as aworking safety tool. We were only equipped to shoot to kill.
Soon the cat keeper Kelly ordered all available men toassemble along the bottom perimeter, and on commandwe shouted as loudly as we could at Tammy (she doesn’tlike men or shouting), while the cat keepers Kelly andHannah called her to her house. All keepers, maintenanceand ground staff, and even an IT expert, Tom, who’d beenon a site visit to give us a quote and had been with Duncanup at the lion house, got caught up in the escape. Tom hada good bellow56, as depicted59 on the TV series being filmedat this early time. A camera crew shadowing your everymove can be a worrying thing, but we felt we had nothing tohide and, just to raise the stakes, I negotiated with Rob thatthe crew could leave the safety of their car and join us at thewall. The men commenced bellowing60 and the effect wasimmediate, like spraying Tammy with cold water. Her tailtwitched, her ears flattened61, and after a couple of minutesshe cracked, jumped off the rock, and went into her house.
There was an enormous sense of relief, but I called MikeThomas and told him of my concerns. Although he wascontained, Sovereign was not 100 percent secure becausehe was in an unfamiliar enclosure, and agitated enough totry something desperate. Mike agreed. “I’ve seen an apejump forty feet when it was stressed,” said Mike. “Which it’snot supposed to be able to do. Luckily we caught her in theladies’ toilets.” If Sovereign got out again, we were unlikelyto be so lucky.
With all three tigers in, we decided the next obviouscourse of action was to try to lure62 Sovereign into the fourthtiger-house chamber63, so that he really was contained.
Unfortunately, this spare chamber was in disrepair, andwas not secure. It needed lining64 with steel sheets andrepairs to the slats on the floor, both tasks that could becarried out in-house in a few hours with materials andpersonnel on site, but the light was fading fast. And therewas no light in the tiger house. Duncan stayed to overseethe refurbishment of the chamber, and I went off to try to buysome emergency lighting65, with directions from the keepersto the nearest lighting emporium, in nearby Plympton. As Idrove off into the dusk, I noticed some workmen on themain access road unloading transits66 with tools, but theywaved me through and I thought little of it as I sped on in myquest.
After a couple of emergency U-turns I found a largegarden center–cum–bric-a-brac emporium, selling myriadkitsch, but which had DIY and lighting sections. I sprinted67 upthe stairs, grabbed an assistant, and asked for halogenfloodlights. There was a long pause. Then, as if in slowmotion, she said, “Well . . . I . . . think . . . we’ve . . . got . . .
some fairy lights—” NO, no, no. Flood-lights. Halogenfloodlights, 500 watts68. Completely different. Where wouldthey be? As she drifted off to ask someone, I combed thelighting section again at emergency speed, eyes scanningsystematically up and down the rows of frilly pink bedsidelights, glass ladies holding a single bulb, and of course,fairy lights. I tried to broaden my mission statement; wouldany of this lighting detritus69 work as a compromise? Ipictured our grizzled team working in a dank corridor withmetal angle grinding machines, tigers in the next bay, andimagined their faces as I presented them with a Disneycharacterdesk lamp. No.
And then I found it. In an unmarked box on a bottom shelfwas a single exterior70 wall-mount halogen lamp, but no plugor cord. I grabbed it with both hands and shot down to theDIY section, past the emerging assistant, who was saying,“I’m sorry . . . but . . . we . . . haven’t got—” It’s okay. Gotone. Thanks.
With no one around in DIY I found a plug and some cord,and finally raised an assistant to measure it out for me. Itwas taking too long, so I decided to take the whole roll. “I’ll .
. . have . . .to . . . get . . . a price . . . for that . . . and Reg . . .
is . . . on his . . . break . . .” Okay, measure it out and roll itback, quickly please, as I’m in a bit of a hurry. He got theidea and I was soon in the checkout71 line, restlessly shiftingmy weight and craning over the three people in front of meto see how long they were likely to take. Now, my tolerancefor the dead time in checkout lines is minimal72 even whenI’m not in a hurry. Over the years I have developed zazenbreathing strategies, and trained myself not to focus on theinevitable sequence of minor73 ineptitudes that slow the linedown and that could be avoided. But this wasn’t working. Iwas in full emergency mode—a couple of hours before Iwas making life and death decisions for the first time in mylife, there was a volatile74 big cat prowling around up the roadin the wrong place, and it was going dark and I needed tocomplete this purchase so that we could continue workingto get him contained. And this was not a proficientcheckout. The cashier seemed bemused by her till, andeveryone around me was moving as slowly as molasses.
Then, as the first transaction finally meandered75 to itsconclusion, the departing customer stepped smartly backinto line and reached for a packet of marshmallows; “Ooh, Iforgot these,” he said. I very nearly cracked and went intomanual override76. My hand was twitching77 toward the bag offatuous pink-and-white confectionery, and I fought the urgeto snatch it away, throw it down, and demand to beprocessed next. But I didn’t. Deep breaths. Eventually itwas over, and I was speeding back through the darknesstoward the emergency.
On the home straight an obstruction78 loomed in the headlights. Unbelievably, the guys in the transits I’d passedearlier had closed the road between my leaving the parkand returning. Concrete barriers were in place, and a signsaid it would be closed for the next four months to build apower station. The diversion signs weren’t up yet and mymental map of the area was scanty79 to say the least, and itwas an additional half hour of getting lost down identicalsingle track back lanes before I eventually tore up the driveand set off at a run for the top tiger enclosure.
A single 60-watt bulb had been rigged up, and I rapidlyset about wiring up the lamp using the Leatherman tool onmy belt. I’ve wired hundreds or so such lights in my time, butfor this one I noticed that my hands were shaking slightly,and I wasn’t doing a very good job. Doing it eighteeninches away from Spar, the elderly but massive andmenacing Siberian tiger, didn’t help. Sporting a smallbloodied cut on his ear from an earlier encounter withSovereign, Spar was naturally spooked by the afternoon’sevents, and didn’t like unfamiliar people working in hishouse at strange hours of the day. He was as unsettled bymy presence as I was by his, and kept up an impossibly lowand ominous80 growl81, occasionally reaching a crescendo82 witha roar and a short lunge at the welded mesh83 between us,his big orange eyes wide and locked onto me at all times.
These noises travel right through you, resonating in yoursternum and sending alarm signals to your primitivemidbrain, which is already awash with worry, trying tosuppress the distressing84 news from the eyes, and warningof massive predator85 proximity86 and imminent87 death.
Perhaps understandably, in stripping the flex88 I cut toodeeply into the wire, and the terminal connections weremessy. But it would do.
When the light eventually flooded on, I confessed to Rob,our acting89 Health and Safety officer, that its wiring mighthave to be redone later under more conducive90 conditions.
His drawn17 face smiled sympathetically and he said, “It’ll dofor now.” John, Paul, and Rob worked quickly to finish theinside of the fourth chamber, with the unspoken efficiency ofmen who knew what they were doing and had workedtogether for a long time. Duncan had been exploring thedart-gun situation. The nearest zoo, Paignton, couldn’t lendus theirs because it wasn’t licensed91 for use off site.
Our park’s previous reputation in recent years, and ourmuch heralded92 inexperience, can’t have helped with theirassessment of the situation, and this sense of fiasco, thepublic perception of it, and what it might mean for ourprospects now had time to sink in.
Rob finally secured a dart gun and a licensed operator—Bob Lawrence, senior ranger94 at the Midlands Safari95 Park—who was prepared to travel immediately, but it wasdecided that because Sovereign was contained, Bobwould come down in the morning. Opinion on the groundwas, quite reasonably, that the cat was contained in anenclosure designed to contain big cats, and the risk wasminimal. We began trying to lure him into the finished fourthcat chamber by placing meat just inside the door. Thoughthe presence of meat had an almost chemical effect on thismuscular predator, bringing him to the threshold severaltimes, his instincts for self-preservation held him back. Hewas just too canny96, and too spooked, to surrender his newterritory in return for a free meal in a small box.
Mike advised that we keep a vigil from a car next to theenclosure, and at the first sign of trouble, such asSovereign trying to climb the wire mesh fencing, call for thefirearms. Rob went to sleep on the sofa in the keeper’scottage with the gun next to him, and I moved my mum’s caras close as I could and settled down with a flask97 of coffeeand a flashlight. Every half hour, Mike said, I should shinethe light and make sure Sovereign was calm—and, mostimportant, still there. “Don’t get out of the car,” warnedMike. “If he has got out, you won’t hear him, and he’ll bewaiting outside the door.” Unfortunately, as the eveningwore on, sensible Sovereign decided it was safe to sit inthe empty chamber, though he kept a watchful98 eye onanyone approaching the cat house. This meant I couldn’tsee him from the car, so every half hour I had to open thedoor, half expecting a hundred kilos of muscle, teeth, andclaws to come bursting in. Then, when it didn’t, I had to walka few paces into the darkness, which may or may not havecontained a large, angry jaguar, and shine the flashlight. Myconfidence grew with each sighting of the two reflectiveeyes staring back at me from the house. Sovereign wasn’tgoing anywhere, and at 5 AM Duncan relieved me in thecar. Bob Lawrence arrived at about 7:30 AM with the dartgun. With things hanging off his belt and an Indiana Joneshat, Bob was a very reassuring99 presence to have on site. Ifthere was a rhino100 loose (not that we had any), you felt hecould deal with it. The vet36 arrived with the necessarysedatives, and on the third attempt Sovereign wassuccessfully darted101, although unfortunately, it appeared, inthe tip of his sheath, and he jumped around angrily until hebegan to slow down, scowling102 and prowling, glaring at usthrough the wire. You got the impression he wasmemorizing faces, so that if he got out again he’d knowwhom to punish for this indignity103.
There was a danger that, drugged, Sovereign could fallinto the moat and drown, so I sent for a ladder, mainly touse to push him out with, but I secretly decided that if itlooked even remotely possible, I was prepared to climbdown the ladder into the water to drag him out. But thatwasn’t necessary. Sovereign went down like a lamb, andwe rushed into the enclosure to stretcher him out. Back inthe safety of his own house—microscopically examined forflaws that could have contributed to the incident—Sovereign got a quick dental and general health check. It’snot often you get to peer into this kind of animal’s mouthwithout it being terminal, so the vet made good use of thetime.
Carrying Sovereign on the stretcher, and touching104 him,was my first direct contact with any of the animals in ourcare, and it was an incredible initiation105. One of the mostbeautiful as well as the most dangerous animals in thepark, he required four men to be lifted. His exotic rosettemarkings watched you like eyes as he slept, his enormouspower dormant106, cloaked tight in a coat of deceptive107 beauty.
As Bob Lawrence and the vet hauled this vast cat by thescruff like a sack of spuds clear of the welded mesh door,stepped out, and locked it behind them, there was a hugefeeling of collective, euphoric relief. “The Code Red is nowofficially stood down,” said Rob, which seemed to be hisway of expressing it. But of course there were reports towrite, and the precise timing108 of the incident would becritical, combed over by experts, and ultimately put into thepublic domain109. Rob and Duncan interviewed Richard, thekeeper responsible for not locking the shutter110, severaltimes, and eventually our statements and report werecommended by the council as demonstrating that we hadacted responsibly and professionally. We also got anendorsement of sorts from Tom, the bellowing IT consultant,who said as he left the next day that, “That was, withoutquestion, the most exciting site visit I have ever made.”
But for now I was left with the horror, the horror of what itfelt like to have Sovereign out, even for a second, andcapable of anything. In buying the zoo, I had always thoughtthat the concept of containment112 was a given—already fullyunder control, dealt with by experts using failsafe systems.
The idea of one of these animals loose, marauding on thepicnic area or going down into the village, brought to mychest a new residual113 level of adrenaline that has remainedto this day. The prospect93 of a Code Red, what it feels liketo be in one, and the potential consequences if it goeswrong, are there when I wake up, go to sleep, or walk aboutthe park chatting to visitors. This level of responsibility hasto be taken seriously. It’s as though we’re looking after gunswith brains, a secured armory114 of assault rifles, but each onewith a decision-making cortex and a series of escapeplans. Sovereign had already successfully implementedone of his.
In fact, although we were exonerated115 by the subsequentcouncil report, I think that our taking over the park may wellhave had something to do with that particular incident.
Locking in the jaguar was always a two-person operation. Itturned out that the junior keeper Richard had, according tohis statement and in direct contradiction of an order to waitfor the other keeper, “taken it upon myself to try to clean outthe jag house on my own.” This, he said, was in order to tryto impress his line manager, Kelly, a notion that may or maynot have been connected to the general sense of relief overthe park’s passing on to new owners and the animals’
being saved. Of course, his line manager was notimpressed, and nor was anyone else. That was Richard’slast day. Clearly, zookeeping was not for him.
Another manifestation116 of this new atmosphere had struckme forcibly the day before, when I was talking to Rob out inthe park. Suddenly his head spun117 around in the direction ofan unfamiliar sound, with the urgency of a man used tohaving to react quickly to an escaped animal (an urgency Iwas soon to pick up). “What’s that noise?” he said, and welistened intently. Then we realized it was laughter, comingfrom the staff room. Rob relaxed and his tired face crackedinto a smile. “We haven’t heard much of that round here forquite some time,” he explained.
The day after his return to his house, Sovereign’sanaesthetic had had time to fully43 wear off, and the fatefulsliding gate was lifted. Sovereign, the epitome118 of stealth,committed his weight incrementally119 in ounces at a timeacross the threshold, slowly rolling forward on the lip of thesliding gate. His squat120 forelegs and bulky shouldersgradually bulged121 with the effort as he edged towards theoutside—and food—ears flicking122 and eyes scanning theassembled personnel for signs of a dart gun or some otherdanger. “Sovereigngate,” as it has never been known (andmust never be in the future), was over, and the ramificationswould begin. Our dream could have ended there but for thelocal council endorsement111 of our handling of the incident,which commented specifically on the professionalism of thekeepers. I also was greatly impressed by their composurethroughout a very difficult situation. I’ve never been in a warzone, but this definitely felt like seventeen hours on the frontline, and with people you could rely on.
But as a family, our lack of euphoria was confirmed. Infact, a period of intense anxiety would ensue, as the grimliving conditions, bad weather, and lack of money camehome to roost. Dartmoor has one of the highest rainfalls inthe country, and although we are in a slightly shelteredmicroclimate, the continual winter rain was an unwelcomecontrast to southern France. My brother and I regressed toour roles from when we lived at home in the late 1970s, aswe chopped wood for the big fireplace and jokingly did ourbest to undermine each other in front of our mum—”I pickedyou some of those flowers you like, Mum. Duncan didn’t.”
“You only did it because you’re adopted . . .”
But this became an increasingly difficult time. I swappedmy role as negotiator for the zoo for the full-time123 job offending off creditors and trying to raise money. We ownedthe place outright, but development funds of around£500,000 were urgently needed. The bankers and lawyershad a great time spinning it out, asking for yet moreexpensive surveys and more detailed124 predictions of ourexpenditures. “Can we have a specific breakdown125 ofroutine maintenance costs for August 2008?” asked theRoyal Bank of Scotland, though that was more thaneighteen months away, and utterly dependent on eventsbetween now and then. We’d made provision in ourforecasts for £15,000 to be available for that month, butthey wanted to know if it would be spent on paint, wood,tarmac, or lawn mowers. I could have made something up,but I told the truth: that there was no way of knowing theprecise breakdown so far ahead, but that we had arrived atthe £15,000 figure in consultation126 with other zoo and leisurefacilities and with an on-site maintenance team (and relyingon my experience in the building trade and as the author ofThe “Which?” Guide to Getting the Best from YourBuilder), and that this amount would go a long way. But thisbecame their sticking point, and after six or eight weeks ofdetailed and time-consuming negotiations—during whichthey sidelined other lenders with potential offers of reducedinterest rates—they pulled out. So it was back to thebeginning with someone else.
But all this was ahead of us. We still had the first week toget through, and the excitement hadn’t stopped yet.
Driving Duncan and his business partner, Cameron, tothe park from Plymouth station at about 11:30 PM on ourseventh day, I slowed down just outside the village wherethe road narrows and is banked by stone walls, five to sixfeet high, backed by woodland. The problem seemed to bea deer in the head lights, leaning over the wall about twentyfeet away, looking like it might be about to jump. Deer aresilly enough to jump in front of a moving car, so I stopped tosee what it was going to do. It was then that all three of usnoticed simultaneously127 that this wasn’t a deer. It was apuma. The human visual system works initially128 on atemplate system, drawing up a 2.5-dimensional sketchbased on the available evidence, then finds a suitabletemplate from a huge store in the brain, based on theindividual’s previous experience and the likelihood of amatch within the context, which is why I’d thought the brownanimal ahead was a deer. This is how many illusions and“tricks of the eye” work, eliciting129 the wrong template untilyour more detailed double-take sorts out what is going on.
In this instance, the double-take took less than a couple ofseconds, during which the harmless deer morphed into amuscle-bound, round-headed, cat-eared puma, including adistinctive gray dusting on the reddish coat, which deer donot have. “It’s a ____ing puma,” we all said, more or lesstogether, and then it vanished into the woods. We burst outof the car and ran to the spot on the wall where it had been,in time to hear it padding off (not clip-clopping like a deer)into the undergrowth. We quickly ruled out trying to pursue itin the dark without flashlights over unfamiliar terrain130, andraced back to check on our pumas. So soon after the jagescape, we were convinced of the much-talked-aboutpossibility of animal rights saboteurs cutting the wire, likethey had in the bottom deer enclosure six months before.
Heading straight into Code Red mode, we tore back tothe park half a mile away and ran to the puma enclosure,armed with our biggest flashlight. And they were both there.
But they were both definitely what we had just seen. Thereare many sightings of big cats out in the country, somecranks or mistakes—probably problems with their 2.5-Dsketch—but some, I am now convinced, are real. Probablyuniquely, we were in a position to confirm what we hadseen with two examples of the exact same animal, becausewe had access to our own pumas.
The next day I told Rob, and Robin131, who also acts as avolunteer of the Big Cat Sightings Society, expecting themto laugh in my face and mark me down as delusional132. “Oh,there are pumas round here,” said Robin. “You’re lucky tohave seen one so soon. I’ve been here seventeen yearsand only ever seen the tracks.” Rob had more directconfirmation. “When I was living on site sixteen years ago, Iopened the door of my caravan133 at about six in the morningand there sat a puma, watching me. I closed the door,opened it after a moment, and it was gone, but my God, itwas definitely there.” In captivity134, pumas can live to sixteen,but in the wild the life expectancy135 is several years less.
Judging from the size and condition of the one we sawcompared to our more elderly females, this was a youngmale. Which means they were breeding. A crediblegroundsman a few miles away claims to have seem amother and two cubs a few years ago, and all the sightingsof big cats around Dartmoor are of pumas—not lynx,panthers, or servals, but pumas—a fact that we had no wayof knowing before the evidence morphed into one beforeour eyes. Apparently136 the males come in off the moor47 to visitour females when they are in season (last sighting in thepark was in 2003), giving us a unique opportunity to gatherevidence on these elusive137 animals. Cats of a similar size,the European lynx, were once indigenous138 in the area,feeding on rabbits, rats, birds, and fallen lambs. They neednever come into contact with humans, unless they decide toseek them out. This gave a whole new perspective towalking around the park at night. That Code Red feelingjust wasn’t going to go away. Never a dull moment in thezoo world, clearly.

点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 mansion 8BYxn     
n.大厦,大楼;宅第
参考例句:
  • The old mansion was built in 1850.这座古宅建于1850年。
  • The mansion has extensive grounds.这大厦四周的庭园广阔。
2 utterly ZfpzM1     
adv.完全地,绝对地
参考例句:
  • Utterly devoted to the people,he gave his life in saving his patients.他忠于人民,把毕生精力用于挽救患者的生命。
  • I was utterly ravished by the way she smiled.她的微笑使我完全陶醉了。
3 unfamiliar uk6w4     
adj.陌生的,不熟悉的
参考例句:
  • I am unfamiliar with the place and the people here.我在这儿人地生疏。
  • The man seemed unfamiliar to me.这人很面生。
4 frankly fsXzcf     
adv.坦白地,直率地;坦率地说
参考例句:
  • To speak frankly, I don't like the idea at all.老实说,我一点也不赞成这个主意。
  • Frankly speaking, I'm not opposed to reform.坦率地说,我不反对改革。
5 uncertainty NlFwK     
n.易变,靠不住,不确知,不确定的事物
参考例句:
  • Her comments will add to the uncertainty of the situation.她的批评将会使局势更加不稳定。
  • After six weeks of uncertainty,the strain was beginning to take its toll.6个星期的忐忑不安后,压力开始产生影响了。
6 negotiations af4b5f3e98e178dd3c4bac64b625ecd0     
协商( negotiation的名词复数 ); 谈判; 完成(难事); 通过
参考例句:
  • negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
  • Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。
7 outright Qj7yY     
adv.坦率地;彻底地;立即;adj.无疑的;彻底的
参考例句:
  • If you have a complaint you should tell me outright.如果你有不满意的事,你应该直率地对我说。
  • You should persuade her to marry you outright.你应该彻底劝服她嫁给你。
8 creditors 6cb54c34971e9a505f7a0572f600684b     
n.债权人,债主( creditor的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • They agreed to repay their creditors over a period of three years. 他们同意3年内向债主还清欠款。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Creditors could obtain a writ for the arrest of their debtors. 债权人可以获得逮捕债务人的令状。 来自《简明英汉词典》
9 meticulously AoNzN9     
adv.过细地,异常细致地;无微不至;精心
参考例句:
  • The hammer's silvery head was etched with holy runs and its haft was meticulously wrapped in blue leather. 锤子头是纯银制成的,雕刻着神圣符文,而握柄则被精心地包裹在蓝色的皮革中。 来自辞典例句
  • She is always meticulously accurate in punctuation and spelling. 她的标点和拼写总是非常精确。 来自辞典例句
10 accurately oJHyf     
adv.准确地,精确地
参考例句:
  • It is hard to hit the ball accurately.准确地击中球很难。
  • Now scientists can forecast the weather accurately.现在科学家们能准确地预报天气。
11 sniffing 50b6416c50a7d3793e6172a8514a0576     
n.探查法v.以鼻吸气,嗅,闻( sniff的现在分词 );抽鼻子(尤指哭泣、患感冒等时出声地用鼻子吸气);抱怨,不以为然地说
参考例句:
  • We all had colds and couldn't stop sniffing and sneezing. 我们都感冒了,一个劲地抽鼻子,打喷嚏。
  • They all had colds and were sniffing and sneezing. 他们都伤风了,呼呼喘气而且打喷嚏。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
12 eyebrows a0e6fb1330e9cfecfd1c7a4d00030ed5     
眉毛( eyebrow的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Eyebrows stop sweat from coming down into the eyes. 眉毛挡住汗水使其不能流进眼睛。
  • His eyebrows project noticeably. 他的眉毛特别突出。
13 puff y0cz8     
n.一口(气);一阵(风);v.喷气,喘气
参考例句:
  • He took a puff at his cigarette.他吸了一口香烟。
  • They tried their best to puff the book they published.他们尽力吹捧他们出版的书。
14 puffs cb3699ccb6e175dfc305ea6255d392d6     
n.吸( puff的名词复数 );(烟斗或香烟的)一吸;一缕(烟、蒸汽等);(呼吸或风的)呼v.使喷出( puff的第三人称单数 );喷着汽(或烟)移动;吹嘘;吹捧
参考例句:
  • We sat exchanging puffs from that wild pipe of his. 我们坐在那里,轮番抽着他那支野里野气的烟斗。 来自辞典例句
  • Puffs of steam and smoke came from the engine. 一股股蒸汽和烟雾从那火车头里冒出来。 来自辞典例句
15 deployed 4ceaf19fb3d0a70e329fcd3777bb05ea     
(尤指军事行动)使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 ); 施展; 部署; 有效地利用
参考例句:
  • Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。
  • The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。
16 withdrawn eeczDJ     
vt.收回;使退出;vi.撤退,退出
参考例句:
  • Our force has been withdrawn from the danger area.我们的军队已从危险地区撤出。
  • All foreign troops should be withdrawn to their own countries.一切外国军队都应撤回本国去。
17 drawn MuXzIi     
v.拖,拉,拔出;adj.憔悴的,紧张的
参考例句:
  • All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
  • Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。
18 immediate aapxh     
adj.立即的;直接的,最接近的;紧靠的
参考例句:
  • His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
  • We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。
19 dedicated duHzy2     
adj.一心一意的;献身的;热诚的
参考例句:
  • He dedicated his life to the cause of education.他献身于教育事业。
  • His whole energies are dedicated to improve the design.他的全部精力都放在改进这项设计上了。
20 odds n5czT     
n.让步,机率,可能性,比率;胜败优劣之别
参考例句:
  • The odds are 5 to 1 that she will win.她获胜的机会是五比一。
  • Do you know the odds of winning the lottery once?你知道赢得一次彩票的几率多大吗?
21 boulder BNbzS     
n.巨砾;卵石,圆石
参考例句:
  • We all heaved together and removed the boulder.大家一齐用劲,把大石头搬开了。
  • He stepped clear of the boulder.他从大石头后面走了出来。
22 arthritic b5cc95cfe3db715aae328bc7f927f4c8     
adj.关节炎的
参考例句:
  • Somehow the geriatric Voyager 2, arthritic and partially deaf, managed to reach Neptune. 得了关节炎而且局部变聋、衰老的“旅行者2号”最后总算抵达海王星。 来自百科语句
  • Femoral head ostectomy is a surgery performed on severely arthritic dogs. 股骨断截骨术’都是针对关节炎严重的狗狗的手术。 来自互联网
23 prosecuted Wk5zqY     
a.被起诉的
参考例句:
  • The editors are being prosecuted for obscenity. 编辑因刊载污秽文字而被起诉。
  • The company was prosecuted for breaching the Health and Safety Act. 这家公司被控违反《卫生安全条例》。
24 hormonal Fcpx6     
adj.激素的
参考例句:
  • Some viral diseases are more severe during pregnancy, probably tecause of hormonal changes. 有些病毒病在妊娠期间比较严重,可能是由于激素变化引起的。
  • She underwent surgical intervention and a subsequent short period of hormonal therapy. 他接受外科手术及随后短暂荷尔蒙治疗。
25 frustrated ksWz5t     
adj.挫败的,失意的,泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的过去式和过去分词 );挫败;使受挫折;令人沮丧
参考例句:
  • It's very easy to get frustrated in this job. 这个工作很容易令人懊恼。
  • The bad weather frustrated all our hopes of going out. 恶劣的天气破坏了我们出行的愿望。 来自《简明英汉词典》
26 rectify 8AezO     
v.订正,矫正,改正
参考例句:
  • The matter will rectify itself in a few days.那件事过几天就会变好。
  • You can rectify this fault if you insert a slash.插人一条斜线便可以纠正此错误。
27 jaguar JaPz8     
n.美洲虎
参考例句:
  • He was green with envy when he saw my new Jaguar car.看见我那辆美洲虎牌新车,他非常妒忌。
  • Should you meet a jaguar in the jungle,just turn slowly,walk away.But slowly,never look back.你在丛林中若碰上美洲虎,就慢慢转身走开,可一定要慢,切莫回头看。
28 jaguars bfbd1a0f0e813aff8928cf4c7a6394d1     
n.(中、南美洲的)美洲虎( jaguar的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Jaguars are largely nocturnal creatures. 美洲虎基本上是夜行动物。 来自辞典例句
  • Jaguars (Panthera onca) once ranged from southern South America to theUnited States. 美洲虎曾经分布在北美洲南部和美洲南部。 来自互联网
29 standing 2hCzgo     
n.持续,地位;adj.永久的,不动的,直立的,不流动的
参考例句:
  • After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
  • They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。
30 throbbing 8gMzA0     
a. 跳动的,悸动的
参考例句:
  • My heart is throbbing and I'm shaking. 我的心在猛烈跳动,身子在不住颤抖。
  • There was a throbbing in her temples. 她的太阳穴直跳。
31 wriggled cd018a1c3280e9fe7b0169cdb5687c29     
v.扭动,蠕动,蜿蜒行进( wriggle的过去式和过去分词 );(使身体某一部位)扭动;耍滑不做,逃避(应做的事等)
参考例句:
  • He wriggled uncomfortably on the chair. 他坐在椅子上不舒服地扭动着身体。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • A snake wriggled across the road. 一条蛇蜿蜒爬过道路。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
32 puma Tk1zhP     
美洲豹
参考例句:
  • The police and the volunteers combed the forest for the lost puma from the zoo.警察和志愿者们在森林里到处寻找动物园迷失的美洲狮。
  • A businessman on a fishing trip saw the puma up a tree.一位商人去钓鱼,看见那只美洲狮在树上。
33 pumas 425f841e60479dadfc56975014b5fe35     
n.美洲狮( puma的名词复数 );彪马;于1948年成立于德国荷索金劳勒(Herzogenaurach)的国际运动品牌;创始人:鲁道夫及达斯勒。
参考例句:
  • Pumas are large, cat-like animals which are found in America. 美洲狮是一种体形似猫的大动物,产于美洲。 来自新概念英语第三册
  • But forget that for the pumas and lynx at the Queens Zoo. 而皇后动物园的美洲狮和猞猁却完全不吃这一套。 来自互联网
34 desperately cu7znp     
adv.极度渴望地,绝望地,孤注一掷地
参考例句:
  • He was desperately seeking a way to see her again.他正拼命想办法再见她一面。
  • He longed desperately to be back at home.他非常渴望回家。
35 cubs 01d925a0dc25c0b909e51536316e8697     
n.幼小的兽,不懂规矩的年轻人( cub的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • a lioness guarding her cubs 守护幼崽的母狮
  • Lion cubs depend on their mother to feed them. 狮子的幼仔依靠母狮喂养。 来自《简明英汉词典》
36 vet 2HfyG     
n.兽医,退役军人;vt.检查
参考例句:
  • I took my dog to the vet.我把狗带到兽医诊所看病。
  • Someone should vet this report before it goes out.这篇报道发表之前应该有人对它进行详查。
37 epic ui5zz     
n.史诗,叙事诗;adj.史诗般的,壮丽的
参考例句:
  • I gave up my epic and wrote this little tale instead.我放弃了写叙事诗,而写了这个小故事。
  • They held a banquet of epic proportions.他们举行了盛大的宴会。
38 instinctively 2qezD2     
adv.本能地
参考例句:
  • As he leaned towards her she instinctively recoiled. 他向她靠近,她本能地往后缩。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • He knew instinctively where he would find her. 他本能地知道在哪儿能找到她。 来自《简明英汉词典》
39 permanently KluzuU     
adv.永恒地,永久地,固定不变地
参考例句:
  • The accident left him permanently scarred.那次事故给他留下了永久的伤疤。
  • The ship is now permanently moored on the Thames in London.该船现在永久地停泊在伦敦泰晤士河边。
40 canvassed 7b5359a87abbafb792cee12a01df4640     
v.(在政治方面)游说( canvass的过去式和过去分词 );调查(如选举前选民的)意见;为讨论而提出(意见等);详细检查
参考例句:
  • He canvassed the papers, hunting for notices of jobs. 他仔细查阅报纸,寻找招工广告。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
  • The stirring event was well canvassed. 那桩惊人的事情已经是满城风雨。 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险
41 loomed 9423e616fe6b658c9a341ebc71833279     
v.隐约出现,阴森地逼近( loom的过去式和过去分词 );隐约出现,阴森地逼近
参考例句:
  • A dark shape loomed up ahead of us. 一个黑糊糊的影子隐隐出现在我们的前面。
  • The prospect of war loomed large in everyone's mind. 战事将起的庞大阴影占据每个人的心。 来自《简明英汉词典》
42 ostracized ebf8815809823320b153d461e88dad4b     
v.放逐( ostracize的过去式和过去分词 );流放;摈弃;排斥
参考例句:
  • He was ostracized by his colleagues for refusing to support the strike. 他因拒绝支持罢工而受到同事的排斥。
  • The family were ostracized by the neighborhood. 邻居们都不理睬那一家人。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
43 fully Gfuzd     
adv.完全地,全部地,彻底地;充分地
参考例句:
  • The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气,然后全部呼出。
  • They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。
44 tightening 19aa014b47fbdfbc013e5abf18b64642     
上紧,固定,紧密
参考例句:
  • Make sure the washer is firmly seated before tightening the pipe. 旋紧水管之前,检查一下洗衣机是否已牢牢地固定在底座上了。
  • It needs tightening up a little. 它还需要再收紧些。
45 cathartic sOmzt     
adj.宣泄情绪的;n.泻剂
参考例句:
  • His laughter was cathartic,an animal yelp that brought tears to his eyes.他哈哈大笑以宣泄情绪,声音如野兽般尖厉,眼泪都笑出来了。
  • The drug had a cathartic effect.这药有导泻的作用。
46 dart oydxK     
v.猛冲,投掷;n.飞镖,猛冲
参考例句:
  • The child made a sudden dart across the road.那小孩突然冲过马路。
  • Markov died after being struck by a poison dart.马尔科夫身中毒镖而亡。
47 moor T6yzd     
n.荒野,沼泽;vt.(使)停泊;vi.停泊
参考例句:
  • I decided to moor near some tourist boats.我决定在一些观光船附近停泊。
  • There were hundreds of the old huts on the moor.沼地上有成百上千的古老的石屋。
48 agitated dzgzc2     
adj.被鼓动的,不安的
参考例句:
  • His answers were all mixed up,so agitated was he.他是那样心神不定,回答全乱了。
  • She was agitated because her train was an hour late.她乘坐的火车晚点一个小时,她十分焦虑。
49 decided lvqzZd     
adj.决定了的,坚决的;明显的,明确的
参考例句:
  • This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
  • There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。
50 shovel cELzg     
n.铁锨,铲子,一铲之量;v.铲,铲出
参考例句:
  • He was working with a pick and shovel.他在用镐和铲干活。
  • He seized a shovel and set to.他拿起一把铲就干上了。
51 anvil HVxzH     
n.铁钻
参考例句:
  • The blacksmith shaped a horseshoe on his anvil.铁匠在他的铁砧上打出一个马蹄形。
  • The anvil onto which the staples are pressed was not assemble correctly.订书机上的铁砧安装错位。
52 rib 6Xgxu     
n.肋骨,肋状物
参考例句:
  • He broke a rib when he fell off his horse.他从马上摔下来折断了一根肋骨。
  • He has broken a rib and the doctor has strapped it up.他断了一根肋骨,医生已包扎好了。
53 asunder GVkzU     
adj.分离的,化为碎片
参考例句:
  • The curtains had been drawn asunder.窗帘被拉向两边。
  • Your conscience,conviction,integrity,and loyalties were torn asunder.你的良心、信念、正直和忠诚都被扯得粉碎了。
54 coaxing 444e70224820a50b0202cb5bb05f1c2e     
v.哄,用好话劝说( coax的现在分词 );巧言骗取;哄劝,劝诱;“锻炼”效应
参考例句:
  • No amount of coaxing will make me change my mind. 任你费尽口舌也不会说服我改变主意。
  • It took a lot of coaxing before he agreed. 劝说了很久他才同意。 来自辞典例句
55 perimeter vSxzj     
n.周边,周长,周界
参考例句:
  • The river marks the eastern perimeter of our land.这条河标示我们的土地东面的边界。
  • Drinks in hands,they wandered around the perimeter of the ball field.他们手里拿着饮料在球场周围漫不经心地遛跶。
56 bellow dtnzy     
v.吼叫,怒吼;大声发出,大声喝道
参考例句:
  • The music is so loud that we have to bellow at each other to be heard.音乐的声音实在太大,我们只有彼此大声喊叫才能把话听清。
  • After a while,the bull began to bellow in pain.过了一会儿公牛开始痛苦地吼叫。
57 bellowed fa9ba2065b18298fa17a6311db3246fc     
v.发出吼叫声,咆哮(尤指因痛苦)( bellow的过去式和过去分词 );(愤怒地)说出(某事),大叫
参考例句:
  • They bellowed at her to stop. 他们吼叫着让她停下。
  • He bellowed with pain when the tooth was pulled out. 当牙齿被拔掉时,他痛得大叫。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
58 inventory 04xx7     
n.详细目录,存货清单
参考例句:
  • Some stores inventory their stock once a week.有些商店每周清点存货一次。
  • We will need to call on our supplier to get more inventory.我们必须请供应商送来更多存货。
59 depicted f657dbe7a96d326c889c083bf5fcaf24     
描绘,描画( depict的过去式和过去分词 ); 描述
参考例句:
  • Other animals were depicted on the periphery of the group. 其他动物在群像的外围加以修饰。
  • They depicted the thrilling situation to us in great detail. 他们向我们详细地描述了那激动人心的场面。
60 bellowing daf35d531c41de75017204c30dff5cac     
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
参考例句:
  • We could hear he was bellowing commands to his troops. 我们听见他正向他的兵士大声发布命令。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • He disguised these feelings under an enormous bellowing and hurraying. 他用大声吼叫和喝采掩饰着这些感情。 来自辞典例句
61 flattened 1d5d9fedd9ab44a19d9f30a0b81f79a8     
[医](水)平扁的,弄平的
参考例句:
  • She flattened her nose and lips against the window. 她把鼻子和嘴唇紧贴着窗户。
  • I flattened myself against the wall to let them pass. 我身体紧靠着墙让他们通过。
62 lure l8Gz2     
n.吸引人的东西,诱惑物;vt.引诱,吸引
参考例句:
  • Life in big cities is a lure for many country boys.大城市的生活吸引着许多乡下小伙子。
  • He couldn't resist the lure of money.他不能抵制金钱的诱惑。
63 chamber wnky9     
n.房间,寝室;会议厅;议院;会所
参考例句:
  • For many,the dentist's surgery remains a torture chamber.对许多人来说,牙医的治疗室一直是间受刑室。
  • The chamber was ablaze with light.会议厅里灯火辉煌。
64 lining kpgzTO     
n.衬里,衬料
参考例句:
  • The lining of my coat is torn.我的外套衬里破了。
  • Moss makes an attractive lining to wire baskets.用苔藓垫在铁丝篮里很漂亮。
65 lighting CpszPL     
n.照明,光线的明暗,舞台灯光
参考例句:
  • The gas lamp gradually lost ground to electric lighting.煤气灯逐渐为电灯所代替。
  • The lighting in that restaurant is soft and romantic.那个餐馆照明柔和而且浪漫。
66 transits 02c20f900dce3e925d6b664dfba9ad97     
通过(transit的复数形式)
参考例句:
  • The anomalistic year is the time between successive transits of the Earth through the perihelion. 近点年是地球连续两次通过近日点之间的时间。
  • Paradigm study gradually transits to exemplification study in civil society theory. 当前我国的市民社会理论正逐步从范式研究转向范例研究。
67 sprinted cbad7fd28d99bfe76a3766a4dd081936     
v.短距离疾跑( sprint的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • He sprinted for the line. 他向终点线冲去。
  • Sergeant Horne sprinted to the car. 霍恩中士全力冲向那辆汽车。 来自辞典例句
68 watts c70bc928c4d08ffb18fc491f215d238a     
(电力计量单位)瓦,瓦特( watt的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • My lamp uses 60 watts; my toaster uses 600 watts. 我的灯用60瓦,我的烤面包器用600瓦。
  • My lamp uses 40 watts. 我的灯40瓦。
69 detritus J9dyA     
n.碎石
参考例句:
  • Detritus usually consists of gravel, sand and clay.岩屑通常是由砂砾,沙和粘土组成的。
  • A channel is no sooner cut than it chokes in its own detritus.一个河道刚被切割了不久,很快又被它自己的碎屑物质所充塞。
70 exterior LlYyr     
adj.外部的,外在的;表面的
参考例句:
  • The seed has a hard exterior covering.这种子外壳很硬。
  • We are painting the exterior wall of the house.我们正在给房子的外墙涂漆。
71 checkout lwGzd1     
n.(超市等)收银台,付款处
参考例句:
  • Could you pay at the checkout.你能在结帐处付款吗。
  • A man was wheeling his shopping trolley to the checkout.一个男人正推着购物车向付款台走去。
72 minimal ODjx6     
adj.尽可能少的,最小的
参考例句:
  • They referred to this kind of art as minimal art.他们把这种艺术叫微型艺术。
  • I stayed with friends, so my expenses were minimal.我住在朋友家,所以我的花费很小。
73 minor e7fzR     
adj.较小(少)的,较次要的;n.辅修学科;vi.辅修
参考例句:
  • The young actor was given a minor part in the new play.年轻的男演员在这出新戏里被分派担任一个小角色。
  • I gave him a minor share of my wealth.我把小部分财产给了他。
74 volatile tLQzQ     
adj.反复无常的,挥发性的,稍纵即逝的,脾气火爆的;n.挥发性物质
参考例句:
  • With the markets being so volatile,investments are at great risk.由于市场那么变化不定,投资冒着很大的风险。
  • His character was weak and volatile.他这个人意志薄弱,喜怒无常。
75 meandered 5dfab2b9284d93e5bf8dd3e7c2bd3b6b     
(指溪流、河流等)蜿蜒而流( meander的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • A stream meandered towards the sea. 一条小河蜿蜒地流向大海。
  • The small river meandered in lazy curves down the centre. 小河缓缓地绕着中心地区迤逦流过。
76 override sK4xu     
vt.不顾,不理睬,否决;压倒,优先于
参考例句:
  • The welfare of a child should always override the wishes of its parents.孩子的幸福安康应该永远比父母的愿望来得更重要。
  • I'm applying in advance for the authority to override him.我提前申请当局对他进行否决。
77 twitching 97f99ba519862a2bc691c280cee4d4cf     
n.颤搐
参考例句:
  • The child in a spasm kept twitching his arms and legs. 那个害痉挛的孩子四肢不断地抽搐。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • My eyelids keep twitching all the time. 我眼皮老是跳。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
78 obstruction HRrzR     
n.阻塞,堵塞;障碍物
参考例句:
  • She was charged with obstruction of a police officer in the execution of his duty.她被指控妨碍警察执行任务。
  • The road was cleared from obstruction.那条路已被清除了障碍。
79 scanty ZDPzx     
adj.缺乏的,仅有的,节省的,狭小的,不够的
参考例句:
  • There is scanty evidence to support their accusations.他们的指控证据不足。
  • The rainfall was rather scanty this month.这个月的雨量不足。
80 ominous Xv6y5     
adj.不祥的,不吉的,预兆的,预示的
参考例句:
  • Those black clouds look ominous for our picnic.那些乌云对我们的野餐来说是个不祥之兆。
  • There was an ominous silence at the other end of the phone.电话那头出现了不祥的沉默。
81 growl VeHzE     
v.(狗等)嗥叫,(炮等)轰鸣;n.嗥叫,轰鸣
参考例句:
  • The dog was biting,growling and wagging its tail.那条狗在一边撕咬一边低声吼叫,尾巴也跟着摇摆。
  • The car growls along rutted streets.汽车在车辙纵横的街上一路轰鸣。
82 crescendo 1o8zM     
n.(音乐)渐强,高潮
参考例句:
  • The gale reached its crescendo in the evening.狂风在晚上达到高潮。
  • There was a crescendo of parliamentary and press criticism.来自议会和新闻界的批评越来越多。
83 mesh cC1xJ     
n.网孔,网丝,陷阱;vt.以网捕捉,啮合,匹配;vi.适合; [计算机]网络
参考例句:
  • Their characters just don't mesh.他们的性格就是合不来。
  • This is the net having half inch mesh.这是有半英寸网眼的网。
84 distressing cuTz30     
a.使人痛苦的
参考例句:
  • All who saw the distressing scene revolted against it. 所有看到这种悲惨景象的人都对此感到难过。
  • It is distressing to see food being wasted like this. 这样浪费粮食令人痛心。
85 predator 11vza     
n.捕食其它动物的动物;捕食者
参考例句:
  • The final part of this chapter was devoted to a brief summary of predator species.本章最后部分简要总结了食肉动物。
  • Komodo dragon is the largest living lizard and a fearsome predator.科摩多龙是目前存在的最大蜥蜴,它是一种令人恐惧的捕食性动物。
86 proximity 5RsxM     
n.接近,邻近
参考例句:
  • Marriages in proximity of blood are forbidden by the law.法律规定禁止近亲结婚。
  • Their house is in close proximity to ours.他们的房子很接近我们的。
87 imminent zc9z2     
adj.即将发生的,临近的,逼近的
参考例句:
  • The black clounds show that a storm is imminent.乌云预示暴风雨即将来临。
  • The country is in imminent danger.国难当头。
88 flex Cjwxc     
n.皮线,花线;vt.弯曲或伸展
参考例句:
  • We wound off a couple of yards of wire for a new lamp flex.我们解开几码电线作为新的电灯花线。
  • He gave his biceps a flex to impress the ladies.他收缩他的肱二头肌以吸引那些女士们的目光。
89 acting czRzoc     
n.演戏,行为,假装;adj.代理的,临时的,演出用的
参考例句:
  • Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她,她只是假装的。
  • During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代,她的表演生涯黯然失色。
90 conducive hppzk     
adj.有益的,有助的
参考例句:
  • This is a more conducive atmosphere for studying.这样的氛围更有利于学习。
  • Exercise is conducive to good health.体育锻炼有助于增强体质。
91 licensed ipMzNI     
adj.得到许可的v.许可,颁发执照(license的过去式和过去分词)
参考例句:
  • The new drug has not yet been licensed in the US. 这种新药尚未在美国获得许可。
  • Is that gun licensed? 那支枪有持枪执照吗?
92 heralded a97fc5524a0d1c7e322d0bd711a85789     
v.预示( herald的过去式和过去分词 );宣布(好或重要)
参考例句:
  • The singing of the birds heralded in the day. 鸟鸣报晓。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • A fanfare of trumpets heralded the arrival of the King. 嘹亮的小号声宣告了国王驾到。 来自《简明英汉词典》
93 prospect P01zn     
n.前景,前途;景色,视野
参考例句:
  • This state of things holds out a cheerful prospect.事态呈现出可喜的前景。
  • The prospect became more evident.前景变得更加明朗了。
94 ranger RTvxb     
n.国家公园管理员,护林员;骑兵巡逻队员
参考例句:
  • He was the head ranger of the national park.他曾是国家公园的首席看守员。
  • He loved working as a ranger.他喜欢做护林人。
95 safari TCnz5     
n.远征旅行(探险、考察);探险队,狩猎队
参考例句:
  • When we go on safari we like to cook on an open fire.我们远行狩猎时,喜欢露天生火做饭。
  • They went on safari searching for the rare black rhinoceros.他们进行探险旅行,搜寻那稀有的黑犀牛。
96 canny nsLzV     
adj.谨慎的,节俭的
参考例句:
  • He was far too canny to risk giving himself away.他非常谨慎,不会冒险暴露自己。
  • But I'm trying to be a little canny about it.但是我想对此谨慎一些。
97 flask Egxz8     
n.瓶,火药筒,砂箱
参考例句:
  • There is some deposit in the bottom of the flask.这只烧杯的底部有些沉淀物。
  • He took out a metal flask from a canvas bag.他从帆布包里拿出一个金属瓶子。
98 watchful tH9yX     
adj.注意的,警惕的
参考例句:
  • The children played under the watchful eye of their father.孩子们在父亲的小心照看下玩耍。
  • It is important that health organizations remain watchful.卫生组织保持警惕是极为重要的。
99 reassuring vkbzHi     
a.使人消除恐惧和疑虑的,使人放心的
参考例句:
  • He gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder. 他轻拍了一下她的肩膀让她放心。
  • With a reassuring pat on her arm, he left. 他鼓励地拍了拍她的手臂就离开了。
100 rhino xjmztD     
n.犀牛,钱, 现金
参考例句:
  • The rhino charged headlong towards us.犀牛急速地向我们冲来。
  • They have driven the rhino to the edge of extinction.他们已经令犀牛濒临灭绝。
101 darted d83f9716cd75da6af48046d29f4dd248     
v.投掷,投射( dart的过去式和过去分词 );向前冲,飞奔
参考例句:
  • The lizard darted out its tongue at the insect. 蜥蜴伸出舌头去吃小昆虫。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The old man was displeased and darted an angry look at me. 老人不高兴了,瞪了我一眼。 来自《简明英汉词典》
102 scowling bbce79e9f38ff2b7862d040d9e2c1dc7     
怒视,生气地皱眉( scowl的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • There she was, grey-suited, sweet-faced, demure, but scowling. 她就在那里,穿着灰色的衣服,漂亮的脸上显得严肃而忧郁。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
  • Scowling, Chueh-hui bit his lips. 他马上把眉毛竖起来。 来自汉英文学 - 家(1-26) - 家(1-26)
103 indignity 6bkzp     
n.侮辱,伤害尊严,轻蔑
参考例句:
  • For more than a year we have suffered the indignity.在一年多的时间里,我们丢尽了丑。
  • She was subjected to indignity and humiliation.她受到侮辱和羞辱。
104 touching sg6zQ9     
adj.动人的,使人感伤的
参考例句:
  • It was a touching sight.这是一幅动人的景象。
  • His letter was touching.他的信很感人。
105 initiation oqSzAI     
n.开始
参考例句:
  • her initiation into the world of marketing 她的初次涉足营销界
  • It was my initiation into the world of high fashion. 这是我初次涉足高级时装界。
106 dormant d8uyk     
adj.暂停活动的;休眠的;潜伏的
参考例句:
  • Many animals are in a dormant state during winter.在冬天许多动物都处于睡眠状态。
  • This dormant volcano suddenly fired up.这座休眠火山突然爆发了。
107 deceptive CnMzO     
adj.骗人的,造成假象的,靠不住的
参考例句:
  • His appearance was deceptive.他的外表带有欺骗性。
  • The storyline is deceptively simple.故事情节看似简单,其实不然。
108 timing rgUzGC     
n.时间安排,时间选择
参考例句:
  • The timing of the meeting is not convenient.会议的时间安排不合适。
  • The timing of our statement is very opportune.我们发表声明选择的时机很恰当。
109 domain ys8xC     
n.(活动等)领域,范围;领地,势力范围
参考例句:
  • This information should be in the public domain.这一消息应该为公众所知。
  • This question comes into the domain of philosophy.这一问题属于哲学范畴。
110 shutter qEpy6     
n.百叶窗;(照相机)快门;关闭装置
参考例句:
  • The camera has a shutter speed of one-sixtieth of a second.这架照像机的快门速度达六十分之一秒。
  • The shutter rattled in the wind.百叶窗在风中发出嘎嘎声。
111 endorsement ApOxK     
n.背书;赞成,认可,担保;签(注),批注
参考例句:
  • We are happy to give the product our full endorsement.我们很高兴给予该产品完全的认可。
  • His presidential campaign won endorsement from several celebrities.他参加总统竞选得到一些社会名流的支持。
112 containment fZnyi     
n.阻止,遏制;容量
参考例句:
  • Your list might include such things as cost containment,quality,or customer satisfaction.你的清单上应列有诸如成本控制、产品质量、客户满意程度等内容。
  • Insularity and self-containment,it is argued,go hand in hand.他们争论说,心胸狭窄和自我封闭是并存的。
113 residual SWcxl     
adj.复播复映追加时间;存留下来的,剩余的
参考例句:
  • There are still a few residual problems with the computer program.电脑程序还有一些残留问题。
  • The resulting residual chromatism is known as secondary spectrum.所得到的剩余色差叫做二次光谱。
114 armory RN0y2     
n.纹章,兵工厂,军械库
参考例句:
  • Nuclear weapons will play a less prominent part in NATO's armory in the future.核武器将来在北约的军械中会起较次要的作用。
  • Every March the Armory Show sets up shop in New York.每年三月,军械博览会都会在纽约设置展场。
115 exonerated a20181989844e1ecc905ba688f235077     
v.使免罪,免除( exonerate的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • The police report exonerated Lewis from all charges of corruption. 警方的报告免除了对刘易斯贪污的所有指控。
  • An investigation exonerated the school from any blame. 一项调查证明该学校没有任何过失。 来自辞典例句
116 manifestation 0RCz6     
n.表现形式;表明;现象
参考例句:
  • Her smile is a manifestation of joy.她的微笑是她快乐的表现。
  • What we call mass is only another manifestation of energy.我们称之为质量的东西只是能量的另一种表现形态。
117 spun kvjwT     
v.纺,杜撰,急转身
参考例句:
  • His grandmother spun him a yarn at the fire.他奶奶在火炉边给他讲故事。
  • Her skilful fingers spun the wool out to a fine thread.她那灵巧的手指把羊毛纺成了细毛线。
118 epitome smyyW     
n.典型,梗概
参考例句:
  • He is the epitome of goodness.他是善良的典范。
  • This handbook is a neat epitome of everyday hygiene.这本手册概括了日常卫生的要点。
119 incrementally a1d656c3e43d169f1e51a838de0c6d0b     
adv.逐渐地
参考例句:
  • Incrementally update the shared dimensions used in this cube. 增量更新此多维数据集中使用的共享维度。 来自互联网
  • Grand goals are inspiring, but be sure to approach them incrementally. 辉煌的目标令人鼓舞,但一定要逐步实现。 来自互联网
120 squat 2GRzp     
v.蹲坐,蹲下;n.蹲下;adj.矮胖的,粗矮的
参考例句:
  • For this exercise you need to get into a squat.在这次练习中你需要蹲下来。
  • He is a squat man.他是一个矮胖的男人。
121 bulged e37e49e09d3bc9d896341f6270381181     
凸出( bulge的过去式和过去分词 ); 充满; 塞满(某物)
参考例句:
  • His pockets bulged with apples and candy. 他的口袋鼓鼓地装满了苹果和糖。
  • The oranges bulged his pocket. 桔子使得他的衣袋胀得鼓鼓的。
122 flicking 856751237583a36a24c558b09c2a932a     
(尤指用手指或手快速地)轻击( flick的现在分词 ); (用…)轻挥; (快速地)按开关; 向…笑了一下(或瞥了一眼等)
参考例句:
  • He helped her up before flicking the reins. 他帮她上马,之后挥动了缰绳。
  • There's something flicking around my toes. 有什么东西老在叮我的脚指头。
123 full-time SsBz42     
adj.满工作日的或工作周的,全时间的
参考例句:
  • A full-time job may be too much for her.全天工作她恐怕吃不消。
  • I don't know how she copes with looking after her family and doing a full-time job.既要照顾家庭又要全天工作,我不知道她是如何对付的。
124 detailed xuNzms     
adj.详细的,详尽的,极注意细节的,完全的
参考例句:
  • He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
  • A detailed list of our publications is available on request.我们的出版物有一份详细的目录备索。
125 breakdown cS0yx     
n.垮,衰竭;损坏,故障,倒塌
参考例句:
  • She suffered a nervous breakdown.她患神经衰弱。
  • The plane had a breakdown in the air,but it was fortunately removed by the ace pilot.飞机在空中发生了故障,但幸运的是被王牌驾驶员排除了。
126 consultation VZAyq     
n.咨询;商量;商议;会议
参考例句:
  • The company has promised wide consultation on its expansion plans.该公司允诺就其扩展计划广泛征求意见。
  • The scheme was developed in close consultation with the local community.该计划是在同当地社区密切磋商中逐渐形成的。
127 simultaneously 4iBz1o     
adv.同时发生地,同时进行地
参考例句:
  • The radar beam can track a number of targets almost simultaneously.雷达波几乎可以同时追着多个目标。
  • The Windows allow a computer user to execute multiple programs simultaneously.Windows允许计算机用户同时运行多个程序。
128 initially 273xZ     
adv.最初,开始
参考例句:
  • The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
  • Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。
129 eliciting f08f75f51c1af2ad2f06093ec0cc0789     
n. 诱发, 引出 动词elicit的现在分词形式
参考例句:
  • He succeeded in eliciting the information he needed from her. 他从她那里问出了他所需要的信息。
  • A criminal trial isn't a tribunal for eliciting the truth. 刑事审讯并非是一种要探明真相的审判。
130 terrain sgeyk     
n.地面,地形,地图
参考例句:
  • He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
  • He knows the terrain of this locality like the back of his hand.他对这一带的地形了如指掌。
131 robin Oj7zme     
n.知更鸟,红襟鸟
参考例句:
  • The robin is the messenger of spring.知更鸟是报春的使者。
  • We knew spring was coming as we had seen a robin.我们看见了一只知更鸟,知道春天要到了。
132 delusional 7eba3d7e96003e83113cff712600133f     
妄想的
参考例句:
  • You became delusional and attacked several people trying to escape. 你产生了错觉并攻击了许多人还试图逃走。 来自电影对白
  • He is incoherent, delusional, suffering auditory hallucinations. 他出现无逻辑的,妄想的,幻听的症状。 来自电影对白
133 caravan OrVzu     
n.大蓬车;活动房屋
参考例句:
  • The community adviser gave us a caravan to live in.社区顾问给了我们一间活动住房栖身。
  • Geoff connected the caravan to the car.杰弗把旅行用的住屋拖车挂在汽车上。
134 captivity qrJzv     
n.囚禁;被俘;束缚
参考例句:
  • A zoo is a place where live animals are kept in captivity for the public to see.动物园是圈养动物以供公众观看的场所。
  • He was held in captivity for three years.他被囚禁叁年。
135 expectancy tlMys     
n.期望,预期,(根据概率统计求得)预期数额
参考例句:
  • Japanese people have a very high life expectancy.日本人的平均寿命非常长。
  • The atomosphere of tense expectancy sobered everyone.这种期望的紧张气氛使每个人变得严肃起来。
136 apparently tMmyQ     
adv.显然地;表面上,似乎
参考例句:
  • An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽,豁然开朗。
  • He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。
137 elusive d8vyH     
adj.难以表达(捉摸)的;令人困惑的;逃避的
参考例句:
  • Try to catch the elusive charm of the original in translation.翻译时设法把握住原文中难以捉摸的风韵。
  • Interpol have searched all the corners of the earth for the elusive hijackers.国际刑警组织已在世界各地搜查在逃的飞机劫持者。
138 indigenous YbBzt     
adj.土产的,土生土长的,本地的
参考例句:
  • Each country has its own indigenous cultural tradition.每个国家都有自己本土的文化传统。
  • Indians were the indigenous inhabitants of America.印第安人是美洲的土著居民。


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