VOA慢速英语 鲨鱼对海洋的重要性

　　The studies found that the sharks went to warmer waters of the Atlantic during the winter. The animals did a good job of staying hidden from sight. They swam in waters from two hundred to one thousand meters deep.

　　Like Americans living in cold climates, some of the sharks traveled to Florida for the winter. Others went even further south. One spent a month in waters near Brazil.

　　One of the investigators was Gregory Skomal of the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries. He says the fish probably get to eat more plankton in the warmer waters.

　　(MUSIC)

　　VOICE TWO:

　　Today, a major threat to sharks comes from shark fin soup. The popularity of the soup has increased greatly over the years. Fisheries can earn a lot of money for even one kilogram of shark fins.

　　Finning, as it is called, is big business. It means cutting the fins off a live shark. Fishermen cut off the shark’s fins and throw the animal back into the water. The shark then bleeds to death on the bottom of the ocean.

　　Many animal-protection groups and people worldwide have denounced finning as cruel. Some areas have banned this activity. But it is hard to enforce the ban in many places.

小精灵儿童网站