濒临灭绝的秃鹫血迹斑斑的喙往往不会引起人们的同情，但一项新的研究提供了一个关注它们生存的理由。20世纪90年代中期，印度秃鹫濒临灭绝，这对人类来说也是致命的，导致曾经有秃鹫栖息的地区人口死亡率上升了4%。
Vultures act as nature's sanitation service. In India, their diet consisted largely of rotting livestock carcasses — numbering 30m a year in the cattle-revering country. A group of vultures can polish off a cow'scarrionin 40 minutes. Their strongly acidic digestive tracts destroy most germs.
秃鹫充当着大自然的卫生服务员。在印度，秃鹫的食物主要是腐烂的牲畜尸体——在这个崇拜牛的国家，每年有多达3000万头腐烂的牲畜尸体。一群秃鹫可以在40分钟内吃光一头牛的腐肉。它们的强酸性消化道能消灭大部分病菌。
Historically, vultures were widespread in India. But between the 1990s and early 2000s their numbers plummeted by more than 90%, from around 40m. The cause was diclofenac, an anti-inflammatory drug that farmers began using to treat their cattle.
历史上，秃鹫曾在印度广泛分布。但从20世纪90年代到21世纪初，秃鹫的数量从大约4000万只锐减了90%以上。原因是农民开始用双氯芬酸这种消炎药来治疗他们的牛。
Though the drug was harmless to both cows and humans, birds that consumed animals treated with diclofenac suffered from kidney failure and died within weeks.
虽然这种药物对牛和人都无害，但食用了用双氯芬酸治疗过的动物的鸟类会出现肾衰竭，并在几周内死亡。
Without vultures, carcasses attracted feral dogs and rats. Not only do these animals carry rabies and other diseases that threaten humans, they are far less efficient at finishing off carrion. The rotting remains they left behind were full of pathogens that then spread to drinking water.
没有了秃鹫，尸体会引来野狗和野鼠。这些动物不仅携带狂犬病和其他威胁人类的疾病，而且吃掉腐肉的效率也低得多。它们留下的腐烂残骸充满了病原体，并会传播到饮用水中。
The abrupt demise of the vultures made it possible to quantify their impact on public health. A new working paper, by Eyal Frank of the University of Chicago and Anant Sudarshan of Warwick University, used a statistical method called "difference-in-differences" to compare changes in the death rate in districts with habitats well suited to vultures with those in less suitable places, just as diclofenac use took off.
秃鹫的突然灭绝使得量化它们对公众健康的影响成为可能。芝加哥大学的埃亚尔·弗兰克和华威大学的阿南特·苏达山撰写了一篇新的工作论文，利用一种名为“双重差分模型”的统计方法，比较了在双氯芬酸的使用开始流行之际秃鹫栖息地较好的地区和栖息地较差的地区的人口死亡率变化。
In districts with vulture-suitable habitats, more people began to die just as diclofenac sales increased. The effect was greatest in urban areas with large livestock populations. The authors estimated that, between 2000 and 2005, the loss of vultures caused 500,000 additional human deaths.
在适合秃鹫栖息的地区，随着双氯芬酸销售量的增加，死亡人数也开始增加。在拥有大量牲畜的城市地区，这种影响最大。据作者估计，在2000年至2005年期间，秃鹫的消失导致死亡人数增加了50万。
"Keystone species" like the vulture hold ecosystems together. Conserving these animals should be a priority. They may not be cute or cuddly, but they are important.
像秃鹫这样的"关键物种"维系着生态系统。如今当务之急是保护这些动物。它们也许并不可爱，也不惹人爱，但它们很重要。
单词解析
1. demise[dɪˈmaɪz]
n. 死亡；消亡；失败 v. 遗赠；转让
e.g.
They want to save their industry from imminent demise.
他们想挽救濒临消亡的传统杂志业。
2. vulture[ˈvəltʃər]
n. 秃鹫；贪婪的人
e.g.
When someone calls you a "vulture", it is not a compliment.
当有人叫你"秃鹫"的时候，那不是恭维之词。
3. majestic[məˈdʒestɪk]
adj. 雄伟的；壮丽的
e.g.
The setting, at the foot of the Alps, is majestic.
阿尔卑斯山脚的环境雄伟壮丽。
4. carrion[ˈkɛriən]
n. 动物尸体的腐肉
e.g.
These birds live by scavenging carrion.
这些鸟靠食腐肉维生。
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