A Wonder Plant
Every rainy season, the mountain gorillas（大猩猩）of Central Africa travel to the foothills and lower parts of the Virunga Mountains to feed on bamboo. For the 650 or so that remain in the wild, it's a vital food source. Gorillas aren't the only locals keen on bamboo. For the people near the mountains, it's a valuable raw material used for building houses and making household items. But in the past 100 years, resources have come under increasing pressure as populations have exploded and large areas of bamboo forest have been cleared to make way for farms.
All over the world, the ranges of many bamboo species appear to be reducing, endangering the people and animals that depend upon them. A report published by the UN Environment Programme has shown just how horrible our ignorance of global bamboo resources is.
Bamboo is a wonder plant. Its ecological role extends beyond providing food and habitat for animals. Bamboo tends to grow in stands made up of groups of individual plants that grow from root systems. Its expansive root systems are significant for preventing water loss and soil erosion（浸蚀）. In India 25% of paper produced is made from bamboo fiber, and in Brazil, 100,000 hectares of bamboo are grown for its production. Because of its flexibility and strength, it has traditionally been used in construction. Bamboo is often the only readily available raw material for people in many developing countries.
Ray Townsend, vice president of the British Bamboo Society, says, "Some plants are threatened because they can't survive in the habitat — they aren't strong enough or there aren't enough of them, perhaps. But bamboo can take care of itself — it is strong enough to survive if left alone. When forest goes, it is transformed into something else: there isn't anywhere for forest plants such as bamboo to grow if you create a cattle grass land."
| A. Sadly, this isn't a single story. B. It is the physical disturbance that is the threat to bamboo. C. Until now, bamboo has been viewed as a second-class plant. D. Without it, their chances of survival would be reduced significantly. E. Besides, bamboo's most immediate significance lies in its economic value. F. More than a billion people rely on bamboo for either their shelter or income. G. Despite bamboo's value in ecology and economy, its situation is increasingly worrying. |
