10080802英文作業-End Times? Texas Lake Turns Blood-Red

End Times? Texas Lake Turns Blood-Red

末日將臨？德州湖泊轉為血紅色

A Texas lake that turned blood-red this summer may not be a sign of the End Times, but probably is the end of a popular fishing and recreation spot.

德州某處湖泊在今年夏天轉為血紅色或許不代表末日將臨，但可能是這個垂釣及娛樂景點的末日。

A drought has left the OC Fisher Reservoir in San Angelo State Park in West Texas almost entirely dry. The water that is left is stagnant, full of dead fish — and a deep, opaque red.

乾旱導致西德州San Angelo國家公園的OC釣魚湖幾乎完全乾涸。死水中充滿了死魚—還有不透明的深紅色。

The color has some apocalypse believers suggesting that OC Fisher is an early sign of the end of the world, but Texas Parks and Wildlife Inland Fisheries officials say the bloody look is the result of Chromatiaceae bacteria, which thrive in oxygen-deprived water.

這種顏色讓一些末世論信從者宣稱OC釣魚場就是第一個世界末日的跡象，但德州公園和野生湖魚類機構說這種像血一般的顏色只是紅硫菌的顏色，這種細菌生長在氧溶量較低的水中。

"It's just heartbreaking," said Charles Cruz, a fish and wildlife technician with Texas Parks and Wildlife in San Angelo, Tex.

「好心碎啊！」Charles Cruz說，他是一名漁夫，也是德州公園和野生湖魚類機構的野生科學家。

Texas is experiencing major drought this summer, with 75 percent of the state's area in an "exceptional" drought, the highest level, according to the National Drought Mitigation Center (NDMC). The state had hoped for some relief from Tropical Storm Don last week, but the system fizzled and brought only an inch or two of rain to areas near the coast.

德州今夏面臨了嚴重的乾旱，75%的此州土地皆被國際乾旱紓解中心標記在最高層級的「特殊乾旱」中。德州原本希望能從上星期的Tropical Storm Don颶風中得到紓解，但風暴系統瓦解了，而且只在海岸旁帶來1~2英吋的雨量。

The drought has taken its toll on a number of reservoirs in West Texas, Cruz told LiveScience. OC Fisher has never been completely full, Cruz said, but it was stocked with catfish, bass, sunfish and other popular targets for fishermen.

這次的乾旱讓西德州的諸多湖泊幾乎消失，Cruz告訴LiveScience。OC釣魚場已經好久沒有客滿，但卻充滿了鯰魚、琵琶魚、太陽魚和諸多漁夫喜愛的魚種。

"We surveyed the lake, I believe it was last year, and we had a pretty good fish population out there," Cruz said. "It was pretty sickening going out there, watching lake levels just drop and drop and drop and seeing these nice trophy-sized bass just floating dead."

「去年，我曾經相信我們拯救了這個湖泊，而且我們在這裡有個很棒的釣魚聯誼會，」Cruz說，「變成這樣真的很可惜，看到湖泊的水位一直下降、下降再下降，看到很棒的巨無霸尺寸的琵琶魚死在湖上。」

As of last week, all that remained of the lake was a small pond a few feet deep, Cruz said. There were thousands of dead fish, he said, but no sign of life.

就在上個禮拜，所有被觀察的湖泊都只剩下一尺深，Cruz說。那裡有幾千隻的死魚，但並非世界的警訊。

Pictures of this blood-red pool circulated online in fishing forums and caught the notice of Indiana preacher Paul Begley, who said in a YouTube video that the lake might be evidence of the apocalypse as predicted by the Biblical book of Revelation. [End of the World? Top Doomsday Fears]

血紅色的池子的照片被放上釣魚論壇，引起印第安酋長Paul Begley的注意，他說那是啟示錄裡所寫的，世界末日的徵兆。

"The second angel poured out his bowl on the sea, and it turned into blood like that of a dead person, and every living thing in the sea died," the passage Begley cited reads. "The third angel poured out his bowl on the rivers and springs of water, and they became blood." 

「第二位天使在海裡擲下他的翅膀，海的顏色變為血紅色就像死牢，而在海中的萬物皆會死亡。」Begley念出這個段落。「第三個天使在河和熱泉內擲下他的翅膀，於是也變成血紅。」

Begley may not have any more luck at predicting the end of the world than did Harold Camping, the radio preacher who set the date for May 21, 2011. But for as long as the drought persists, the OC Fisher reservoir is a reservoir no longer.

Begley對於世界末日的預測也許不會比Harold Camping更引人注目，這位電台主持人說2011年的5月21日就是世界末日。但只要乾旱繼續持續，這個湖也許很快就不會是個湖了。

"I don't know what's left in there now. We haven't been back," Cruz said. "But I would guess it's probably pretty much gone already."

「我現在不知道這裡留下了什麼了。我們不會再回來。」Cruz說。「我想它可能已經完全消失了吧。」

（前一篇太難了，一堆專有名詞，連字典都查不到，所以換這篇。）

（今天寫完後有種虛脫的感覺Orz)