昆虫是生态环境的重要组成部分，但是它们的重要性常常被忽视。近年来，科学研究发现一些昆虫的数量急剧下降，因此对于昆虫活动的科学观察越来越有必要。
Watching for insects
by Katherine Roth
A number of recent studies have shown steep declines in some invertebrate populations. The number of monarch butterflies in the country has declined by 90 percent in the last 20 years, according to one study. Another study found a 76 percent decrease in flying insects in the past few decades in German nature preserves.
steep /stiːp/ adj. 陡峭的、急剧的
decline /dɪˈklaɪn/ n./v. 下降
invertebrate /ɪnˈvɜːtɪbrət/ n. 无脊椎动物
monarch /ˈmɒnək/ butterfly 帝王蝶
insect /ˈɪnsekt/ n. 昆虫
decade /ˈdekeɪd/ n. 十年
nature preserve /prɪˈzɜːv/ 自然保护区
As alarm over the situation grows, so does the importance and popularity of "citizen-scientist" projects involving insects. More challenging than birdwatching and not nearly as popular, insect-watching – noting and sharing exactly what one sees and where – is nevertheless on the rise.
alarm /əˈlɑːm/ n. 警报
popularity /ˌpɒpjuˈlærəti/ n. 流行（由popular加后缀-ity变成名词）
citizen /ˈsɪtɪz(ə)n/ n. 公民
project /ˈprɒdʒekt/ n. 项目
birdwatching /ˈbɜːdwɒtʃɪŋ/ n. 观察鸟类（由bird和watching组成）
nevertheless /ˌnevəðəˈles/ adv. 尽管如此
on the rise 在增加、在上升
Concern about dwindling native insect populations is one reason why. And new technology has made it easier to log insect sightings and become part of wide-reaching citizen-scientist projects.
concern /kənˈsɜːn/ n. 担心、担忧
dwindle /ˈdwɪnd(ə)l/ v. 减少、变小
native /ˈneɪtɪv/ adj. 土生土长的
log /lɒɡ/ v. 正式记录
sighting /ˈsaɪtɪŋ/ n. 目睹、看到（平常很少看到的东西）
wide-reaching 影响很广的
A worldwide project called "Never Home Alone: The Wild Life of Homes," for example, aims to photograph and catalog the insects, spiders and other tiny creatures that share our homes.
worldwide /wɜːldˈwaɪd/ adj. 世界范围的（由world和wide组成）
photograph /ˈfəʊtəɡrɑːf/ v. 拍照
catalog /ˈkæt(ə)lɒɡ/ v. 记入目录、编入目录
spider /ˈspaɪdə(r)/ n. 蜘蛛
tiny /ˈtaɪni/ adj. 极小的
creature /ˈkriːtʃə(r)/ n. 生物
In the equally global City Nature Challenge, meanwhile, cities compete for how many sightings residents can log. The idea is to see which city can make the most observations of nature (of any sort, not just insects), find the most species and engage the most people. The first year, it was just San Francisco versus Los Angeles. This year, over 100 cities internationally have signed up to participate.
equally /ˈiːkwəli/ adv. 同等地（由equal加后缀-ly变成副词）
global /ˈɡləʊb(ə)l/ adj. 全球的、世界的
meanwhile /ˈmiːnwaɪl/ adv. 与此同时
compete /kəmˈpiːt/ v. 竞争
resident /ˈrezɪd(ə)nt/ n. 居民、居住者
observation /ˌɒbzəˈveɪʃ(ə)n/ n. 观察（由observe加后缀-ation变成名词）
species /ˈspiːʃiːz/ n. 物种（单数和复数都是species）
engage /ɪnˈɡeɪdʒ/ v. 使参与
San /sæn/ Francisco /frænˈsɪskəʊ/ 旧金山（美国城市）
versus /ˈvɜːsəs/ prep. 相对
Los /lɒs/ Angeles /ˈændʒəliːz/ 洛杉矶（美国城市）
sign up 加入活动
participate /pɑːˈtɪsɪpeɪt/ v. 参加、参与
Both challenges – and many others like them – make use of the ever-evolving iNaturalist app and iNaturalist.org, a joint initiative by the California Academy of Sciences and the National Geographic Society. "It gets people and communities to make observing all forms of nature part of their lifestyle," says Scott Loarie, co-director of iNaturalist.★
make use of 使用、利用
ever /ˈevə(r)/ adv. 一直、不断地
evolve /ɪˈvɒlv/ v. 演化、逐渐变化
app /æp/ n. （手机上的）应用程序
joint /dʒɔɪnt/ adj. 联合的、共同的
initiative /ɪˈnɪʃətɪv/ n. 新计划、新方案
California /ˌkælɪˈfɔːniə/ n. 加利福尼亚州（美国西部的州）
academy /əˈkædəmi/ n. 学会、研究院
geographic /dʒiəˈɡræfɪk/ adj. 地理的（由geography加后缀-ic变成形容词）
society /səˈsaɪəti/ n. 社团、协会
community /kəˈmjuːnəti/ n. 社区
observe /əbˈzɜːv/ v. 观察
form /fɔːm/ n. 形式
lifestyle /ˈlaɪfstaɪl/ n. 生活方式（由life和style组成）
co- 前缀，意思是共同
★ 这句话从nature和part中间断句，to make ... part of their lifestyle意思是使…成为他们生活方式的一部分，observing all forms of nature意思是观察自然的所有形式
iNaturalist lets you log sightings of all kinds of plants and animals, and confirm other peoples' identifications. A more kid- and novice-friendly version, Seek by iNaturalist, helps identify species on the spot. Both apps, inspired by birdwatching apps, have helped newcomers pay closer attention to insects.
confirm /kənˈfɜːm/ v. 证实、确认
identification /aɪˌdentɪfɪˈkeɪʃ(ə)n/ n. 识别、辨认
novice /ˈnɒvɪs/ n. 新手
version /ˈvɜːʃ(ə)n/ n. 版本
seek /siːk/ v. 寻求
identify /aɪˈdentɪfaɪ/ v. 识别、辨认
on the spot 当场
inspire /ɪnˈspaɪə(r)/ v. 启发、给予灵感
newcomer /ˈnjuːkʌmə(r)/ n. 新来的人（由new加come再加上表示人的后缀-er）
"If you think about the roughly 2 million living things that are named, about half of them are insects. So if we really want to get a handle on the diversity in the world, and changes under way, we need to start paying closer attention to insects," says Loarie. "It's really tough for a regular person to just go out and identify insects. iNaturalist uses photo-sharing and networks to help them tap into that naturalist's sense of curiosity."
roughly /ˈrʌfli/ adv. 大约
living /ˈlɪvɪŋ/ adj. 活着的
get a handle /ˈhænd(ə)l/ on something 理解某事、能够处理某事
diversity /daɪˈvɜːsəti/ n. 多样性（由diverse加后缀-ity变成名词）
under way 正在发生的、正在进行的
tough /tʌf/ adj. 困难的
network /ˈnetwɜːk/ n. 网络
tap into 好好利用
naturalist /ˈnætʃ(ə)r(ə)lɪst/ n. 自然学家（由natural加上表示人的后缀-ist）
sense /sens/ n. 感觉
curiosity /ˌkjʊəriˈɒsəti/ n. 好奇
Loarie says the app has more than a million registered users worldwide, hundreds of thousands of whom are active users. "We get tens of thousands of photos a day," he says.
register /ˈredʒɪstə(r)/ v. 注册、登记
worldwide /wɜːldˈwaɪd/ adv. 世界范围地
（如果您使用的是火狐浏览器，可能会发现某些行的最后一个单词被分成两半了，这是简书系统的Bug，换成Chrome或其他浏览器就能正常显示了。）
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