Search and rescue teams are often accompanied by man’s best friend. A dog’s superior sense of smell can be critical to finding survivors buried under fallen buildings. But now a new animal is being trained to assist search and rescue teams after an earthquake hits, and it’s the rat.

These rescue rats are being trained by Dr. Donna Kean, a researcher from Glasgow, Scotland who has been working with rats for years. Kean explained why she and her colleagues at the nonprofit APOPO train rats instead of dogs. “The rats have a comparable sense of smell and they’re just as trainable as dogs.” she said. “Their size is useful because they will be able to move through different environments that dogs just wouldn’t be able to.”

At the moment. the rats are wearing homemade backpacks that contain microphones, video equipment and location trackers and then scientists are sending these rats into mock debris(模拟的废墟). Rats would be able to get into small spaces to get to victims buried in the ruins. “We have not been in a real situation yet, we have got a mock debris site. When we track the backpack, we will be able to hear from where the rat is inside the debris.” Kean said. “We have the potential to speak to victims through the rat.”

Researchers train them on a basic series of behavior. Training starts off in a really basic environment: a small and empty room. Then they gradually expand and increase the complexity in order to make it like real life. They can start adding in debris and making the training area look more like an actual collapsed building site.

The training just started. and researchers still have to run training trials outside the research environment. They are working with a search and rescue group called GEA, who are based in Turkey, a country with frequent earthquakes and hoping that by next year they’ll be able to take the rats to Turkey for trials.

Going to the zoo is an all-time favorite activity for children and families. However, there are some who argue against keeping wild animals in zoos for a number of reasons. In order to make a decision, we must consider the arguments for and against keeping wild animals in zoos.

【小题1】We can observe animals at close range and learn more about them than we can from books and TV. It also provides an opportunity to promote the conservation of endangered species. In addition, zoos allow scientists to study animal behavior more easily. This helps them to come up with better ways of protecting animals from harm in their natural habitat.

【小题2】Many zoos do not have large enough enclosures (围栏)to keep animals comfortable. The animals have limited freedom to move around.

Another thing we need to take into consideration is the cost of maintaining a zoo. A lot of funds are needed to run a zoo. Money is needed to stock the zoo with all kinds of animals. Staff must be hired and trained to take care of each species of animal.【小题3】Special spaces need to be built to house each type of animal. More staff are needed to clean and maintain the zoo grounds. Even with all the money and effort spent in keeping animals in a zoo, these animals are still not getting the best.【小题4】

In conclusion, while zoos do have some advantages in the areas of education and conservation, it is cruel and selfish to keep animals in an unnatural prison.【小题5】For conservation and research, we can set up sanctuaries (保护区)like the Sepilok orangutan sanctuary in Sabah. It is kinder to leave the animals in their natural home — the wild.

The door of a small cage opens up and a bird flies into a large enclosure (围场). The bird lands on a tree and moves its red head to the side, as if it is surprised. “That’s what it feels like to be free,” said Juan Camilo Panqueba, who works at a wildlife center in the Colombian city of Bogota, far from the Caribbean coast, where the bird usually lives.

Birdsong contests have taken place all over the Caribbean for hundreds of years. Although catching any wildlife is not permitted by the law, wildlife trafficking (非法交易) still happens a lot in Colombia, as the officials were too busy fighting with the drug trade, nongovernment fighters and other dangerous groups. Until recently, they did not enforce (强制实施) the law. Now, as dangerous groups have fallen and with the drug trade mostly destroyed, officials are taking another look.

Three weeks ago, Colombian officials saved birds from a group. The group was mostly people who had recently moved to Bogota from the Caribbean and Venezuela. Officials accuse (控告) the group of setting up a songbird competition on social media. In a closed Facebook group, crowds cheered and recorded the loudness and the number of calls from each bird. The owner of the winning bird received＄100, and people who correctly predicted the winner could also win money. Environmental officials say the birds were badly hurt, because they were kept in the small cages and forced to listen to loud music all day long to make sure they can sing. In the wild, the birds sing to protect themselves or find a mate. “For them, it was like cruel harm,” noted Juan Camilo Panqueba, who works at Bogota’s wildlife center. There, he and others care for birds and more than 1, 000 animals.

Colombians have grown to understand the importance of wildlife, and officials are working to end animal trafficking.