animals are natural resources that people have wasted all through our history. animals have been killed for their fur and feathers, for food, for sport, and simply because they were in the way. thousands of kinds of animals have disappeared from the earth forever. hundreds more are on the danger list today. about 170 kinds in the united states alone are considered in danger. why should people care? because we need animals, and because once they are gone, there will never be any more.

　　animals are more than just beautiful or interesting. they are more than just a source of food. every animal has its place in the balance of nature. destroying one kind of animal can create many problems. for example, when farmers killed large numbers of hawks, the farmers` stores of corn and grain were destroyed by rats and mice. why? because hawks eat rats and mice, with no hawks to keep down their numbers, the rats and mice multiplied quickly. luckily, some people are working to help save the animals. some groups raise money to let people know about the problem. and they try to get the governments to pass laws protecting animals in danger. quite a few countries have passed laws. these laws forbid the killing of any animal or planton the danger list. slowly, the number of some animals in danger is growing.

　　动物需要保护 动物是自然资源，在整个历史过程中，人类一直在糟蹋着这种资源。人们杀死动物，获得它们的皮毛，把它们当作食物或运动方式，或者只是因为它们碍事。成千上万种动物已经从这个地球上永远地消失了。现在另外上百种动物也上了濒危动物名单。仅荚国大概就有170种被认为处于危险当中。 为什么人们应该感到担忧呢?因为我们需要动物，因为它们一旦消失，就永远不会再出现。动物不仅仅是漂亮或有趣。它们不仅仅是人类的食物来源。

　　在维持自然平衡中，每种动物都有其作用。毁灭某种动物会导致许多问题。比如，农民们如果杀死为数众多的鹰，他们谷物和粮食的仓库就会受到老鼠和田鼠的破坏。 为什么?因为鹰吃鼠类，没有鹰控制它们的数量，鼠类就会迅速繁殖。 幸运的是，有些人正在努力帮助拯救这些动物。有些组织筹钱以便人们了解这一问题。他们也努力使政府通过保护濒危动物的法律。很多国家已经通过了法律。这些法律禁止杀害濒危名单上的动植物。某些濒危动物的数目正在慢慢地不断上升。