英語播客 A Cup of English An animal icon show

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On our recent trip to the zoo and aquarium at Defiance Point, my family and I saw a special show of wild animals. We sat in a packed open-air theater at about three in the afternoon and waited for the show to begin. Music played. It was the theme from Mission Impossible. I thought, "Why are they playing that music? What has it got to do with an animal show?" Well, it was a good idea for the show. The two female presenters found a box with a large red button on it. They pushed it, and a recorded voice gave them a mission, "To find the best way to enjoy the outdoors". Through the show they acted as if they were camping, hiking, and repelling, and they talked about other out-door activities. With each activity, they came upon different animals, and showed them to us. One was an Aardvark. It walked on to the stage and suprised all of us. They are actually quite big. Its back was extremely round, and with its snout it busily searched for food under rocks. It looked cute and cuddly. Everybody in the crowd said, "Ahhh," when it first appeared. When it had finished eating some food that had been deliberately placed for it, one of the ladies snapped her fingers, and it obediently left. Other animals came on to the stage. They were also trained. Wait until you hear about a few of them.

Grammar notes.

Useful phrases: to have to do (sometimes using got), to snap your fingers.

Exs:

The film doesn't have anything to do with the original book. Their themes are quite different.

I disagree with you, Sir. What you said has (got) nothing to do with my argument.

He shouldn't listen to our conversation. This (matter) has (got) nothing to do with him.

It used to be tradition to snap your fingers to call the waiter; now it is considered rude.

Advanced.

As the afternoon went on at the zoo, the show became more and more interesting. The list of different animals that made an appearance is long and quite varied. A tortoise from Madagascar was displayed. It moved slowly, of course, and looked cute and defenseless. Then came a fascinating fishcat. That's right, a fishcat, not a catfish. A fishcat is similar to a linx. It is sleek, beautiful, and quite small. But this creature actually has webbed feet! Can you believe it? A cat with webbed feet, just like a duck! Unlike most cats, it swims, and catches its food right in the water. As you can imagine, with an all fish diet, its fur is very sleek. Then came the birds. There was an ostrich, a hawk, a toucan, a barn owl, and then a bald eagle. It was impressive how the ladies had managed to train these birds. Of course they used food to make them obey, and it worked very well. The owl was white, cute, and fluffy, and its flight was completely silent. It flew over the audience and didn't make a sound. Last of all came the bald eagle. It was magestic, with a huge wing span, and an unpredictable look on its face. Iconic is the word, and a great way to end the show. It had been such an impressive show that we had forgotten how hot it was. We went off to get a drink, talking about all the animals and what we had learned. I'm so glad that I took lots of pictures.

Grammar notes.

Animal vocabulary: snout, hoof/ves, beak, webbed feet.

That woman has a nose and mouth that are just like the snout of a pig.

Banging that coconut sounds like horses hooves on a road.

Be careful when you stroke your canary. Its beak is quite sharp.

The duck's webbed feet look like they are made out of rubber.