Do you know what a pangolin is? An instrument, guessed one friend. Term for a baby panda, perhaps? A tropical fruit grown in Indonesia, was another oddly specific response.
你知道穿山甲是什麼嗎?“樂器”， 一位朋友猜道。 又或許是熊貓寶寶的別稱？還有一個一本正經而令人啞然失笑的回答是: 一種生長在印尼的熱帶水果。
I've been conducting this haphazard survey ever since I came across the pangolin in a story about an illegal wild animal trafficking operation.
自從偶然在一個關於非法販賣野生動物的新聞中瞭解穿山甲後， 我就時不時地進行這樣的小調查。
Whilst having a low profile in the general public, it seems the pangolin is well known in the black market trade in dead or live animals. That's right, the pangolin is an animal. Imagine an aardvark with an even more impressive suit of armor and an endearing habit of curling up into a tight ball.
穿山甲儘管不被大眾熟知， 但卻是黑市交易的 “明星”， 人們在這裡買賣活動物或死動物。 沒錯， 穿山甲是一種動物， 想像一下， 它擁有非洲食蟻獸（aardvark）的體型， 鎧甲卻更為引人注目， 還有喜歡蜷縮成一團球的習慣， 十分可愛。
The very scales designed to protect it from predators are exactly what has made it a target for illegal hunting. Their defense mechanism of rolling up in a ball may be enough to confuse lions, but, in a cruel twist, it makes it easy for hunters to simply pick them up.
這種用於抵禦捕食者的鱗片恰恰使它們成為了非法捕獵者的目標。 蜷縮成球的防禦機制用來迷惑獅子或許足矣， 但在關鍵時刻， 卻使捕獵者很容易一眼就認出它們。
All eight variations of the pangolin from Asia and Africa are now among the most endangered mammals. Wildlife organizations estimate 100,000 pangolins are captured each year, fetching up to $3000 a kilo. Pangolin meat is a delicacy and their tough scales are either turned into decoration or dried for use in traditional Chinese medicine. So why hasn't anyone who doesn't want to eat them know about them?
穿山甲一共有八大種類， 分佈在亞洲和非洲， 現已成為瀕臨滅絕的哺乳動物之一。 據野生動物組織估計， 每年約有10萬隻穿山甲被捕，
Clearly, this scaly critter needs better PR.
答案很明顯， 這種帶有鱗片的動物需要更廣泛的公眾普及度。
Hampering their cause is that you're unlikely to see a pangolin in a zoo. No wild animal enjoys being caged, but it seems the pangolin really can't hack it, becoming stressed, depressed and dying early. It's hard to mount a successful for campaign for an animal that 99 percent of the population will never see in real life, let alone be able to have your photo taken with one.
阻礙公眾瞭解這種動物的原因之一是穿山甲不大可能出現在動物園。 沒有任何野生動物樂意被關在籠子裡， 但似乎穿山甲尤其不適合圈養， 圈養的穿山甲會變得肌肉緊張， 精神不振， 最後早早死去。 對於這種99%的普通人在現實生活中都從未見過的動物而言， 想要成功喚起人們對它的保護意識太難了， 更不必說能和這種動物合張影。
Perhaps part of the reason they don't fare well in captivity is because not much is known about them. We know they eat ants, but their diet may include all kinds of other bugs. We don't know how long they live in the wild or much about their breeding habits. They are mammals of mystery.
或許穿山甲不適合人工飼養的原因還在於人們並不熟悉它的習性。 我們知道穿山甲吃螞蟻， 但它們的食物可能也包含其它蟲類。 我們不知道它們在野外的壽命有多長， 對它們的繁殖習慣也不甚瞭解。 這是一種充滿謎團的哺乳動物。
It's a vicious cycle, without much love for the creature, there's little pressure to throw precious scientific research funding dollars at it.
如此一來就陷入了惡性循環：人們對穿山甲瞭解甚少， 因此沒有過多關愛， 進而使得人們對此投入的科研基金也甚少。
They haven't been completely forgotten. There are admirable and hardworking people dedicated to shutting down the illegal pangolin trade and running rehabilitation centers in Asia on shoestring budget. There is World Pangolin Day and you can buy a "save pangolins" T-shirt online.
但形勢也並不完全糟糕， 穿山甲並未徹底被大眾遺忘。 一直以來， 不乏有令人欽佩的敬業人士致力於減少非法穿山甲交易， 用自己的微薄之力建立亞洲穿山甲康復中心；現在我們設立了“世界穿山甲日“；印有“救救穿山甲”字樣的T恤衫也可在網上買到。
But without a significant increase in support, these mammals of mystery are at serious risk of disappearing entirely before most people even know they exist.
但是倘若人類不加大保護力度， 那麼在大部分公眾知道世界上有穿山甲這種動物之前， 這種神秘的哺乳動物就將面臨嚴重的滅頂之災。
It may not be as cute and cuddly as a panda, or as strong as a rhino, but it only takes an online image search to see this peculiar creature has potential. They're shy, non-aggressive, and their bizarre scaly shell has earnt them cute nicknames like "walking pinecone" and "modern day dinosaur". And I haven't even mentioned their super sticky tongue can be longer than their body, ideal for scooping up ants.
穿山甲或許不如熊貓那般可愛， 毛茸茸的讓人忍不住擁抱，也不如犀牛那般強壯，但你只需上網搜一下它們的圖片，就可以看到這種奇特生物的特徵。它們很害羞，性情恬淡，身上佈滿鱗片的奇特鎧甲讓它們擁有了諸如 “行走的松果”、“現代恐龍”等昵稱。對了，我還沒提到穿山甲超級黏的舌頭呢，它們的舌頭比身體還長，是舔食螞蟻的絕好工具。
So now the panda is off the endangered list, let's dedicate some of our animal love, and social media feed space, to this bizarre, misunderstood creature.
如今，經過人類多年保護措施，熊貓已不再屬於瀕危物種，讓我們人人奉獻出一點對動物的關愛，利用社交媒體的宣傳，多多關注這一奇特的、飽受誤解的動物。
About the author & broadcaster
Rose Bolger joined China Daily at the start of November 2016 as a copy editor at the website. Having left her home in the small Australian city, Hobart, to move to one of the biggest cities in the world, she's looking forward to exploring Beijing. During her 10-year career as a journalist she has worked for newspapers, radio and television networks.
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毛茸茸的讓人忍不住擁抱，也不如犀牛那般強壯，但你只需上網搜一下它們的圖片，就可以看到這種奇特生物的特徵。它們很害羞，性情恬淡，身上佈滿鱗片的奇特鎧甲讓它們擁有了諸如 “行走的松果”、“現代恐龍”等昵稱。對了，我還沒提到穿山甲超級黏的舌頭呢，它們的舌頭比身體還長，是舔食螞蟻的絕好工具。So now the panda is off the endangered list, let's dedicate some of our animal love, and social media feed space, to this bizarre, misunderstood creature.
如今，經過人類多年保護措施，熊貓已不再屬於瀕危物種，讓我們人人奉獻出一點對動物的關愛，利用社交媒體的宣傳，多多關注這一奇特的、飽受誤解的動物。
About the author & broadcaster
Rose Bolger joined China Daily at the start of November 2016 as a copy editor at the website. Having left her home in the small Australian city, Hobart, to move to one of the biggest cities in the world, she's looking forward to exploring Beijing. During her 10-year career as a journalist she has worked for newspapers, radio and television networks.
收聽更多英文音訊可關注↓↓↓