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Some countries have adopted an animal as a kind of national mascot. The bald eagle is often thought of as representing the United States, for example. New Zealanders proudly display their kiwi, a native flightless bird. Australians cannot seem to make up their minds whether the koala or the kangaroo should represent them. China also has two animals which often stand out in everyone's mind: the dragon and the giant panda. As the dragon is a mythological animal, that leaves the giant panda as the only real animal representative of China.
若干國家已選擇某動物作為國家的吉祥物。例如，美國就選擇禿鷹作為它的象征。新西蘭人則驕傲地展示他們的幾維，一種不會飛的鳥。澳洲人似乎無法決定應該選擇無尾熊或袋鼠來代表他們的國家。中國也有兩種大家都知道的動物——龍和大熊貓。由于龍是神話里的動物，因此大熊貓就成了真正代表中國的動物了。
Although dragons have been associated with China for thousands of years, the panda's inclusion into the Chinese psyche is far more recent. The giant panda was not even discovered until 1869; it was already a rare animal at that time, living in the high bamboo forests of Sichuan province and neighboring parts of Tibet. Its more plentiful cousin, the lesser panda, is also referred to as the cat bear or bear cat; however, zoologically speaking, it is neither. The lesser panda is a member of the raccoon family, whereas the giant panda's classification is still a dilemma: some authorities consider it a member of the bear family while others maintain that it belongs to the raccoon family, too.
雖然龍和中國的淵源已有數千年之久，大熊貓融入中國人的心靈卻是近幾年的事。大熊貓直到1869年才被發現，在當時，它已是生活在四川省高山林區和鄰近西藏地區的稀有動物。比它數量多的表親體型較小的小熊貓，有人稱之為貓熊或熊貓；但是，就動物學的觀點來說，它既不屬于熊科動物也不屬于貓科動物。事實上，小貓熊是浣熊科的一種，而大熊貓的歸屬至今則仍無定論：有些專家認為它應屬熊科，有些則認為它亦應屬浣熊科。
The giant panda is well named. Reaching a length of 1.5 meters and 160 kilograms, this gentle omnivore is among the largest land animals of China. Subsisting on a diet of bamboo and other plants, and even small animals, it can consume as much as 30 kilograms of food a day. Now that's a giant appetite! Its distinctive markings--broad, white bands of fur alternating with black, and small black circles around the eyes--have endeared the giant panda to animal lovers everywhere.
大熊貓的命名蠻貼切的。大熊貓個性溫順，屬雜食性動物，身長1.5米，體重達160公斤，是中國最大的陸地動物之一。它以竹子和其它植物及小動物為食，一天可攝取多達30公斤的食物。真是好大的胃口啊！它全身黑白色相間的寬條紋以及小小的黑眼圈，是它最明顯的標識，也因而受到各地動物愛好者的喜愛。
People may want to hug this huge "teddy bear," but giant pandas prefer to live a solitary life. This may account for their scarcity; these pandas are on all official lists of endangered animals. Estimates of the wild panda population are difficult due to the rugged terrain they live in, but most experts agree that fewer than 1000 remain free. As they give birth to only one or two cubs when mating is successful, the giant panda's survival in the wild is anything but a foregone conclusion. The Chinese government has set aside 11 nature preserves where pandas are known to exist, hoping to protect them from the rapid encroachment of man. Though poaching is still a problem, strict laws have reduced this senseless carnage.
大家都想抱抱這只龐大的“泰迪熊”。但大熊貓性喜獨居。這可能是它們數量稀少的原因；熊貓已被列入瀕危動物的所有官方保護名單之中。野放熊貓數量很難估計，因為它們都住在崎嶇不平的地區。但專家大多認為野生熊貓的總數不到1000只。熊貓若成功受孕，每胎也只能產下1～2只小寶寶，因此，大熊貓野放的存活率根本無法遽下結論。中國政府已經設立了11處已知有熊貓出沒的自然保護區，希望能保護熊貓免于人類快速的侵害。雖然偷獵仍是個問題，但嚴格的法律已使濫殺減少。
Pandas in captivity number less than 100, the largest share, of course, in China. Those in Western zoos are treated as royalty and are the object of intense scientific interest and care. Recently, veterinarians have given male giant pandas Viagra, hoping to increase the animals' reproductive efficiency. Results are thus far inconclusive. Though births have been reported, they are few and far between. It seems the panda's chance of survival is razor-thin.
動物園飼養的熊貓數量目前不到100只，其中大多數當然是在中國。西方國家動物園內飼養的熊貓被視作皇族看待，也引起科學界強烈的興趣及關愛。近來，有獸醫給雄性熊貓服用藥物，希望增加它們的繁殖力。截至目前為止，尚未有具體結果。雖然已有小熊貓誕生，但數量少之又少。熊貓的生存機會似乎很渺茫。
Its extinction would be a sad day for all of mankind. These playful and gentle creatures never fail to amuse adults and children alike lucky enough to observe them in zoos. Every plant and animal that leaves the world due to human intervention and encroachment of habitat diminishes the world we live in. The richness of the Earth's original biodiversity is being attacked. Will future generations of humanity be left with only a few species of food plants, and zoos exhibiting cockroaches and rats?
熊貓如果滅絕將是全人類的悲哀。這些活潑、溫和的動物總是逗得有幸在動物園內觀賞到它們的大人及小孩開心。任何一種植物或動物如果因為人類對它們棲息空間的侵犯和介入而使它們從地球上消失的話，也將會使得人類生活的空間變得越來越小。地球豐富原生物的多樣化正受到破壞。將來人類留給未來子孫的東西是否只剩下幾種食用植物和只有展示蟑螂及老鼠的動物園呢？
Hopefully, men will learn the excesses of their ways and strive to protect the remaining natural habitats as an investment not only in the flora and fauna remaining but in the quality of life, present and future, of all those on this planet. "Extinction is forever" and "There is only one world" need no longer be heard one becomes conscious of preserving the beauty of the natural world around us.
但愿吾人能從我們放肆的行為中記取教訓，努力維護現存的自然棲息環境，不僅為現有的動植物設想，也為地球上我們這一代及后代子孫的生活質量設想。如果人人都能了解保護我們外圍自然生態美的重要性，就不必再聽到“物種一旦滅絕便永遠滅絕了。”及“我們只有一個地球。”這樣的警語了。
