劍橋雅思 17 閱讀原文翻譯 T3P1—The Thylacine

本篇文章共分 7 段，討論關於袋狼的外型、生活方式、競爭對手、人為保育與最後的滅絕。

本篇考題英文原文與對應之中文翻譯整理如下。練習作答解題時若有對語意不清楚之處，請仔細查閱對照，以提升閱讀理解能力。

1. 袋狼外型特徵

   The extinct thylacine, also known as the Tasmanian tiger, was a marsupial* that bore a superficial resemblance to a dog. Its most distinguishing feature was the 13-19 dark brown stripes over its back, beginning at the rear of the body and extending onto the tail. The thylacine’s average nose-to-tail length for adult males was 162.6 cm, compared to 153.7 cm for females.

   已滅絕的袋狼，也被稱為塔斯馬尼亞虎，是一種有袋動物，表面上與狗很相似。它最突出的特徵是背上有 13-19 條深棕色的條紋，從身體的後半部開始，一直延伸到尾部。袋狼的成年雄性從鼻子到尾巴的平均長度為 162.6 釐米，而雌性為 153.7 釐米。

2. 棲地飲食與生活方式

   The thylacine appeared to occupy most types of terrain except dense rainforest, with open eucalyptus forest thought to be its prime habitat. In terms of feeding, it was exclusively carnivorous, and its stomach was muscular with an ability to distend so that it could eat large amounts of food at one time, probably an adaptation to compensate for long periods when hunting was unsuccessful and food scarce. The thylacine was not a fast runner and probably caught its prey by exhausting it during a long pursuit. During long-distance chases, thylacines were likely to have relied more on scent than any other sense. They emerged to hunt during the evening, night and early morning and tended to retreat to the hills and forest for shelter during the day. Despite the common name ‘tiger’, the thylacine had a shy, nervous temperament. Although mainly nocturnal, it was sighted moving during the day and some individuals were even recorded basking in the sun.

   除了茂密的雨林之外，袋狼似乎可以居住在大多數類型的地形中，開放的尤加利樹林被認為是它的主要棲息地。在進食方面，它完全是肉食性的，它的胃具有發達肌肉，有膨脹能力，所以它可以一次吃下大量的食物，這可能是為了彌補長期狩獵失敗和食物匱乏的適應結果。袋狼跑不快，因此可能是通過長時間的追逐中使獵物筋疲力盡而捕獲獵物。在長距離的追逐過程中，袋狼可能多數是依靠氣味而不是其他的感官。它們在傍晚、夜間和清晨出現捕食，白天則傾向於退縮到山丘和森林中躲藏起來。儘管有 “老虎” 的俗稱，但袋狼具有害羞、緊張的性情。雖然主要是夜間活動，但也有人看到它在白天活動，有些袋狼甚至被記錄到在陽光下曬太陽。

3. 繁殖與生存威脅

   The thylacine had an extended breeding season from winter to spring, with indications that some breeding took place throughout the year. The thylacine, like all marsupials, was tiny and hairless when born. Newborns crawled into the pouch on the belly of their mother, and attached themselves to one of the four teats, remaining there for up to three months. When old enough to leave the pouch, the young stayed in a lair such as a deep rocky cave, well-hidden nest or hollow log, whilst the mother hunted. Approximately 4,000 years ago, the thylacine was widespread throughout New Guinea and most of mainland Australia, as well as the island of Tasmania. The most recent, well-dated occurrence of a thylacine on the mainland is a carbon-dated fossil from Murray Cave in Western Australia, which is around 3,100 years old. Its extinction coincided closely with the arrival of wild dogs called dingoes in Australia and a similar predator in New Guinea. Dingoes never reached Tasmania, and most scientists see this as the main reason for the thylacine’s survival there.

   袋狼的繁殖季節從冬季延伸到春季，有跡象顯示有些繁殖是全年進行的。像所有的有袋類動物一樣，袋狼出生時很小，沒有毛。新生兒爬進母親肚子上的袋中，並依附在四個乳頭中的一個上，在那裡停留長達 3 個月。當長大到可以離開乳袋時，幼獸就呆在一個巢穴裡，例如深邃的岩洞、隱蔽的巢穴或空心的木頭，而母親則外出狩獵。大約在 4000 年前，袋狼廣泛分佈於整個新幾內亞和澳大利亞大陸的大部分地區，以及塔斯馬尼亞島。最近在大陸上出現的、有明確年代的袋狼是來自西澳大利亞的莫里洞的碳化石，距今約 3100年。它的滅絕與被稱為澳洲野犬的野狗來到澳大利亞以及一種類似的捕食者來到新幾內亞的時間相吻合。澳洲野犬從未到達過塔斯馬尼亞，大多數科學家認為這是袋狼能在那裡存活的主要原因。

4. 式微原因

   The dramatic decline of the thylacine in Tasmania, which began in the 1830s and continued for a century, is generally attributed to the relentless efforts of sheep farmers and bounty hunters** with shotguns. While this determined campaign undoubtedly played a large part, it is likely that various other factors also contributed to the decline and eventual extinction of the species. These include competition with wild dogs introduced by European settlers, loss of habitat along with the disappearance of prey species, and a distemper-like disease which may also have affected the thylacine.

   塔斯馬尼亞的袋狼從 19 世紀 30 年代開始急劇減少，並持續了一個世紀，這通常歸咎於綿羊飼主和拿著獵槍的賞金獵人的不懈努力。雖然這種決意的行為無疑起了很大的作用，但其他各種因素也可能導致了該物種的衰退和最終滅絕。這些因素包括與歐洲殖民者引進的野狗的競爭，棲息地的喪失以及獵物物種的消失，還有一種類似瘟熱病的疾病也可能影響到了袋狼。

5. 人工培育

   There was only one successful attempt to breed a thylacine in captivity, at Melbourne Zoo in 1899. This was despite the large numbers that went through some zoos, particularly London Zoo and Tasmania’s Hobart Zoo. The famous naturalist John Gould foresaw the thylacine’s demise when he published his Mammals of Australia between 1848 and 1863, writing, ‘The numbers of this singular animal will speedily diminish, extermination will have its full sway, and it will then, like the wolf of England and Scotland, be recorded as an animal of the past.’

   袋狼的人工繁殖只有一次成功的嘗試，發生在 1899 年的墨爾本動物園。儘管在一些動物園，特別是倫敦動物園和塔斯馬尼亞州的霍巴特動物園，進行過大量的繁殖試驗。著名的博物學家約翰-古爾德在 1848 年至 1863 年期間出版了他的《澳大利亞的哺乳動物》，他寫道：“這種奇特的動物的數量將迅速減少，滅絕將全面展開，然後它將像英格蘭和蘇格蘭的狼一樣，被記錄為一種過去的動物。”

6. 保育不力

   However, there seems to have been little public pressure to preserve the thylacine, nor was much concern expressed by scientists at the decline of this species in the decades that followed. A notable exception was T.T. Flynn, Professor of Biology at the University of Tasmania. In 1914, he was sufficiently concerned about the scarcity of the thylacine to suggest that some should be captured and placed on a small island. But it was not until 1929, with the species on the very edge of extinction, that Tasmania’s Animals and Birds Protection Board passed a motion protecting thylacines only for the month of December, which was thought to be their prime breeding season. The last known wild thylacine to be killed was shot by a farmer in the north-east of Tasmania in 1930, leaving just captive specimens. Official protection of the species by the Tasmanian government was introduced in July 1936, 59 days before the last known individual died in Hobart Zoo on 7th September, 1936.

   然而，似乎沒有什麼公眾壓力來保護袋狼，科學家們也沒有對該物種在隨後的幾十年裡的衰退表示多少關注。一個值得注意的例外是塔斯馬尼亞大學的生物學教授T.T. Flynn。1914 年，他十分關注袋狼的稀少情況，建議捕獲一些袋狼並將其放在一個小島上。但直到 1929 年，在該物種瀕臨滅絕的情況下，塔斯馬尼亞的動物和鳥類保護委員會才通過了一項動議，只在 12 月保護袋狼，因為該月被認為是袋狼的主要繁殖季節。1930 年，已知的最後一隻遭獵殺的野生袋狼被塔斯馬尼亞東北部的一名農民射殺，因而只留下了圈養的樣板。1936 年 7 月，塔斯馬尼亞政府對該物種進行了正式的保護，在最後一隻已知的袋狼於 1936 年 9 月 7 日在霍巴特動物園死亡前的 59 天。

7. 滅絕官宣

   There have been numerous expeditions and searches for the thylacine over the years, none of which has produced definitive evidence that thylacines still exist. The species was declared extinct by the Tasmanian government in 1986.

   多年來，已經有無數次的探險和搜索，但沒有一次能產生確切的證據證明袋狼仍然存在。1986 年，塔斯馬尼亞政府宣佈該物種已經滅絕。