Chinese officials announced they've made the largest bust of the world's most trafficked mammal, the pangolin.
中国官员宣布已经查获最大一起哺乳动物穿山甲走私案。
Chinese media reported more than three tons of pangolin scales were seized at a Shanghai port. Authorities estimate more than 5,000 animals had been killed.
中国媒体报道,超过三吨穿山甲鳞片在上海口岸查获。当局估计已有5,000多只动物被杀害。
If you're not quite sure what a pangolin is, you're not alone. The scaly little mammals aren't really well known.
如果你不知道穿山甲是什么,你不是一个人。这个有鳞的小哺乳动物并不是众所周知的。
Pangolins tend to curl into a ball when threatened. Their scales make them basically impervious to predators in the wild, but they're easy targets for people.
穿山甲遇到威胁时会蜷成一个球。它们的鳞片使其基本上不受野生食肉动物的影响,但它们容易成为人类的目标。
In some parts of Asia, pangolins are prized for their meat, and their scales are often used in traditional medicine. That's why all eight species are being hunted to the brink of extinction.
在亚洲的一些地区,穿山甲的肉很珍贵,它们的鳞片通常用于传统医学。这就是所有八个品种正被猎杀至濒临灭绝的原因。
The pangolin's plight has gotten more attention recently, and it's currently under the highest level of international protection that an animal can receive.
穿山甲的困境已经得到越来越多的关注,处于目前国际最高水平的保护下。
But saving the pangolin population is tough because scientists don't have a good estimate of how many are left in the wild.
但拯救穿山甲种群是困难的,因为科学家不能很好的估计野外还剩多少。
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