30年來首次發(fā)現(xiàn)的越南鼠鹿

30年來首次發(fā)現(xiàn)的難以捉摸的越南鼠鹿

A tiny creature that looks part-deer, part-mouse has been spotted for the first time in nearly three decades in southern Vietnam, researchers announced Monday.

周一，研究人員宣布，越南南部近三十年來首次發(fā)現(xiàn)了一種看起來又像鹿又像老鼠的小動物。

Feared-extinct, the silver-backed chevrotain hadn’t been seen since 1990 when a hunter in central Vietnam killed one and donated the specimen to scientists.

銀背麝香鹿幾近滅絕，自1990年在越南中部的一個獵人殺死了一只，并把標本捐獻給了科學家以來，就再也沒有出現(xiàn)過。

Photos of the elusive rabbit-sized animal tiptoeing in the wild were published in scientific journal Nature Ecology & Evolution on Monday, following a five-month-long expedition by a team of wildlife experts.

本周一，一組野生動物專家經(jīng)過五個月的野外考察后，在科學期刊《自然生態(tài)與進化》上發(fā)表了這組照片。

“For so long this species has seemingly only existed as part of our imagination,” said An Nguyen, a conservation scientist for the nonprofit Global Wildlife Conservation (GWC) and expedition team leader.

“長久以來，這個物種似乎只是我們想象的一部分，”非營利全球野生動物保護(GWC)和探險隊領(lǐng)隊的保育科學家An Nguyen說。

“Discovering that it is, indeed, still out there, is the first step in ensuring we don’t lose it again, and we’re moving quickly now to figure out how best to protect it,” Nguyen added in a press release.

他在一份新聞稿中補充說“發(fā)現(xiàn)它確實還在那里，是確保我們不會再失去它的第一步，我們現(xiàn)在正迅速行動，找出保護它的最佳方式。”

Also known as the Vietnamese mouse-deer, the creatures typically weigh less than 10 pounds and have a silver sheen on their back and two tiny fangs. They are the world’s smallest ungulate, or hoofed animal.

這種動物也被稱為越南鼠鹿，通常體重不到10磅，背部有銀色光澤，有兩個小尖牙。它們是世界上最小的有蹄動物。

Scientists believed the species had fallen prey to habitat loss and hunting as part of the illegal wildlife trade and it was placed on GWC’s list of “25 most wanted” lost species.

科學家們認為，作為非法野生動物交易的一部分，這些物種已經(jīng)成為棲息地喪失和狩獵的犧牲品，并被列入全球野生動物委員會“25個最想要”的物種名單。

Researchers with GWC, the Southern Institute of Ecology in Vietnam and the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research in Germany set up more than two dozen camera traps in the wild and captured nearly 2,000 images of a handful of the mysterious mammals.

GWC、越南南部生態(tài)研究所和德國萊布尼茨動物園和野生動物研究所的研究人員在野外設(shè)置了二十多個攝像頭，拍攝了近2000張這種神秘哺乳動物的照片。

“The rediscovery of the silver-backed chevrotain provides big hope for the conservation of biodiversity, especially threatened species, in Vietnam,” said Hoang Minh Duc, head of the Southern Institute of Ecology’s Department of Zoology.

“銀背麝香鹿的重新發(fā)現(xiàn)，為保護越南的生物多樣性，尤其是瀕危物種，帶來了很大的希望，”南方生態(tài)研究所(Southern Institute of Ecology)動物學系主任黃明德(Hoang Minh Duc)說。

Scientists will begin new camera trap surveys in two additional areas in an attempt to determine how large the population is to better understand threats to its survival.

科學家們將在另外兩個地區(qū)開始新的攝像機調(diào)查，試圖確定種群的數(shù)量，以便更好地了解對其生存的威脅。