Four extremely rare Northern White rhinos recently transferred to Kenya from a Czech zoo have been dehorned to protect them from poachers, a conservation group announced.
“With the increase of poaching in Kenya, we are simply not taking any chances,” Elodie Sampere from the Ol Pejeta Conservancy, which is overseeing the animals’ acclimatization told AFP.
Cutting off the horns will spike the hunters’ guns because “without a horn, these rhinos are of no value to poachers,” she said.
The rhinos, two males and two females, are among only eight members of a very rare sub-species of white rhinos known to be alive worldwide and were transferred back to Kenya with the hope they would reproduce.
Kenyan wildlife rangers earlier this month arrested 12 men from an illicit game trade syndicate suspected of killing a 10-year-old white rhino and hacking off its horns.
The east African country, which has the world’s third largest rhino population — around 600 black and 300 white rhinos — suffered its worst year for rhino poaching in 2009, when 12 black and six white rhinos were killed.
The illegal trade is driven by Asian and Middle Eastern demand for ivory used in traditional medicines for fevers, convulsions and as an aphrodisiac.
Sampere said that sawing off the four Northern White rhinos’ horns would also allow them to grow back straight.
“All the rhinos had horns that didn’t grow upright. This is a result of them being in the zoo and not having trees to rub against,” she said.
The conservationist also said that a radio-transmitter the size of a matchbox was screwed into the base of the hacked off horn to enable the tracking of the animals as they are released back into the wild.
(AFP)
一個保育團體宣稱,最近從捷克某動物園被移置肯亞的四隻極稀有北方白犀牛已被去除犀牛角,以免被盜獵者盯上。
奧爾佩亞塔保育區負責監看這群犀牛適應環境的艾洛迪.珊佩爾對法新社說:「隨著肯亞非法捕殺的情況愈來愈嚴重,我們不希望冒任何風險。」
她說,鋸掉犀牛角可以破壞獵人的計畫,因為「沒有犀牛角的犀牛對盜獵者來說,一點價值也沒有」。
這兩公兩母的白犀牛是世界已知僅存的八隻極稀有亞種白犀牛之四,送回肯亞,是希望牠們能在那裡繁衍下去。
肯亞野生動物園管理員本月稍早逮捕了某非法野生動物買賣組織的十二名成員,他們涉嫌捕殺一頭十歲大的白犀牛,並砍下犀牛角。
位於東非的肯亞,境內犀牛數量佔世界第三──約六百頭黑犀牛和三百頭白犀牛,二OO九年盜獵犀牛的情況最為猖獗,有十二頭黑犀牛和六頭白犀牛被捕殺。
這些非法交易是為了滿足亞洲和中東的市場需求,這些獸角被製成具解熱、治癲癇和壯陽等功效的傳統藥物
珊佩爾說,鋸掉這四隻北方白犀牛的角也是為了要讓牠們重新長出挺直的角。
她說:「這些犀牛之前的角都長得不直,是因為牠們生長在動物園,犀角無法摩擦樹木。」
保育人士也說,他們在鋸掉的犀角根部栓進火柴盒大小的無線電傳輸器,以便追蹤牠們被野放之後的情形。
(法新社╱翻譯:袁星塵)
A: Apart from Taiwanese-language pop diva Jody Chiang’s comeback, South Korean girl group (G)I-dle is also performing in Taiwan this weekend. B: I know. They have concerts at the Taipei Arena on Saturday and Sunday. A: Actually, to meet their fans’ high demand, they’ve added one more show on Friday. B: They’re even adding a show? That shows how popular they are. A: My favorite group member is Taiwan’s Susan Yeh, known by her stage name “Shuhua.” Let’s go cheer her on. A: 本週末除了江蕙復出,南韓熱門女團(G)I-dle也將開唱唷。 B: 我知道,他們本週六、日將在小巨蛋開唱。 A: 應粉絲的要求,他們本週五還會加場。 B: 還加場?不愧是韓流人氣女團。 A: 我最喜歡台灣團員葉舒華!我們快去幫她加油吧。 (By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times/台北時報張聖恩)
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City life moves fast, and escalators are a lifesaver for busy commuters. __1__ It is widely believed that this practice keeps traffic flowing smoothly and avoids congestion. While on the road, drivers of slower vehicles are required to remain within the outside lane so that those traveling at faster speeds may pass in the inside lane. Similar to traffic lanes that separate vehicles driving at different speeds, this convention on escalators allows for both efficiency and courtesy. __2__ This system reflects an unspoken understanding that facilitates shared use of the space. However, the city of Nagoya, Japan, has
臨床表現 (clinical picture)、咳嗽有痰 (productive cough) 與不實消息 (misinformation/ disinformation) 有些醫學用語,如:「咳嗽有痰」,中文一目了然,但對應的英文 productive cough,可能就較難從字面理解。澳洲的 myDr.com.au 解釋 productive cough 如下: A productive (wet) cough is when you have a cough that produces mucus(黏液) or phlegm (痰). 因此 productive cough(咳嗽有痰),就是因為它produces phlegm, 有別於沒有痰的 cough(乾咳),productive cough 又稱為 wet cough (濕咳)。 醫學術語「臨床表現」 (clinical picture) 無論中文、英文,一般人都不易了解。其實, 臨床 (clinical)是「實際觀察及治療,有別於理論或實驗」: . . . pertaining to or founded on actual observation and treatment of patients, as distinguished from theoretical or basic sciences. 譬如:解剖學、生理學是基礎醫學 (basic medicine),內科、外科是臨床醫學 (clinical medicine)。所以,臨床表現就是「直接觀察病患呈現的症狀」。 「臨床表現」英文也可說 clinical presentation 或 clinical manifestation。雖然也有人主張 clinical picture, clinical presentation 和 clinical manifestation 不完全相等,不過所有同義詞都會有不完全等義的問題,在此就不細述了。 網路常有「不實消息」俗稱「假消息」 (fake news) 流傳,「假消息」如果是「錯誤訊息」英文叫 misinformation 如果是刻意「扭曲訊息」則是 disinformation。 防疫必備詞彙:新冠常見症狀 發燒 fever 乾咳 cough 肌肉痠痛 myalgia 四肢乏力 fatigue 咳嗽有痰 productive cough A productive