1

1. The gerenuk
非洲瞪羚

The gerenuk is, unsurprisingly upon inspection, the longest-necked antelope on earth. Found in the Horn of Africa, they use their lithe appendages to reach high-growing foliage.
不难发现，非洲瞪羚是地球上脖子最长的羚羊。它们生活在非洲之角，用轻盈的四肢撷取高处的树叶。

Gerenuks can also stand on their hind legs and use their gangly forelegs to feed - sometimes reaching up as high as eight feet.
非洲瞪羚还能用后腿站立起来，然后用细长的前腿辅助进食——有时候能达到8英尺高。

Their somewhat comical stature is only enhanced by their large ears, which help them keep cool in the searing African heat.
一对大耳朵使得它们的形象更为滑稽，可以帮助它们在炙热的非洲保持凉爽。

声明：本双语文章的中文翻译系沪江英语原创内容，转载请注明出处。中文翻译仅代表译者个人观点，仅供参考。如有不妥之处，欢迎指正。

2

2. The ribbon seal
带斑海豹

Ribbon seals inhabit pack ice in the north Pacific Ocean and the adjacent fringes of the Arctic Ocean, and due to their remote habitat, little is actually known about them.
带斑海豹生活在太平洋北部积冰处及邻近的大西洋边缘，因栖息地非常偏远，人们对它们知之甚少。

Adults all have four white bands on their black bodies, but are born completely white.
所有的成年带斑海豹都是黑色的，身上有四个白环，但它们出生时却是通体雪白。

It has been suggested that their distinctive markings help them identify one another during mating season, but that the pattern also works to camouflage them when seen from a distance against the broken ice and water.
有人认为这种与众不同的标志性体色可以帮助它们在交配季节辨认出彼此，但这种配色也能让它们隐藏在碎冰和海水之间，从远处不易发现。

3

3. The maned wolf
鬃狼

This spindly-legged mammal is not a fox, nor, as its name suggests, a wolf. The maned wolf lives across central regions in South America and possess big ears and very long legs. Unlike wolves or dogs, they mate for life with one partner and don't form packs.
顾名思义，这种长着细长腿的哺乳动物不是狐狸，而是狼。鬃狼生活在南美洲中部，长着大大的耳朵和很长的四肢。它们不同于狼或狗，终生只与一位伴侣交配，而且不会成群生活在一起。

Generally they are shy beings but if threatened, the fur on the scruff of their necks puffs up - thus the name.
总的来说，它们都很害羞，但一旦受到威胁，脖子上的鬃毛就会竖起来——因此得名“鬃狼”。

4

4. The white peacock
白孔雀

These startling peacocks are not albinos, but rather a subspecies of the blue peacock born by genetic mutation.
这种惊艳的孔雀可不是得了白化病，它们属于蓝孔雀的一个亚种，由基因突变而来。

White peacocks boast beautiful blue eyes but thanks to a lack of melanin have no colour to their plumage.
白孔雀长着一双美丽的蓝眼睛，但因为缺少黑色素，它们的羽毛是无色的。

When two of them breed, their chicks are yellow but all turn white, so they have been mated and multiplied in captivity. Generally, though, they remain a rare sight.
两只成年孔雀生出的小孔雀是黄色的，但会完全变成白色，所以目前它们都是人工繁育的。但是，总的来说，白孔雀还是一大奇观。

5

5. The white reindeer
白驯鹿

Much like the white peacock, this magnificent creature is of the same species as a brown reindeer but is another case of a genetic mutation.
跟白孔雀的情况很像，这种美丽的生物与棕色驯鹿属于同一种类，只不过它是另一例基因突变的产物。

White reindeer, which appear in the wilds of Finland, Norway and Sweden, are extremely rare, though they have been born in captivity elsewhere, including England. In their northern homeland, they are seen by some as magical and a signal of good luck.
白驯鹿生活在芬兰、挪威、瑞典的森林之中，极其稀有，但它们已在包括英格兰在内的其它地区人工繁育。在它们的北欧故乡，人们认为白驯鹿是有魔力的，而且是好运的象征。

6

6. The southern flying squirrel
虾夷小飞鼠

More widespread than its Japanese cousin, the southern flying squirrel is a remarkable critter found across the US and Canada.
虾夷小飞鼠比近亲的日本小飞鼠分布更为广泛，这种奇特的小动物遍布于美国和加拿大各地。

They are nocturnal, and very social - choosing not to hibernate during winter but instead curling up together in groups of more than 20 and hiding in tree hollows.
它们是夜行性动物，非常喜欢社交——冬天不冬眠，但20多只小飞鼠会一起藏在树洞里蜷缩着抱团取暖。

Again, they don't actually fly but they are capable of gliding for distances of more than 100 feet.
重申一下，它们其实不会飞，但是能滑行100多英尺。

7

7. The Chinese water deer
獐

Upon first glance, the Chinese water deer doesn't appear particularly peculiar, until you zone in on their mouths.
一眼看去，獐的长相并没有什么特别之处，但当你锁定它们的嘴部就不一样了。

These primitive deer grow long fangs instead of antlers, which they use to fight one another, and have a wide vocal range of 'barks' and screeches when alarmed.
这种原始鹿类没有鹿角，却长着长长的獠牙，可以用獠牙互相打斗。遇到危险时，它们可以发出各种音调的“吠声”和尖叫。

Despite their Chinese heritage, around ten per cent of their world population now resides in the East of England.
尽管它们起源于中国，但现在世界上10%的獐生活在英格兰东部。

8

8. The blue-footed booby
蓝脚鲣鸟

Nice feathers, very impressive feet.
羽毛美丽，蓝脚夺目。

The blue footed booby is a bird found in tropical regions of the Pacific Ocean, and particularly the Galapagos islands. It gets its brightly-coloured walkers from the carotenoid pigments present in its food.
蓝脚鲣鸟是生活在太平洋热带地区特别是加拉帕戈斯群岛的一种鸟类。它们之所以拥有色彩明亮的蓝脚，是因为它们的食物中有类胡萝卜色素。

When mating season rolls around, males perform splendid dances to showcase these dazzling feet - and the bluer the better in terms of attraction.
交配季节到来了，雄鸟们就会跳起美轮美奂的舞蹈，炫耀它们光彩夺目的蓝脚——谁的脚更蓝，谁就更有魅力。

9

9. The dumbo octopus
小飞象章鱼

The dumbo octopus is a rare breed, often called the Blind Octopus due to its large but rather useless eyes.
小飞象章鱼非常稀有，它们常被称为“盲章鱼”，因为它们长着一对大眼睛却完全看不见。

It lives very deep in the ocean and can use jet propulsion to move through the water, as well as a crawling motion to cross the seabed.
它们生活在大洋极深处，可以用喷气推进的方式在水中移动，也可以在海底爬行。

Although not much is known about these shy ocean dwellers, they can grow up to six feet long and are capable of changing colour.
虽然我们对这种羞涩的深海生物不甚了解，但它们可以长到6英尺长，而且能改变体色。