云南千亩“大象食堂”开张了｜Food base to solve a jumbo-size problem

Jinghong, in Southwest China's Yunnan province, will soon open a food source base especially developed for Asian elephants, in a bid to reduce conflicts between humans and the animal.

位于中国西南部云南省的景洪市不久将开设一个专门为亚洲象开发的食物源基地，以减少人类与动物之间的冲突。

The project, with investment of 1 million yuan ($154,686), kicked off in December and was completed in May. The base, which covers three townships across 67 hectares, has grown some of the elephants' favorite plants, including 38,000musa basjoo trees, a species of banana.

该项目总投资100万元人民币（154686美元），于12月启动，5月完成。该基地占地67公顷，涵盖三个乡镇，种植了一些大象最喜欢的植物，包括38,000棵芭蕉树（一种香蕉）。

Construction workers also built several ponds and added 2metric tons of salt to meet the elephants' mineral needs.

基地内还建造了几个池塘，并投入了2公吨的盐，以满足大象的矿物质需求。

In late August, experts conducted a preliminary field inspection. The city's forestry and grassland bureau has not revealed the opening date of the base but said it will start operating soon.

8月下旬，专家们进行了初步的实地检查。该市林草局没有透露该基地的开放日期，但表示它将很快开始运作。

"The project is meant to improve the quality of Asian elephants' habitat, enrich their food sources and provide them with more to eat," said Cha Wei, an official from the bureau. "After the completion of the project, elephants will be able to eat in the food source base. This can stop them fromforaging in villages and damaging farmers' crops."

“这一项目旨在改善亚洲象的栖息地质量，丰富它们的食物来源，为它们提供更多的食物，”林草局官方人员查伟说。“项目建成后，通过对食物源基地内食物的取食，可以很大程度上减少亚洲象进村觅食的行为及对周边群众农作物造成的破坏。”

The Asian elephant has been listed as an endangered species on the Red List of International Union for Conservation of Nature. The animal is under first-class State protection in China and can be found in the area of Yunnan that borders Myanmar and Laos.

亚洲象已被列为世界自然保护联盟红色名录中的濒危物种，是我国国家一级重点保护动物，常出现在与缅甸和老挝交界的云南地区。

Due to ongoing wildlife protection efforts, the number of wild Asian elephants in the province has increased from 170 in 1980 to 300 today. Jinghong is home to about 185 elephants, and their habitat spans about 350,000 hectares.
由于正在进行的野生动物保护工作，该省的野生亚洲象的数量已从1980年的170头增加到现在的300头。景洪市有大约185头大象，它们的栖息地面积约为35万公顷。

▲ A herd of wild Asian elephants feed on corn at farmland in Jinghong, the seat of the Xishuangbanna Dai autonomous prefecture in Yunnan province, in this file photo provided to China Daily. China Daily

"The number increase is closely linked to the growing awareness of our people to protect wildlife. The elephants'trek earlier this year is also due to the increasing number of herds," Cha said, referring to a herd of 15 elephants that left their habitat in Xishuangbanna and started migrating north in March last year, with their journey attracting global attention.

“亚洲象种群数量的增加，得益于政府部门对野生动物和生态环境保护工作的重视，包括我们民众保护野生动物的意识也越来越强。像今年年初大象出走，其实跟大象种群数量的增加也有一定的关系。”查伟说，他指的是由15头大象组成的象群在去年3月离开了它们在西双版纳的栖息地并开始向北迁移，并引起了全球关注。

Cha said elephants are very intelligent and understanding of each other. When their population reaches a certain density, a herd will divide to reduce crowding and avoidinterbreeding.

查伟说，大象是一种智商非常高的动物，它们对同族成员具有同理心，当栖息地中的野生亚洲象种群数量达到一定的密度时，象群便会出现进化扩散行为。这样做的话可以降低保护区中的亚洲象种群密度，避免和其他亲缘成员发生繁殖。

An adult elephant needs 200 kilograms of food every day. With increased protection of nature reserves and reduction of human activities in the reserves, many elephant habitats have grown into dense forests and replaced lowshrubs and plants that elephants feed on. Clusters of tall trees also restrict the animals' movements, forcing them to leave forests and enter farming areas and communities.

一只成年大象每天需要200公斤的食物。随着自然保护区保护力度的加大和保护区内人类活动的减少，许多大象的栖息地已经长成了茂密的森林，取代了大象赖以生存的低矮灌木和植物。成群的高大树木也限制了动物的行动，迫使它们离开森林，进入农耕区和社区。

Reports of elephants eating corn andsugar cane crops during harvest season are not uncommon. "As elephants enter agricultural lands more frequently, their eating habits have also gradually changed, showing a growing preference for fine grains, high-energy and more nutritiouscash crops," Cha said, adding that the animals have also become very "picky", often selecting the most nutritious corn cobs.

大象在丰收季节吃玉米和甘蔗的报告并不少见。查伟说：“随着亚洲象频繁进入人类垦殖的农田，其采食野生植物的原有习性逐步发生改变，对高能量的农作物和经济作物的依赖越来越大。”他补充说，这些动物也变得非常“挑剔”，经常选择营养最丰富的玉米棒。

Cha said Asian elephants usually forage at night and rest in woods during the day.

查伟说，亚洲象通常在晚上觅食，白天在树林里休息。

"We selected the areas where Asian elephants showed the most frequent activity, and we transformed and upgraded those areas. We also want to improve the current diet of the elephants, guide them to return to the protected areas and reduce human-elephant conflicts," he said.

“我们选择了亚洲象表现出最频繁活动的区域，并对这些区域进行了改造和升级。”他说：“我们还想改善大象目前的饮食，引导它们回到保护区，减少人象冲突。”

"This is a pilot project. Later, we hope to share and promote our experiences with other counties and cities to protect the Asian elephants together. Building a harmonious coexistence between humans and elephants is our ultimate goal," he added.

“这是一个试点项目。以后，我们希望能与其他县市分享和推广我们的经验，共同保护亚洲大象。建立人类和大象之间的和谐共处是我们的最终目标，”他补充说。

1. musa basjoo

芭蕉；感激芭蕉；台湾芭蕉

2. metric

美 ['metrɪk] 英 ['metrɪk]

adj.米制的；公制的；按公制制作的；用公制测量的

网络：度量；度量值；公制牙

3. forage

美 ['fɒrɪdʒɪŋ] 英 ['fɒrɪdʒɪŋ]

n.饲类；牧草；粮秣；饲料

v.搜索[征发]粮秣；给(马)吃草料；掠夺；抢劫

网络：觅食；觅食力；觅食行为

4. trek

美 [trek] 英 [trek]

n.长途跋涉；远距离行走

v.（尤指徒步）长途跋涉；（尤指在山中）远足

网络：崔克；艰苦跋涉；旅行

5. interbreed

美 [ˌintə(r)ˈbriːd]

v.杂交繁殖；品种间杂交

网络：杂种繁殖；异血缘交配；交殖

6. shrub

美 [ʃrʌb] 英 [ʃrʌb]

n.灌木

网络：灌木丛；矮树；灌丛

7. sugar cane

n.【植】甘蔗

网络：蔗糖；甘蔗糖；甘蔗露

8. cash crops

na.【农】商品作物

网络：经济作物；经济类作物；市场性高的作物

编辑：周婵

实习编辑：朴宣润

云南千亩“大象食堂”开张了｜Food base to solve a jumbo-size problem 04:21 Share

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云南千亩“大象食堂”开张了｜Food base to solve a jumbo-size problem