《中英對照讀新聞》Muja the alligator still alive and snapping in his 80s at Belgrade Zoo 8旬鱷魚穆加還在貝爾格勒動物園活蹦亂跳
◎周虹汶
American alligator Muja arrived at Belgrade Zoo on the eve of the Second World War and is believed to be the oldest of his kind in captivity, and still in good health with a hearty appetite for his age, his handlers said on Tuesday.
在第二次世界大戰前夕抵達貝爾格勒動物園的美國短吻鱷穆加,據信在被圈養的同類之中最高齡,而且以牠的年紀來說,算是很健康同時食慾旺盛,牠的照顧者週二如是說。
Generations of Belgraders and tourists have come to watch Muja, and though he rarely moves around much, he is still agile at feeding time - when he munches on rats and quails. This is when his age shows, though, as he sometimes misses the target when he snaps at his food.
幾代以來的貝爾格勒百姓與觀光客不斷來看穆加,雖然牠很少四處大幅移動,但牠在放飯時間——津津有味咀嚼老鼠和鵪鶉時——依舊敏捷。不過,這也是牠顯露老態時刻,因在突然撲向食物時,偶爾錯失目標。
So far Muja’s only health issue has been gangrene, which led to him having his front right claw amputated in 2012.
穆加目前唯一的健康問題是生壞疽,這讓牠的右前爪2012年截了肢。
Muja arrived from Germany in August 1937. An old newspaper clipping about his arrival at the zoo said that he was two years old at the time, putting him in his early 80s today.
穆加1937年8月抵達德國。一份關於牠抵達動物園的舊剪報說,牠當時2歲,這樣算來現在是80歲出頭。
He survived two carpet bombings of the Serbian capital - one by Germany in 1941 and the other by the Allies in 1944 - when all the official documentation about his transfer was lost. (Reuters)
牠躲過塞爾維亞首都兩次地毯式轟炸——一次是德國1941年發動,另一次是同盟國1944年——有關牠搬遷的官方文件就在當時全部不見了。(路透)
新聞辭典
snap:動詞,指猛咬、攫抓、突然折斷、門咯嗒一聲關上;名詞,指猛撲、攫奪、突然折斷;形容詞,指冷不防的、迅速的、啪一聲關上或扣上的、用彈簧的;副詞,指啪地一聲、猛然。例句:He is always snapping at his children.(他老是在斥責孩子。)
claw:名詞,指動物的爪、鉗、螯、拔釘錘;動詞,指用爪子抓、費力奪回。例句:He clawed at my bag in his temper.(他脾氣一來就伸手抓我的包包。)
agile:形容詞,指動作敏捷的、腦袋靈活的。例句:Her movements were agile.(她的動作很俐落。)