今天是什么日子？你一定猜不到：世界穿山甲日！
据百度百科，世界穿山甲日是由国际爱护动物基金会（IFAW）发起的，定于每年2月的第三个星期六，其宗旨在于让我们意识到穿山甲所处的困境，同时采取措施停止世界范围内对穿山甲的捕杀。
Pangolin news roundup on World Pangolin Day
世界穿山甲日：一宗关于穿山甲的新闻
UN
Pangolins, nocturnal animals that feast on ants, are highly sought after for their supposed, but unproven, medicinal benefits, and as a culinary delicacy. They are said to be the most trafficked wild animal in the world.
穿山甲是一种以蚂蚁为食的夜行动物，因为所谓的但未经证实的药用价值以及“饕餮美味”的标签而备受追捧。它们是全球走私量最大的哺乳动物。
pangolin
穿山甲怎么说？pangolin /pæŋˈɡəʊlɪn/ 表示“穿山甲，有鳞食蚁兽”，英文解释为“a small animal from Africa or Asia that eats insects, and has a long nose, tongue and tail, and hard scales on its body”。
nocturnal
nocturnal /nɒkˈtɜːnəl/ 表示“夜间活动的”，英文解释为“Nocturnal creatures are active mainly at night.”举个🌰：
When there is a full moon, this nocturnal rodent is careful to stay in its burrow.
在有满月出现的时候，这种夜间出没的啮齿类动物小心地呆在它的洞里。
feast on
表示“尽情享用”，英文解释为“to eat a lot of good food and enjoy it very much”举个🌰：
We feasted on smoked salmon and champagne.
我们尽情享用了熏鲑鱼和香槟酒。
culinary
表示“烹饪的；厨房的”，英文解释为“connected with cooking or kitchens”，如：the culinary delights (= good food) of Hangzhou 杭州的美味菜肴。
traffic
traffic的名词意思“交通”大家都知道，但作动词的含义可能有些同学就比较陌生了，表示“贩卖（人口）；（非法）交易、买卖”，英文解释为“Someone who traffics in something such as drugs or stolen goods buys and sells them even though it is illegal to do so.”，并且它的现在分词过去式都不是直接加ing/ed，而是：+king/ked
现在分词：trafficking；过去式：trafficked；过去分词：trafficked
如：human trafficking 贩卖人口，举个🌰：
He was found guilty of trafficking in drugs.
他被判贩卖毒品罪名成立。
In December 2019, the Xinhua news agency reported the seizure of over 10 tonnes of pangolin scales in the eastern Chinese city of Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province. This was the largest seizure of pangolin scales by Chinese customs officials up to that point in 2019. The pangolins in question were reported to be African tree pangolins.
2019年12月，新华社报道，中国海关官员在中国东部的浙江省温州市缉获了超过10吨穿山甲鳞片。这是2019年破获的最大规模穿山甲鳞片走私案。据报道，涉案的穿山甲种类为非洲树穿山甲。
seizure /ˈsiːʒə/
1）表示“占领，夺取，攫取；查封，没收，充公”，英文解释为“the action of taking something by force or with legal authority”，如：the seizure of power/property/control 对权力/财产/控制权的攫取。
2）表示“心脏病突发”，英文解释为“a sudden failure of the heart”举个🌰：
He died of a seizure.
他死于心脏病突发。
也可以泛指疾病的骤发，突发，发作，英文解释：a very sudden attack of an illness in which someone becomes unconscious or develops violent movements，如：an epileptic seizure 癫痫突发。
scale
表示“鳞；鳞片”，英文解释为“any of the thin plates of hard material that cover the skin of many fish and reptiles”。
“This is both good and bad news,” says Doreen Robinson, a wildlife expert with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). “On the one hand it indicates a serious effort on the part of the Government of China to tackle wildlife crime, on the other it shows that large quantities of trafficked pangolins are still reaching the country.”
联合国环境规划署（UNEP）野生动植物专家多琳·罗宾逊（Doreen Robinson）表示：“这既是好消息，也是坏消息。一方面表明了中国政府在打击野生动植物犯罪的决心和不懈努力，但同时也反映了仍有大量穿山甲被非法贩运到中国的事实。”
At the same time, China has taken steps to make it more difficult to sell pangolin scale medicines: since August 2019, they are no longer covered by Chinese medical insurance. “This may dampen demand for pangolin scales and other body parts used in traditional medicine,” says Robinson.
同时，中国已采取措施对含有穿山甲成分的药品销售设置障碍：自2019年8月起，含有穿山甲鳞片的传统药物将不再纳入国家保险基金的支付范围。“这可能会抑制住中医对于穿山甲鳞片和其他身体部位的用药需求。”罗宾逊说。
dampen
dampen /ˈdæmpən/ 表示“抑制，控制，减弱（感情、反应等）”，英文解释为“：to make sth such as a feeling or a reaction less strong”举个🌰：
None of the setbacks could dampen his enthusiasm for the project.
任何挫折都不能减弱他对这个项目的热情。
Pangolin trafficking topped wildlife crimes in 2019 in Malawi, according to the Xinhua news agency. Local media reports, it said, indicate that the first successful convictions for pangolin trafficking in the sub-Saharan country took place in November 2017.
据新华社报道，穿山甲的非法交易量在2019年马拉维所有野生动植物犯罪中排名第一。据当地媒体报道，2017年11月，这一撒哈拉以南国家首次对穿山甲贩运案件定罪。
conviction
表示“定罪，判罪”，英文解释为“the fact of officially being found to be guilty of a particular crime, or the act of officially finding someone guilty”举个🌰：
Since it was her first conviction for stealing, she was given a less severe sentence.
由于她是初次犯盗窃罪，对她的量刑不是很重。
Meanwhile, six international airline companies will be taking the message of pangolin conservation to the skies this year. British Airways, Swiss International Air Lines, Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines, TAP Air Portugal and KLM have all committed to screening the groundbreaking documentary, Eye of the Pangolin, on their long-haul routes, according to Pangolin Africa.
同时，今年有六家国际航空公司将穿山甲保护的信息带到空中。据 “非洲穿山甲”组织称，英国航空公司、瑞士国际航空公司、汉莎航空、奥地利航空、TAP葡萄牙航空和荷兰皇家航空都已承诺在其长途航线上放映开创性的纪录片《穿山甲之眼》。
long-haul
表示“长途的，远途的”，英文解释为“travelling a long distance”，如：a long-haul flight 长途飞行，long-haul truck drivers 长途货车司机。
还有另一个含义，the long haul表示“以年记（而不是以天、周、月记）的一段时间”（a period of years, rather than days, weeks, or months），举个🌰：
I want to invest my money for the long haul, not just to get rich quick.
“Illegal wildlife trafficking is the fourth most lucrative global crime after drugs, humans and arms, and is directly contributing to the biodiversity emergency,” says Lisa Rolls, coordinator of UNEP’s Wild for Life campaign.
联合国环境规划署“为生命呐喊”（WildforLife）项目协调员丽莎·罗尔斯(Lisa Rolls)说：“非法野生动植物贩运是仅次于毒品、人口走私和武器的全球第四大获利最高的犯罪，直接导致了生物多样性紧急状态。
lucrative
表示“（尤指生意、职位或活动）赚钱的，盈利的”，英文解释为“(especially of a business, job, or activity) producing a lot of money”举个🌰：
The merger proved to be very lucrative for both companies.
事实证明，这次兼并使两家公司都获利丰厚。
“World Pangolin Day on 15 February is an opportunity for people around the world to join together in raising awareness about these unique mammals—and their plight,” says Rolls.
“2月15日的世界穿山甲日 ”为世界各地的人们提供了一个机会，提高对这些独特哺乳动物及其困境的认识。
mammal
表示“哺乳动物”，英文解释为“any animal of which the female feeds her young on milk from her own body. Most mammals give birth to live young, not eggs.”举个🌰：
Humans, dogs, elephants, and dolphins are all mammals, but birds, fish, and crocodiles are not.
人、狗、大象和海豚都是哺乳动物，而鸟、鱼和鳄鱼则不是。
plight
表示“困境，窘境”，英文解释为“an unpleasant condition, especially a serious, sad, or difficult one”，如：the plight of the poor/homeless 穷人/无家可归者的困难处境。
补充：plight作动词，plight one‘s troth表示“答应结婚，订婚；结婚”（to promise to marry someone）。
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