【卫报】长臂猿新物种丨第4期

A female gibbon, a newly discovered species in Yunnan, China.

Photograph: Fan Pengfei/ZS L

一只母长臂猿，中国云南发现新物种

摄影：范朋飞、伦敦动物学会

Scientists have discovered a new species of gibbon living in south-west China's rainforests.

科学家在中国西南部雨林发现了一种新的长臂猿物种。

Although scientists had been studying the primate for some time, new research has revealed it is in fact a different species.

尽管科学家研究这一类灵长类动物为时已久，但最新的研究表示它实际上是一种新物种。

It has been named the Skywalker hoolock gibbon by its discoverers, who are Star Wars fans. The name is also a nod to the fact that the Chinese characters of its scientific name, Hoolock tianxing, mean "Heaven's movement".

因为发现者是个《星球大战》迷，他将其命名为“天行者白眉长臂猿”。这个名字也体现了科学名称中的中国元素，“天行”，意为“上天的运行”。

Dr Sam Turvey, from the Zoological Society of London, who was part of the team studying the apes, told BBC News: "In this area, so many species have declined or gone extinct because of habitat loss, hunting and general human overpopulation. So it's an absolute privilege to see something as special and as rare as a gibbon in a canopy in a Chinese rainforest, and especially when it turns out that the gibbons are actually a new species previously unrecognised by science." （读者试译句）

来自伦敦动物协会Sam Turvey先生，也曾是研究猿猴的队员之一。他在BBC新闻栏目中提到：“在这一领域，由于栖息地减少、盗猎、人类总人口过剩等，很多物种的数量剧减甚至走向灭绝。 期待您的翻译，将您的理解留言在文章下方留言处，第二天将会有长难句解析哟~

The research team, led by Fan Peng-Fei from Sun Yat-sen University in China, first suspected that the gibbons they were studying in Gaoligongshan nature reserve in Yunnan province might be different because of subtle differences in the typical facial markings of white eyebrows and beards.

由中国中山大学的范朋飞教授带队的研究团队，一开始怀疑他们研究的云南省高黎贡山自然保护区的长臂猿可能有所不同，是因为他们白眉以及颌毛的典型面部特征（与其他长臂猿相比）有细小差异。

Gibbons are renowned for their loud song, which they use to mark territory, and this also sounded unusual.

长臂猿以其洪亮的歌声著称。他们用歌声来保卫领地，这听上去也与众不同。

A full genetic and physical comparison with other gibbons then confirmed that they had found a new species.

通过与其他长臂猿进行全面的基因和体貌对比，他们最终确定发现了一个新物种。

The scientists estimate that about 200 Skywalker gibbons are living in China and also potentially in neighbouring Myanmar, but say that the species should already be classified as endangered. Habitat loss and fragmentation is putting the gibbons at risk of extinction.

科学家估计，中国现存约200只天行长臂猿，附近的缅甸可能也有。但他们也提到，该物种早应被归为濒危动物。栖息地减少和片断化正将长臂猿推向灭绝的边缘。

In the Gaoligongshan nature reserve where the gibbons were discovered scientists had to trek up to 2,500m to find suitable habitat as "everywhere below there has been logged", Dr Turvey said to the BBC.

在发现新长臂猿的高黎贡山自然保护区，科学家们不得不跋涉到2500米处去寻找适合长臂猿的栖息地。正如Turvey先生对BBC说的，“那以下的地区都已被侵占了。”

翻译 丨南希

审核 丨竞风之翼

编辑 丨璃儿