World's only brown-and-white panda dies

时间：2006-11-25 01:28:59

（单词翻译:单击）

Nov.24 - The world's only brown-and-white panda died suddenly on Wednesday at a zoo in northwest China's Shaanxi Province, zoo officials announced on Thursday.

 

The 17-year-old male panda, Qin Qin, appeared normal on Tuesday, playing and eating congee1 and fruit, but was found dead at 5 a.m. on Wednesday morning.

 

Qin Qin may have died from a pulmonary edema. Medical experts will conduct a dissection2 examination to determine the exact cause of death.

 

Qin Qin could have lived longer, officials said.

 

In February, the Qinling Safari3 Park in Xi'an, capital of Shaanxi, issued an emergency "appeal" for a spouse4 for Qin Qin, hoping his descendants would inherit the gene5 of the rare brown-and-white pandas.

 

Keepers were ready to approve the transport of Qin Qin's sperm6 to another site for a distant impregnation but the project was never realized.

 

February-April is the sexually active period for giant pandas.

 

Qin Qin, who has never been "married", weighed 100 kg and stood 172 cm on his back legs. He is the only child of "Wan7 Wan", a black-and-white male panda, and "Dan Dan", an authentic8 brown-and-white female panda.

 

The giant panda is one of the world's most endangered species and is found only in China. It is estimated that 1,590 giant pandas live in the wild in China. There were 183 pandas in captivity9 on the Chinese mainland at the end of 2005. A giant panda has a life expectancy10 of 30 to 40 years.

 
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点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 congee hvvztK     
vi.告别，鞠躬；n.稀饭
参考例句：
  • He has congeed with the King.他已经跟国王告别过了。
  • I'll have two spring rolls and a portion of congee.我要两个春卷和一份广式肉粥。
2 dissection XtTxQ     
n.分析；解剖
参考例句：
  • A dissection of your argument shows several inconsistencies.对你论点作仔细分析后发现一些前后矛盾之处。
  • Researchers need a growing supply of corpses for dissection.研究人员需要更多的供解剖用的尸体。
3 safari TCnz5     
n.远征旅行(探险、考察)；探险队，狩猎队
参考例句：
  • When we go on safari we like to cook on an open fire.我们远行狩猎时，喜欢露天生火做饭。
  • They went on safari searching for the rare black rhinoceros.他们进行探险旅行，搜寻那稀有的黑犀牛。
4 spouse Ah6yK     
n.配偶(指夫或妻)
参考例句：
  • Her spouse will come to see her on Sunday.她的丈夫星期天要来看她。
  • What is the best way to keep your spouse happy in the marriage?在婚姻中保持配偶幸福的最好方法是什么？
5 gene WgKxx     
n.遗传因子，基因
参考例句：
  • A single gene may have many effects.单一基因可能具有很多种效应。
  • The targeting of gene therapy has been paid close attention.其中基因治疗的靶向性是值得密切关注的问题之一。
6 sperm jFOzO     
n.精子，精液
参考例句：
  • Only one sperm fertilises an egg.只有一个精子使卵子受精。
  • In human reproduction,one female egg is usually fertilized by one sperm.在人体生殖过程中，一个精子使一个卵子受精。
7 wan np5yT     
(wide area network)广域网
参考例句：
  • The shared connection can be an Ethernet,wireless LAN,or wireless WAN connection.提供共享的网络连接可以是以太网、无线局域网或无线广域网。
8 authentic ZuZzs     
a.真的，真正的；可靠的，可信的，有根据的
参考例句：
  • This is an authentic news report. We can depend on it. 这是篇可靠的新闻报道, 我们相信它。
  • Autumn is also the authentic season of renewal. 秋天才是真正的除旧布新的季节。
9 captivity qrJzv     
n.囚禁；被俘；束缚
参考例句：
  • A zoo is a place where live animals are kept in captivity for the public to see.动物园是圈养动物以供公众观看的场所。
  • He was held in captivity for three years.他被囚禁叁年。
10 expectancy tlMys     
n.期望，预期，（根据概率统计求得）预期数额
参考例句：
  • Japanese people have a very high life expectancy.日本人的平均寿命非常长。
  • The atomosphere of tense expectancy sobered everyone.这种期望的紧张气氛使每个人变得严肃起来。

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