新西蘭宣佈滅鼠計劃 誓言34年後殺光所有老鼠
Their abilities to travel, multiply and spread disease have always made rats one of mankind's greatest pests. New Zealand says it's time to wipe them out. Every last one of them.
老鼠的遷移，繁殖和傳播疾病的能力已使得它成爲了人類最大的敵人之一。新西蘭政府日前表示，現在是時候消滅它們了。並且要一隻不留。Prime Minister John Key last Monday announced an ambitious plan to completely rid the South Pacific nation of rats and some other nuisance animals, including possums and stoats, by the year 2050.
總理約翰·基於上週一宣佈了這一雄心勃勃的計劃，到2050年，新西蘭要徹底消滅老鼠和包括負鼠和白鼬在內的其它一些害蟲。The government is hoping a rat-free countryside will give a boost to native birds, including the iconic kiwi. Many bird species are threatened with extinction because rats and other pests feast on their eggs and compete with them for food.
政府希望無鼠鄉村能夠促進本土鳥類的繁殖，包括具有象徵性的幾維鳥。由於老鼠和其它害蟲嗜食這些鳥類的產卵，並與它們爭奪食物，因此很多鳥類面臨着滅絕的危機。
However, some scientists caution the goal, while laudable, will be extremely difficult to achieve in a nation that's similar in size to the United Kingdom.
不過，一些科學家在對該計劃表示讚賞的同時也警告稱，在一個與英國國土相當的國家實現“無鼠”目標將會困難重重。Speaking from a wildlife sanctuary in Wellington, Key said the goal would require the help of everyone from philanthropists to indigenous Maori tribes.
約翰·基總理在惠靈頓的一家野生動物避難所表示，該目標的實現需要從慈善家到本土毛利部落每一個人的參與。"This is the most ambitious conservation project attempted anywhere in the world, but we believe if we all work together as a country we can achieve it," he said.
他說：“這是世界上最具雄心的環境保護工程，但是我們相信，若我們齊心協力，我們就能夠實現。”He said the government would initially contribute 28 million New Zealand dollars ($20 million) over four years toward setting up a company to run the program, and would consider partially matching money contributed by local councils and businesses.
他表示，政府在未來四年首先會斥資2800萬新西蘭元（2000萬美元）成立一家實施該計劃的公司，並會考慮部分資金由地方議會和企業籌集。New Zealand's Department of Conservation has eradicated rats from several small islands using traps, poisons and baits. But it would require a massive escalation of those efforts to completely wipe out the pests.
新西蘭環保部通過使用鼠夾，鼠藥和毒餌已經滅絕了幾個小島上的老鼠。但是要想滅絕老鼠，他們仍需加大努力。Ecologist James Russell, from the University of Auckland, has written about the idea before.
奧克蘭大學的生物學家詹姆斯·羅素此前就寫過關於滅鼠的文章。"I really do think it's possible," he said. "It will require people working in every nook and corner of the country."
他說：“我真的相信這是可能實現的，但是它要求人們在國家的每一個角落下功夫。”
