Name: 動物園是否應該飼養動物？⏲️ 6 分鐘英語 (Should animals be kept in zoos? ⏲️ 6 Minute English)
Uploaded: 2025-05-14T06:39:22.000Z
Duration: 6 min 16 s

Hello. This is 6 Minute English from BBC Learning English. I'm Neil.

您好。這裡是 BBC Learning English 的 6 分鐘英語。我是尼爾

And I'm Georgie. In this programme, we're discussing a controversial topic that often produces strong feelings – should animals be kept in zoos? What's your opinion on this debate, Neil?

我是喬治。在本期節目中，我們將討論一個經常引起強烈反響的爭議性話題--動物是否應該被關在動物園裡？尼爾，你對這場辯論有什麼看法？

程度副詞

It's a really difficult question, Georgie. I think there are good scientific reasons for having animals in zoos, but also it seems to me a little bit sad and cruel for wild animals to be locked up.

這個問題很難回答，喬吉。我認為把動物關在動物園裡有很好的科學依據，但在我看來，把野生動物關在動物園裡有些悲哀和殘忍。

For some, zoos are a good way to teach people about nature and save endangered species from extinction. Others think separating animals from their natural habitat is cruel and unnecessary.

有些人認為，動物園是向人們傳授自然知識和拯救瀕危物種的好方法。另一些人則認為，將動物從其自然棲息地中分離出來是殘忍和不必要的。

Either way, with an estimated 700 million visitors every year, zoos remain popular.

無論如何，動物園每年約有 7 億遊客，是以仍然很受歡迎。

But are they a good thing? We'll be debating the pros and cons as well as learning some useful new words and phrases.

但它們是好東西嗎？我們將討論利弊，並學習一些有用的新單詞和短語。

And remember you can find all the vocabulary for this programme on our website bbclearningenglish.com.

請記住，您可以在我們的網站 bbclearningenglish.com 上找到本課程的所有詞彙。

Now I have a question for you, Georgie. In 2022, five animals escaped from Sydney's

現在我有個問題要問你，喬治。2022 年，五隻動物從雪梨的

Taronga Zoo in Australia. But were the escaped animals… a. Elephants, b. Lions or c. Zebras?

澳洲塔龍加動物園。但是，逃跑的動物是...... a. 大象、b. 獅子還是 c. 斑馬？

Hmm, I can imagine zebras running away from the zoo.

嗯，我能想象斑馬從動物園跑出來的樣子。

OK, we'll find out the answer at the end of the programme.

好吧，我們將在節目的最後找出答案。

Reporter William Lee-Adams has been investigating the arguments for and against keeping animals in zoos with BBC World Service programme What in the World? Here he gives two arguments in favour of zoos.

記者威廉-李-亞當斯（William Lee-Adams）在英國廣播公司世界服務節目《世界上有什麼？在這裡，他提出了兩個支持動物園的論點。

Education is the primary reason that zoos give for why they should exist. The fact is school children all over the world are often bused to zoos. I remember myself going to see lowland gorillas at Zoo Atlanta every single year. And the point of this was to introduce us to conservation.

教育是動物園存在的首要理由。事實上，世界各地的中小學生經常乘坐校車前往動物園。我記得自己每年都會去亞特蘭大動物園觀看低地大猩猩。這樣做的目的是向我們介紹保護動物的知識。

One argument for keeping animals in zoos is to educate people about the importance of conservation, the protection of plants, animals and the natural world from human damage.

在動物園飼養動物的一個理由是教育人們保護動物的重要性，保護植物、動物和自然世界免受人類的破壞。

A second point is that zoos often invest in research programmes that help endangered animals. Now, as we know, pandas are notoriously reluctant to mate. The female pandas have a narrow window of fertility. They're solitary creatures and it takes two to tango when it comes to reproduction. But a lot of money in zoos, it goes to sort of find ways to encourage these animals to mate.

第二點是動物園經常投資於幫助瀕危動物的研究項目。眾所周知，大熊貓是出了名的不願意交配。雌性大熊貓的生育期很短。它們是獨居動物 在繁衍後代時需要兩個人一起探戈但動物園的大量資金 都用於尋找鼓勵這些動物交配的方法

A second argument is that zoos protect endangered species from extinction through breeding.

第二個論點是，動物園通過繁殖保護瀕危物種免遭滅絕。

William mentions pandas, animals which are reluctant, meaning slow and unwilling to reproduce. Male and female pandas need a little help to make babies and zoos can provide this help. William uses the idiom it takes two to tango to describe an activity which needs two people, or in this case two pandas, to be willing to make something a success.

威廉提到了大熊貓，大熊貓是一種不情願的動物，意思是繁殖緩慢，不願意繁殖。雄性和雌性大熊貓需要一些幫助才能繁衍後代，動物園可以提供這種幫助。威廉用 "探戈需要兩個人 "這個成語來形容一項活動需要兩個人（在這裡是指兩隻大熊貓）的配合才能取得成功。

Now let's turn to some of the arguments against zoos with Nikita Darwin, a 19-year-old animal rights activist from India, who spoke to BBC World Service programme What in the

尼基塔-達爾文（Nikita Darwin）是一名來自印度的 19 歲動物權利活動家。

I don't think zoos should exist for several reasons. The first one being a zoo's detrimental impact on both the physical and psychological health of animals. Many studies and research have shown that many animals in zoos and aquariums display abnormal behaviours like head bobbing, pacing, stereotypical behaviours, signs of mental distress. The second reason I would say is that zoos cannot mimic the natural habitat of animals in the wild.

我認為動物園不應該存在，原因有幾個。首先，動物園會對動物的生理和心理健康造成有害影響。許多研究表明，動物園和水族館中的許多動物都表現出異常行為，如搖頭晃腦、踱步、刻板行為、精神痛苦的跡象等。我要說的第二個原因是，動物園無法模仿野生動物的自然棲息地。

Nikita argues that being enclosed in a zoo is so stressful for wild animals it leads to abnormal behaviour, behaviour that is different and worse from what would normally be expected.

尼基塔認為，被關在動物園裡會給野生動物帶來巨大壓力，從而導致異常行為，即與正常情況下不同的、更糟糕的行為。

Examples of this include animals pacing their cages in circles and rocking, barbiting and even self-harm. And they're so common in captive animals there's a name for it, zoocosis.

例如，動物在籠子裡轉圈踱步、搖晃、倒刺，甚至自殘。這些現象在圈養動物中非常常見，是以有一個名字叫 "動物病"（zoocosis）。

Even zoos with large enclosures cannot fully mimic or copy the natural habitats and open spaces these animals would enjoy in the wild. And imagine how a polar bear evolved for life in the frozen Arctic would feel trapped in a zoo in a much warmer country.

即使是擁有大型圍欄的動物園，也無法完全模仿或複製這些動物在野外的自然棲息地和開放空間。想象一下，一隻在冰天雪地的北極生活進化的北極熊被困在一個溫暖得多的國家的動物園裡會是什麼感覺。

Some zoologists have compared zoocosis to human traumas like post-traumatic stress disorder, but say it's even more damaging. For captive animals, everything, including the air they breathe, is traumatic.

一些動物學家將動物疫病與創傷後應激障礙等人類創傷相提並論，但他們認為動物疫病的危害更大。對圈養動物來說，包括呼吸的空氣在內的一切都會造成創傷。

We've heard a few arguments for and against keeping animals in zoos.

我們聽說過一些支持和反對在動物園飼養動物的論點。

What do you think, Neil? Have you changed your opinion at all?

你怎麼看，尼爾？你的觀點有什麼變化嗎？

Well, I think there are really strong arguments on both sides, so I'm still not sure, Georgie.

我覺得雙方都有很強的論據，所以我還是不確定，喬吉。

Well, we know how some of the animals at the Sydney Zoo felt about things because they managed to escape. But what was the answer to your question, Neil?

我們知道雪梨動物園的一些動物是怎麼想的 因為它們成功逃脫了你的問題的答案是什麼，尼爾？

Well, Georgie, I asked you which animals escaped from a zoo in Sydney, Australia in 2022.

喬吉，我問你 2022 年有哪些動物從澳洲雪梨的動物園逃走了。

Was it a, elephants, b, lions or c, zebras?

I'm afraid that was the wrong answer. It was actually lions. How scary!

恐怕這個答案是錯誤的。其實是獅子。真嚇人

OK, it's time to recap the vocabulary we've learned.

好了，是時候回顧一下我們學過的詞彙了。

Conservation is the protection of plants, animals and the natural world from human harm.

保護是指保護植物、動物和自然世界免受人類傷害。

If you are reluctant to do something, you don't want to do it, or you do it very slowly.

如果你不願意做某事，你就不想做，或者做得很慢。

The idiom, it takes two to tango, refers to an activity which needs two people to willingly and actively take part for it to succeed.

成語 "探戈需要兩個人 "指的是一項活動需要兩個人心甘情願地積極參與才能成功。

The adjective, abnormal, means different from what would normally be expected, in a bad way.

形容詞 "不正常 "的意思是與通常的預期不同，是一種不好的方式。

Zookosis is a term to describe the repeated, purposeless behaviour performed by captive animals in response to the stress of being confined, including pacing, head bobbing and swaying.

Zookosis 是一個術語，用來描述圈養動物為應對被囚禁的壓力而反覆做出的無目的行為，包括踱步、搖頭晃腦和搖擺。

And finally, if you mimic somebody or something, you imitate it or copy it.

最後，如果你模仿某人或某事，你就是模仿它或複製它。

Once again, our six minutes are up, but don't forget we have a worksheet and a quiz that you can use to practise the vocabulary from this episode. Visit bbclearningenglish.com.

我們的六分鐘時間又到了，但別忘了我們有一份工作表和一個小測驗，你可以用它們來練習本集的詞彙。請訪問 bbclearningenglish.com。