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Atlanta Zoo officials said on Friday that twin giant panda cubs, the first to be born and survive in the United States, have both turned out to be female.美国亚特兰大动物园官员上周五表示,首对在美国出生和活下来的双胞胎大熊猫幼崽其实都是雌性。
The zoo, which initially had identified both cubs as male after they were born in July, said DNA testing had now shown they are both female.双胞胎大熊猫在七月出生时,动物园把两只幼崽都鉴定为雄性,但现在根据DNA测试显示它们都是雌性。
"Prior to the time they are at least 3 years old, there are no obvious external cues as to their sex." the zoo said in a statement.动物园在一份声明中说:“熊猫在三岁之前,没有显著的外在特征来区分性别。”
Members of the public this fall helped choose the twins' names, Mei Lun and Mei Huan, which come from a Chinese idiom meaning "something indescribably beautiful and magnificent."今年秋天,市民帮忙给这对双胞胎取名为“美轮”和“美奂”。这来源于一个中国成语,形容某物“宏伟美丽难以言表。”
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The DNA tests showed a third panda, 3-year-old Po also initially believed to be male, is female as well. The male cub was named after the character voiced by Jack Black in “Kung Fu Panda.”DNA测试显示,还有第三只熊猫的性别也搞错了。2010年出生的三岁熊猫“阿宝” 原来被认为是雄性,其实也是雌性。当年这只熊猫幼崽就是以动画片《功夫熊猫》中的角色阿宝命名的(杰克·布莱克配音)。
Po and the twin cubs were conceived through artificial insemination with the same set of parents.“阿宝”和这对双胞胎幼崽是同一对熊猫夫妇通过人工授精孕育的。
Giant pandas are endangered and live only in a few mountain ranges in central China. An estimated 1,600 live in the wild and about 300 in captivity, mostly in China, zoo officials said.动物园官员说,濒危动物大熊猫只生活于中国中部的部分山脉中。大概有1600只大熊猫生活在野外,还有大约300只圈养的大熊猫,大部分都在中国。 |