VOA慢速英语：波兰研究所称猫是“外来入侵物种”

A respected Polish scientific institute has classified common house cats as "invasive alien species." The institute did this because of the damage cats cause to birds and other wildlife.
一家受人尊敬的波兰科学研究所将普通家猫归类为“外来入侵物种”。理由是因为猫对鸟类和其他野生动物造成的损害。
 
Some cat lovers have reacted emotionally to the decision. The strong reactions have put the main scientist behind the decision on the defensive.
一些爱猫人士对这个决定做出了情绪化的反应。强烈的反应使主要科学家采取了防御性决定。
 
Wojciech Solarz is a biologist at the state-run Polish Academy of Sciences. The academy's Institute of Nature Conservation runs a database of invasive alien species.
沃伊切赫·索拉兹是波兰国立科学院自然保护研究所的生物学家。该学院的自然保护研究所运营着一个外来入侵物种数据库。
 
He said he was surprised by the public reaction following the addition of Felis catus in the database. Felis catus is the scientific name for the common house cat.
他说他对在数据库中添加 Felis catus 后公众的反应感到惊讶。Felis catus 是普通家猫的学名。
 
The database already had 1,786 other species listed with no objections, Solarz told The Associated Press on Tuesday.
索拉兹周二告诉美联社，该数据库已经有1786个其他物种，没有反对意见。
 
The public anger, he said, may have come from the media. Some media reports may have misinformed people that the institute is calling for wild and domestic cats to be killed.
他说，公众的愤怒可能源于一些媒体错误报道，如该研究所正在呼吁杀死野猫和家猫。
 
Solarz described the growing scientific belief that domestic cats harm biodiversity. This is because of the number of birds and mammals that cats hunt and kill.
据索拉兹描述，在科学角度，因为家猫猎杀的鸟类和哺乳动物数量众多，所以家猫会损害生物多样性。
 
The criteria for including the cat among alien invasive species, "are 100% met by the cat," he said.
他说，在外来入侵物种的标准上“猫100%满足”。
 
On a recent television show aired by independent broadcaster TVN, Solarz debated a veterinarian on the issue. The veterinarian, or animal doctor, was Dorota Suminska. She is the writer of a book called The Happy Cat.
在最近由独立广播公司TVN播出的电视节目中，索拉兹就这个问题与一位兽医多罗塔·苏明斯卡进行了辩论。她是《快乐的猫咪》一书的作者。
 
She challenged Solarz's belief that cats are dangerous to wildlife. She pointed to other causes of decreasing biodiversity. These causes include a polluted environment and city buildings that can kill birds in flight.
她对索拉兹认为猫对野生动物很危险的观点表示质疑。并指出了影响生物多样性的其他原因，包括环境污染问题和城市建筑外墙导致的鸟类死亡。
 
"Ask if man is on the list of non-invasive alien species," Suminska said. She argued that cats were being unfairly blamed.
“请问人类是否在非侵入性外来物种名单上。”苏明斯卡说。她认为猫受到了不公平的指责。
 
Solarz argued that cats kill about 140 million birds in Poland each year.
索拉兹则反驳说，猫每年在波兰杀死大约1.4亿只鸟。
 
The Polish Academy institute published a post on its website seeking to clear up its position on the issue. The institute said it was "opposed to any cruelty towards animals." It also argued that its classification was in line with European Union guidelines.
波兰科学院研究所在网站上发表了一篇文章，试图澄清其在这个问题上的立场。该研究所表示，它“反对任何虐待动物的行为”。它还辩称其分类符合欧盟的指导方针。
 
As far as categorizing cats as "alien," the institute noted that Felis catus was domesticated around 10,000 years ago by ancient civilizations in the Middle East. That means that cats are not native to Europe from a scientific point of view.
至于将猫归类为“外来物种”，该研究所指出，猫猫是在大约一万年前被中东古代文明驯化的。从科学的角度来看，猫并非原产于欧洲。
 
The institute also suggested that cat owners should limit the time their pets spend outdoors during bird mating season.
该研究所还强调，他们只是建议猫主人在鸟类繁殖季节限制宠物在户外的时间，仅此而已。
 
I'm Anna Matteo.
安娜·马特奥报道。