不同寻常的动物友谊的力量

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2019年12月21日

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The power of unusual animal friendships

不同寻常的动物友谊的力量

We know that sometimes animals have unlikely friendships. Whether it's circumstances that throw them together or they just happen to find a friend from another species, animals will occasionally become pals, creating an unconventional alliance.

我们知道，动物有时会有不太可能的友谊。无论是环境把它们放在一起，还是它们碰巧从另一个物种找到了一个朋友，动物们会偶尔成为朋友，形成一个非传统的联盟。

These unusual relationships cause a certain amount of double-takes — and they're often incredibly adorable — but there's also a scientific benefit to studying odd animal friendships.

这些不寻常的关系会让人产生一定程度的怀疑——它们通常都是非常可爱的——但研究奇怪的动物友谊也有科学上的好处。

“There’s no question that studying these relationships can give you some insight into the factors that go into normal relationships,” Gordon Burghardt, a professor in the departments of psychology and ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of Tennessee, told The New York Times.

“毫无疑问，研究这些关系可以让你深入了解正常关系中的一些因素，”田纳西大学心理、生态和进化生物学系教授戈登·伯格哈特在接受《纽约时报》采访时表示。

An African elephant and a giraffe have become unlikely pals due to the confines of a zoo. (Photo: Glass and Nature/Shutterstock)

Cross-species bonds typically occur in young animals, and they're also common among captive animals that have no choice but to seek each other out.

跨物种的结合通常发生在年轻的动物身上，在被圈养的动物身上也很常见，它们别无选择，只能互相寻找。

“I think the choices animals make in cross-species relationships are the same as they’d make in same-species relationships," Marc Bekoff, professor emeritus of ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of Colorado, told Slate. "Some dogs don’t like every other dog. Animals are very selective about the other individuals who they let into their lives.”

“我认为动物在跨物种关系中做出的选择与它们在同种关系中做出的选择是一样的，”科罗拉多大学生态学和进化生物学名誉教授马克·贝科夫告诉《Slate》杂志。“有些狗不喜欢其他所有的狗。动物对进入它们生活的其他个体非常挑剔。”

And when predator and prey become buddies, that requires serious trust from the animal on the prey end, Bekoff points out.

Bekoff指出，当捕食者和猎物成为伙伴时，这需要猎物的高度信任。

The polar bears at SeaWorld San Diego in happier times. (Photo: samantha celera [CC BY-ND 2.0]/Flickr)

Animal friendships — whether in their own species or outside — can be very meaningful. Consider the story of Szenja, a 21-year-old polar bear who died at SeaWorld San Diego in mid-April after an unexplained illness including loss of appetite and energy, according to The San Diego Union-Tribune. Szenja had recently been separated from her long-time companion, Snowflake, who had been sent to the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium for a breeding visit. The pair had been together for 20 years. The polar bears made headlines in March when more than 55,000 people signed a petition not to separate the "best friends."

动物的友谊——在自己的物种之外,是否可以非常有意义。考虑Szenja的故事,据《圣地亚哥联盟-论坛报》报道，一名21岁的北极熊在4月中旬在圣地亚哥死于无法解释的疾病，包括食欲和精力的丧失。Szenja最近与她的长期伴侣雪花分离，后者被送到匹兹堡动物园和PPG水族馆进行繁殖访问。两人共同生活了20年。3月份，北极熊登上了头条，超过5.5万人在请愿书上签名，要求不要把“最好的朋友”分开。

In a statement, PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Remain said Szenja died of a broken heart.

在一份声明中，善待动物组织执行副总裁特雷西·莱梅说，Szenja死于心碎。

Here's a look at some animal odd couples that have forged lasting bonds.

下面就让我们来看看一些动物情侣吧，他们已经建立了长久的关系。