Have a close look at the accompanying, beautiful photograph. Notice anything out of the ordinary?
仔细看看随附的漂亮照片。 注意到有什么不寻常的事情吗？
These deer’s antlers are facing backwards.
这些鹿的鹿角朝后。
Part deer, part horse, part cow, part donkey; say hello to the “Milu”, or “Père David’s Deer”. Outside of China, it was the French missionary, Armand David, who brought the zoological oddity to the attention of the world in 1866.
一部分是鹿，一部分是马，一部分是牛，一部分是驴；向“米鲁”或“大卫神父的鹿”问好。 在中国境外，是法国传教士Armand David在1866年将动物学的怪癖引起了世界的注意。
The ancient Chinese novel, “The Investiture of the Gods”, speaks of a crane walking with “four unlikenesses”, while more long-winded versions elsewhere talk of, “The nose of a cow but not a cow, the antlers of a deer but not a deer, the body of a donkey but not a donkey, the tail of a horse but not a horse”.
中国古代小说《众神的授予》讲述了一只带着“四个不同之处”行走的鹤，而其他地方更冗长的版本则谈到了“牛的鼻子但不是牛，鹿的鹿角但不是鹿，驴的身体但不是驴，马的尾巴但不是马”。
Merged into one and embraced by Chinese mythology, the Milu today have their home in the Dafeng Milu National Nature Reserve. The reserve is located on the east China coast in Dafeng County of Yancheng City in Jiangsu.
密鲁人融合为一体，并被中国神话所拥抱，今天的家位于大丰密鲁国家自然保护区。 该保护区位于江苏盐城市大丰县华东海岸。
Those “four unlikenesses” are what set the Milu apart from other deer species. While there is really no precise way to accurately age deer other than by their teeth, with male Milu their age can be determined by their antlers. In the first 5 years of its life, one branch shall be added to the main antler beam each year. Latterly, between one and four smaller, sub branches shall grow each year.
这四个“不同之处”是米卢与其他鹿物种的不同之处。 虽然除了牙齿之外，真的没有精确的方法来准确地让鹿变老，但雄性Milu的年龄可以通过鹿角来确定。 在其生命周期的前5年，每年应在主鹿角梁上增加一个分支。 后来，每年将有一到四个较小的子分支。
As for that donkey reference, that’s down to the length of a Milu’s tail. Most deer species’ tails grow to no more than 10 centimetres in length, but a Milu can grow theirs over three times longer. Used to aid balance, its also handy for swatting away blood-sucking insects.
至于那头驴的参考，那就是Milu尾巴的长度。 大多数鹿的尾巴长度不超过10厘米，但米卢的尾巴可以长三倍以上。 用于帮助平衡，它也可用于驱赶吸血昆虫。
Then there are the cloven hooves of the Milu, shaped like those of cows. And being webbed too helps the Milu to avoid sinking into the ground when walking on its homeland’s soft, muddy terrain. As a result, the Milu are also top swimmers; they have even been known to swim across the Yangtze River!
然后是Milu的蹄子，形状像奶牛的蹄子。 织带也有助于米卢人在家园柔软、泥泞的地形上行走时避免沉入地下。 因此，密露人也是顶级游泳运动员；他们甚至以游过长江而闻名！
And what about that long, horse-like face? Milu love water plants and evolution has provided them with a long snout to happily graze 30-40 centimetres below water, which also explains the Milu’s eyes being in the upper third of its face.
那那张长长的、像马一样的脸呢？ Milu喜欢水生植物，进化为它们提供了一个长鼻子，可以快乐地在水下30-40厘米处放牧，这也解释了Milu的眼睛位于其脸部的上三分之一。
While the Milu can be found in a score of countries worldwide, the Dafeng Milu National Nature Reserve is their primary home. A count at the end of May, 2022, put the population at 3,116, around 45 percent the world total.
虽然密露遍布全球数十个国家，但大丰密密密国家自然保护区是它们的主要家园。 2022年5月底的统计，人口为3116人，约占世界总数的45%。
Extinct in the wild, the Reserve is also the only place virtually untouched by human hand where free-ranging Milu can thrive. Based on remote sensing observation statistics, this herd totals 265 in number.
在野外灭绝的保护区也是唯一几乎未被人手触及的地方，自由放牧的Milu可以茁壮成长。 根据遥感观测统计数据，这群总数为265人。
Just as with most other reserves, the Dafeng Milu Nature Reserve also safeguards other species; nearly 300 other types of animals live on these coastal lands.
與大多數其他保护区一樣，大丰密路自然保護區也保護了其他物種；近300種其他型別的動物生活在這些沿海土地上。
Among them, the White Egret has an especially-intimate relationship with the Milu. Very often, one or two of the white sea birds will stand on a Milu’s back with an elegant grace. Even while galloping, the egrets are not easily removed from their furry perch. The two animals have co-existed since ancient times.
其中，白麋麋人与米卢人有着特别亲密的关系。 通常，一两只白色的海鸟会优雅地站在米鲁的背上。 即使在驰骋时，白鸪也不容易从它们的毛茸茸的鱸象上移走。 这两种动物自古以来就共存。
The overall Reserve comprises 807,000 hectares of unspoilt coastal mudflats. But that term is misleading; deep forests, green grasses and colourful flowers are complimented by peaceful streams and deserted beaches.
整个保护区由807,000公顷未受破坏的沿海滩涂组成。 但这个词有误导性；深林、绿草和五颜六色的花朵与宁静的溪流和荒凉的海滩相得益彰。
As well as all this flora and fawna, the area is known for its salt; Yancheng in Chinese literally means “Salt City”. Here, humans carved out salt and timber works over 2,000 years ago as the mudflats were forming. Late in the 20th century, however, the decision was fortunately taken to seal the area’s prime natural landscape.
除了所有这些植物群和动物群外，该地区还以其盐而闻名；盐城在中文中字面意思是“盐城”。 在这里，2000多年前，当泥滩形成时，人类雕刻了盐和木材工程。 然而，在20世纪末，幸运地做出了这一决定，以密封该地区的主要自然景观。
It wasn’t a moment too soon. The Milu had been hunted to extinction in the late 19th century. But Europeans stepped in just in time, taking specimens back to France and Germany to successfully breed them in captivity.
一刻也不早。 米卢人在19世纪末被猎杀到灭绝。 但欧洲人及时介入，将标本带回法国和德国，在圈养中成功繁殖。
Then it was the British nobleman and politician, Herbrand Russell, 11th Duke of Bedford, who acquired some Milu from the Berlin Zoo. Having accumulated a relatively large herd, his great-grandson donated many of the Milu to the Chinese government, for the purposes of reintroducing the species to the wild.
然后是英国贵族和政治家，第11代贝德福德公爵赫布兰德·拉塞尔，他从柏林动物园购买了一些米卢。 他的曾孙积累了相对较大的牛群，将许多米卢捐赠给了中国政府，目的是将该物种重新引入野外。
And so it came to be that in 1986, the rare and endangered Milu made a return from Europe to its homeland, marking the beginnings of a major achievement in large-scale wildlife conservation.
因此，在1986年，稀有和濒危的米卢从欧洲返回其家园，标志着大规模野生动物保护重大成就的开始。
Dafeng Milu National Nature Reserve (大丰麋鹿国家级自然保护区; official WeChat: 中华麋鹿园; tel: 0515-83893589 / 83391999; entrance ¥25-50), is a bit over 1 hour’s drive from Yancheng Railway Station, 2-3 hours from Nanjing by train (approx. ¥154).
大丰麋鹿国家自然保护区（大丰麋鹿国家自然保护区；官方微信：中华麋鹿园；电话：0515-83893589 / 83391999；入口¥25-50），距离盐城火车站1小时多小时车程，距离南京乘火车2-3小时（约 ¥154）。