没开玩笑！我国牛马有的是，但是缺驴

摘要：But Ma, 80, who lives much the way his ancestors did, said his last donkey died in 2014, and he couldn't replace her. “There aren’

据《中国新闻周刊》报道，9月22日，中国畜牧业协会驴业分会相关负责人确认：“目前我国牛马都不缺，就缺驴。”

牛马，当然是字面意思上的“牛”和“马”；驴，便是“毛驴拉磨哟，走不出那个圈儿”中的“驴”。

作为曾经的农业第一生产力，驴是中国人熟悉且信赖的家畜。

在我们的日常交流中，与驴有关的表达不胜枚举——生产队的驴、驴唇不对马嘴、骑驴看唱本……

如今，驴为什么成了中国人的稀缺品？

China has a donkey shortage — and why that matters

中国正面临“驴荒”——而这并非小事

Chinese farmer Ma Yufa grows vegetables on steep terraces in the mountains north of here — the type of terrain better suited for a donkey instead of a tractor(拖拉机).

中国农民马玉发在北部山区陡峭的梯田上种植蔬菜——这种地形更适合驴子耕作，而非拖拉机。

But Ma, 80, who lives much the way his ancestors did, said his last donkey died in 2014, and he couldn't replace her. “There aren’t any donkeys left,” Ma said sadly. “We’ve killed them all.”

但80岁的老马仍过着祖辈那样的生活。他说，自家最后一头驴死于2014年，之后就再也无力添补。他黯然道： “一头驴也找不到了，都被我们宰没了。”

China is in the grip of(受...控制) a massive donkey shortage caused by soaring(猛增的) demand for e’jiao — a traditional medicine made by boiling donkey skin. Demand for e’jiao has doubled since 2010, hitting nearly 15 million pounds a year in 2015, according to the national e’jiao association.

由于人们对用驴皮熬制的中药“阿胶”的需求激增，导致中国正面临严重的“驴荒”。据国家阿胶协会统计，自2010年以来，阿胶需求量已翻了一番，到2015年已接近每年1,500万磅。

hit v 达到（某水平）

The substance was once affordable only by royalty, because one donkey yields 2.2 pounds of e'jiao.

这种物质曾经是皇室专属，因为一头驴只能产出约2.2磅阿胶。

affordable adj 付得起的（afford + -able）

royalty n 王室成员

yield /jiːld/ v 产生

Only 30 years ago, China had 11 million donkeys — the largest herd in the world — but the number has dwindled(减少) to between 3 million and 5 million, despite intensive breeding programs.

仅在30年前，中国还拥有1100万头驴，居全球之首；如今尽管大力推行繁育计划，驴的存栏量却已锐减至300万至500万头。

In late June 2017, Botswana became the latest country to ban the export of donkey skins in response to reports of hundreds of animals being killed every week.

2017年6月底，博茨瓦纳成为最新禁止驴皮出口的国家，原因是据报道每周有数百头驴被宰杀。

in response to 作为回应

E’jiao makers, mostly based in the eastern Chinese province of Shandong, deny their product is causing the donkey shortage. They claim they are creating a new role for the animal in the modern world. They also say farmers in China and around the world can get rich by breeding donkeys for them.

阿胶生产商——大多位于中国东部的山东省——否认其产品导致驴荒。他们声称，自己正在为这种动物在现代社会中“创造新价值”，还称中国乃至全球农民都能靠为他们养驴致富。

“E’jiao is one of traditional Chinese medicine's three great treasures, along with deer horn and ginseng,” said Liu Guangyuan, vice chairman of China’s largest e’jiao producers, Dong’e E’jiao.

“阿胶、鹿茸、人参，是中药的三大瑰宝。”中国最大的阿胶生产企业——东阿阿胶——副总裁刘广源说。

E’jiao's history is traced to at least the second century B.C. By the 19th century, a royal concubine(妾) named Ci Xi used the medicine to prevent her from miscarrying(流产), and her son became emperor of China.

阿胶的历史至少可追溯至公元前二世纪。到了19世纪，慈禧太后靠服用此药保胎，最终诞下皇帝，阿胶遂成宫廷圣品。

There is another reason for the donkey shortage besides the high demand: They aren't very fertile(能生育的).

驴荒的另一个原因在于驴的生育能力不强。

Donkeys are pregnant for up to 14 months, females tend to give birth to one foal(驹) at a time, and most are needed for work, so owners don’t let them breed. That's why there are only 44 million donkeys worldwide.

驴的孕期长达14个月，每胎仅产一驹，而且大多数驴还要下地干活，主人舍不得让它们配种。于是，全球驴的总量只剩4400万头。