Reindeer in the region of Lapland, Finland, are famous worldwide. They are also very busy at this time of year. That's because they are helping Santa Claus to deliver presents to children all over the world. However, the animals are facing a great danger. Reindeer herders report that an increasing number of reindeer are being killed by wolves. The Reindeer Herders' Association in Finland says wolves have killed around 1,950 reindeer this year. That is a 70 per cent increase from last year. Juha Kujala, a Lapland herder, is worried about the future of his animals. He said there has been a sudden increase in the number of wolves in Finland. This has upset the natural balance between reindeer and wolves.
芬蘭拉普蘭地區的馴鹿在全世界都很有名。這個時節牠們也特別忙碌，因為牠們要幫助聖誕老人把禮物送到世界各地的孩子手中。 然而，這些動物正面臨巨大危險。馴鹿牧民報告說，越來越多的馴鹿被狼殺死。芬蘭馴鹿牧民協會表示，今年狼群已經殺死了大約 1,950 頭馴鹿，比去年增加了 70%。拉普蘭牧民尤哈·庫亞拉（Juha Kujala）對自己動物的未來感到擔憂。他說，芬蘭的狼群數量突然增加，打破了馴鹿與狼之間的自然平衡。Mr Kujala joked to reporters about his animals, even though he is worried about them. He said: "These are Santa's reindeer. But we are really lucky because Santa needs them for only one day of the year, so we can fly them for the other 364 days." Many herders believe the Ukraine War is the reason why there are suddenly more wolves in Finland. They say that men who used to hunt wolves in Russia have gone to fight in Ukraine. This means many wolves are crossing the 1,340-km border between Russia and Finland. Kujala said: "It's worse since the Ukraine War started. The wolves are coming from the Russian side. There's nobody left hunting the wolves."
庫亞拉先生雖然擔心，但仍對記者開玩笑說起他的馴鹿。他說：「這些是聖誕老人的馴鹿。不過我們真的很幸運，因為聖誕老人一年只需要牠們一天，所以剩下的 364 天我們都可以讓牠們飛翔。」 許多牧民認為，烏克蘭戰爭是芬蘭狼群突然增多的原因。他們說，以前在俄羅斯獵狼的人都去烏克蘭打仗了。這意味著許多狼正跨越俄芬之間 1,340 公里的邊界。庫亞拉說：「自從烏克蘭戰爭開始以來情況更糟。狼群從俄羅斯那邊過來，已經沒有人在獵殺牠們了。」
Vocabulary
- •Region (noun) - Area.
- •Deliver (verb) - Bring or carry.
- •Herders (noun) - Animal keepers.
- •Association (noun) - Group or organization.
- •Increase (noun/verb) - Rise or grow.
- •Worried (adjective) - Anxious or concerned.
- •Balance (noun) - Stability or equilibrium.
- •Reporters (noun) - Journalists.
- •Believe (verb) - Think or accept as true.
- •Hunt (verb) - Chase and kill (animals).
