长颈鹿：长得高睡个觉也不容易啊

　　长得像塔一样的长颈鹿看起来很需要一张舒服的床垫，不过睡觉不是长颈鹿要操心的大事。

　　Just looking at these slumbering² giraffes is enough to give you a crick in the neck - which is why the world's tallest animals don't often stop for a snooze.

　　看着这些睡觉的长颈鹿你都会觉得脖子累，这就是为什么这种世界上最高的动物通常不会随便停下打个盹儿。

　　Despite their height, giraffes actually have the shortest sleep requirement of all mammals, surviving on an average of half an hour a day.

　　虽然长颈鹿长这么高，但是它们是所有哺乳动物里面睡得最少的，平均每天睡半个小时就够了。

　　长颈鹿：长得高睡个觉也不容易啊

　　When they do settle to sleep, it's for minutes at a time, because of the risks to their wellbeing in the wild.

　　当真的要睡觉的时候，它们一次只睡几分钟，因为在野外可不太安全。

　　In captivity³, the giraffe sleeps intermittently⁴ around 4.6 hours per day, mostly at night. It usually sleeps lying down, however, standing⁵ sleeps have been recorded, particularly in older individuals.

　　笼子里的长颈鹿每天大约会断断续续地睡4.6小时，大部分时间是在晚上。它们一般会躺着睡，不过记录中也有站着睡的，特别是那些年纪大的。

　　Males can grow up to 18 feet tall, while females can reach 14 feet and their calves⁶, are born six feet tall.

　　雄性长颈鹿可以长到18英尺高（约5.5米），雌性长颈鹿可以长到14英尺高（约4.3米），而小长颈鹿出生时就有6英尺高（约1.8米）。

　　As a prey⁷ animal, the evolution of the giraffe's habits means that they rarely lie down, as it's difficult for them to get up again.

　　长颈鹿是被捕食的动物，经过进化后，它们现在很少会躺下，因为躺下后要再起来可不容易。

　　Sleeping and drinking water both cause problems for the animals because their long necks are too short to reach the ground.

　　睡觉和喝水对长颈鹿来说都不轻松，因为它们脖子太长了反而够不着地。

　　To drink they must spread their legs and bend down in an awkward position that makes them vulnerable to predators⁸ like Africa's big cats.

　　想要喝水，它们得岔开腿，笨拙地弯下身子。这时候如果非洲大猫一类的捕食者来了它们就很难逃掉了。

　　As a result, they get most of their water from the plants that they eat, and only need to drink water every few days.

　　因此，长颈鹿所需的水分大部分都是从它们吃的植物里获得的，它们只需要隔几天喝一次水。

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