Chinese people’s appetites have been guided by pragmatism, rather than food taboos. As Taiwanese academic Kung Peng-cheng puts it after exploring the eating habits and cultural restraints of Chinese people, "they eat almost anything."

　　国人的饮食选择向来以实用主义而非食物禁忌为指导。一如台湾学者龚鹏程在探究国人的饮食习惯和文化禁忌后说道，“他们几乎无所不食。”

　　Besides the reputation of the Cantonese for eating wild animals and the controversy over the Yulin dog meat festival in South China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region in recent years, the pangolin, a strong-looking creature, has been revealed as a dish served in some restaurants, despite the fact that pangolin is on China’s list of endangered wild animals.

　　除了广东人食用野生动物名声在外，还有近年来饱受争议的广西壮族自治区的玉林狗肉节。穿山甲，这一外表看似坚强的物种，尽管已被列为国家濒危野生动物，还是遭曝光已沦为某些饭店的桌上佳肴。

　　Earlier this month, a set of pictures taken in 2015 of what appears to be a lavish Chinese banquet were again circulated online. Some images show a cooked pangolin, served to a Chinese official from Guangxi. It aroused a public outcry, which prompted authorities to launch an investigation.

　　本月初，一组摄于2015年的照片再次在互联网上转载，照片拍摄的是一次奢华的中餐宴请，从一些照片中可以看到餐桌上摆有穿山甲供食客——来自广西的一些官员享用。这组照片一时在社会上激起强烈抗议，政府进而对此事展开调查。

　　A few days later, the online posts of a woman, which date back to 2011 and 2012 and display images of various cooked wildlife including pangolin, snake and swan, were dug up by netizens. The posts were widely shared and the woman was branded the "Pangolin Princess." After the exposure, the "princess" was detained by police in her hometown of Shenzhen.

　　几天前，几则由某女性于2011、2012年发表的帖子再次被网友挖出，这是一组野生动物宴的图片，其中不乏穿山甲、蛇和天鹅等名贵物种。这些帖子一经挖出便遭疯转，而这位女性也被冠以“穿山甲公主”的名号。照片经曝光后，这位“公主”被其家乡深圳市警方拘留。

　　The Chinese people’s enthusiasm for eating wild animals like pangolin is rooted in the belief that they have unique healing properties. But the belief that virtually all rare animals are endowed with powerful medicinal effects may be too unrealistic.

　　中国人对于吃穿山甲此类野生动物的热情源于对其独特药性的理解。然而，“所有的珍稀动物都具有强大的治疗效果”这样的观点未必太过荒谬。

　　So far, the meat of this nocturnal creature is considered a delicacy that can only be found on the tables of officials and wealthy people who have access to a luxurious and flippant lifestyle. To some extent, eating protected animals has become an indication of social status, given the rapid growth in China and the rise in demands of the country’s middle-class.

　　今天，这一夜行动物被看作是官员或那些生活奢靡而放纵的富人方能享用得起的美味珍馐。从一定程度上讲，在中国经济飞速发展、国内中产阶级需求增长的今天，食用保护动物已成为社会地位的象征。

　　China banned the trade of pangolins more than 10 years ago to protect the rare species from extinction. But with no awareness of the law, some Chinese take pride in eating pangolins.

　　中国政府为保护濒临灭绝的珍稀物种，早在十多年前就已明令禁止穿山甲交易。然而淡薄的法律意识依旧使一些中国人以吃穿山甲为豪。

　　In the international community, China has long been scolded for its lack of regulations in tackling wildlife protection.

　　在国际社会上，长期以来中国因在保护野生动物方面监管不力而倍受谴责。

　　The Chinese people are known for their enthusiasm for wildlife products. According to media reports, more than 100,000 elephants in Africa have been killed in the past decade driven by the Chinese demand for ivory. The alleged donkey slaughter in South Africa also attracted anger from people around the world recently.

　　中国人对野生动物制品的热爱也已是人尽皆知。据媒体报道，在非洲，过去十年间，受中国市场需求的驱使，已有超过10万头大象遭到屠杀。而最近发生在南非的屠驴事件更是激起了世界各国民众的愤怒。

　　This week, Google’s Valentine’s Day doodles featured love-themed pangolins to raise awareness of the endangered species in the animal’s natural habitats, including China. This might serve a reminder to China of its difficult task ahead in preserving the pangolins.

　　本周，谷歌的情人节主题为穿山甲之恋，意在提升人们保护自然栖息地里濒危物种的意识，其中就包括中国。这或许也为中国敲响了警钟，提醒其保护穿山甲的任务依旧困难而艰巨。

　　In Beijing’s subway stations, one can see advertisements featuring Chinese celebrities advocating for the ban on ivory purchase. But we must also act now to ban the trade in pangolins before it is too late.

　　在北京的地铁站里，张贴着一些中国名人呼吁禁止象牙买卖的公益广告。而我们也必须行动起来禁止穿山甲交易，亡羊补牢，尚为时不晚。

（编辑：何莹莹）