虎（二）

Juno

你知道老虎喜欢玩水吗？你知道老虎幼崽生下来是失明的吗？……阅读下文，让我们一起了解有关老虎的一些有趣知识吧！

Tigers are often looked as being one of the most beautiful yet 1）ferocious animals. But here are some interesting facts about tigers you may not know.

Most of the cat species have stripes on their fur as well as on their skin. It is actually true that similar to human 2）fingerprints， the unique pattern of stripes on tigers acts like their identity. Even if you shave off the fur of tigers or house cats， you would still see the stripes. Each tiger’s stripes are unique to the animal. As a result， identifying and tracking tigers for conservation purposes can be performed through a visual 3）inspection.

Tiger cubs are born blind and only a few survive. Literally， the newborn cubs can’t see anything， they only follow the scent of their mother. Since they are born blind and can’t keep up， most of them die of hunger or cold.

Most felines are averse to water， but tigers are the exception. Tigers will swim and play in the water and even sit in it to cool off during the day’s heat. With webbed toes to enable them to swim effectively， they regularly swim across rivers.

老虎通常被認为是最美同时也最凶猛的动物之一。但下面这些关于老虎的有趣知识，你可能并不清楚。

大多数猫科动物的皮毛和皮肤上都有条纹。实际上，与人类指纹类似，老虎身上独特的条纹图案就像它们的身份一样。即使你剃掉了老虎或家猫的毛，你仍然会看到条纹。每只老虎的条纹都是独一无二的。因此，可以通过目视检查来识别和跟踪用于保护目的的老虎。

小老虎刚出生时看不见，且只有少数得以存活。确切地说，新生的虎崽什么也看不见，它们靠气味来分辨母亲。由于它们出生时看不见，跟不上生活，它们中的大多数死于饥饿或寒冷。

大多数猫科动物厌恶水，但老虎例外。老虎会在水中游泳和玩耍，甚至在白天炎热的时候坐在里面降温。它们蹼状的脚趾让它们能够游泳，它们经常在河流中游泳。

1） ferocious  [fəˈrəʊʃəs] adj. 凶猛的

2） fingerprint [ˈfɪŋgəprɪnt] n. 指纹

3） inspection [ɪnˈspekʃn] n.检察