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Few would have expected that spectators at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics would include animals. And yet, coverage of the event featured several sightings of wildlife, particularly leopard cats apparently seeking to get in on the action.

你可能想不到，北京2022年冬奧會的觀眾還有小動物。在賽事期間，一些野生動物也進入了人類的鏡頭，想要一睹賽事盛況，比如說豹貓們。

On Jan 31, on the alpine ski slopes in Yanqing district, 90 kilometers northwest of Beijing, a leopard cat was spotted strolling through an award-ceremony rehearsal.

1月31日，在距北京西北部90公里的延慶高山滑雪賽區，一隻豹貓緩緩走過頒獎儀式的排練現場。

拍攝者：胡凱心

The event caught the attention of volunteers and staff, with many snapping photos. Three days later, a Chinese photographer captured another leopard cat in the woods near the Olympic ski slopes. The creature ran past him, jumped over a fence and looked back.

這隻豹貓吸引了在場很多志願者和工作人員的注意，他們還拍下了照片或視頻。三天以後，也就是2月3日，中國的一位賽事記者又拍到了另一隻豹貓出現在工作雪道邊的樹林裡。這隻豹貓從他身邊慢跑到護網外，停住了，還轉身觀望。

▲ 冬奧賽事記者在雪道邊樹林裡拍到的豹貓

Among those most excited by these sightings was Luo Shujin, an avid skier and a conservation biologist at Peking University.

為這些景象激動不已的人中，有一位叫羅述金。她是北京冬奧高山滑雪項目的技術官員，還是北京大學生命科學學院的研究員。

Leopard cats are wild felids, slightly larger than house cats, and they mostly steer clear of human activity. However, according to Luo, the frequent appearance of the animals close to the ski runs indicates that the species has persisted in this human-dominated landscape, which is relatively close to the megacity of Beijing. And, their calm demeanor suggests they are not frightened by human activity.

豹貓是一種野生貓科動物，比家貓體型略大，大多數會避開人。而據羅述金介紹，豹貓出現在冬奧會滑雪賽場附近，說明該物種在北京周邊地區以人類為主導的景觀中仍能生存。而且，根據目擊記錄，這兩次豹貓出現時都呈現出安靜平和的狀態，「並不怎麼怕人」。

▲羅述金在冬奧會賽區（採訪者供圖）

Luo says in the absence of any research data, it is too early to draw any conclusions that the creation of the Olympic skiing venue has not affected the surrounding forests and wildlife. However, she says it's possible that the wild cats have to some extent already adapted to coexistence with humans, likely because people at the venue have not shown an aggressive attitude toward the animals since its construction.

羅述金介紹說，目前還沒有系統的研究調查數據，所以斷定這裡的野生動物不受場館建設影響還為時過早。但她認為可能是自場館建設開始以來已經很多年了，場地的人對於動物沒有敵意，態度友善，所以當地的豹貓在一定程度上適應了人類的存在。

Luo, 46, has been studying the wildlife around Yanqing for years. In December 2018, she was tracking leopard cat droppings on a hill when she discovered that the animals were living close to the ski resort. She found this surprising and decided to gather photographic evidence of wildlife in the area.

羅述金現年46歲，在延慶地區周圍從事野生動物研究工作已有數年。2018年12月，她在山坡上追蹤豹貓糞便時發現豹貓的生存區域離冬奧雪道場所很近。這個發現讓她很驚喜，於是決定在這個區域收集野生動物的圖片資料。

"I thought about that famous pictures of a puma walking by the Hollywood sign in Los Angeles, and I asked myself: Can we get a picture of a leopard cat walking by the alpine ski course of the Beijing Winter Olympics?"

「我立刻聯想到一隻美洲獅在夜幕下正從洛杉磯好萊塢標誌前山樑上通過的那張照片。我問自己：『我們能拍到豹貓在北京冬奧會高山滑雪場旁散步的照片嗎?』」

▲ 在美國洛杉磯的格利菲公園拍到的公美洲獅。Steve Winter/National Geographic Creative

To examine the state of the animal's population, she and her colleagues set up 10 infrared cameras along 15 km of the hilly trail. The efforts paid off. They got pictures of many wild animals, including roe deer, badgers, gorals and wild boar. Leopard cats were photographed three times, the first one caught on camera in February last year—with the Olympic ski runs in the background.

為了檢測野生動物的數量狀況，她和同事們在山間15公里長的自然徒步路徑上布設了大約10處紅外相機固定監測點，拍下了很多野生動物，包括狍、豬獾、斑羚和野豬等動物。豹貓一共被拍到兩三次，第一次是2021年2月，它的遠處就是冬奧高山滑雪賽道。

▲ 2021年2月，豹貓走過紅外相機鏡頭，對面是冬奧會高山滑雪賽道

"Who would have thought that this mountain trail, several kilometers away from the alpine skiing course of the Beijing Winter Olympics, would be frequented by leopard cats," she says.

「有誰會想到呢，這條距離冬奧高山滑雪賽道不遠的北京山野小徑，居然是目前國內最頻繁拍攝到豹貓的地方。」

According to Luo, wild cats are rarely seen so close to big cities, especially metropolitan cities.

羅述金介紹說，其實全世界有野生貓科動物存在的城市很少，至於首都城市，就更罕見了。

"I think this is a little-known side of Beijing," says Luo, who is proud that such wildlife can be found so close to the capital city.

「這其實是北京鮮為人知的一面，」 羅述金說，她對能在距離首都如此近的地方看到這樣的野生動物感到很自豪。

▲冬奧賽事記者在雪道邊樹林裡拍到的豹貓。圖源：新華社

Luo sent the photo to the journalScience, along with a 300-word essay titled,The Hidden Olympic Spectator, which was published on July 23, 2021, the opening day of the 2020 Tokyo Summer Games.

羅述金將照片發給《科學》雜誌的編輯，還配了一篇300字小短文《隱秘的奧運觀眾》。照片和短文後來於2021年7月23日東京奧運會開幕當天發表。

She also shared the discovery with the 2022 Beijing Winter Games organizing committee, explaining its significance in terms of biodiversity, helping them to build a picture of the relationship between winter sports and nature.

羅述金還聯繫了北京冬奧組委，向奧組委展示了生物多樣性的重要性，還闡述了冬季運動和自然之間的關係。

Luo's relationship with this Winter Olympics has not been all hard work. She has also found time to indulge her passion for winter sports. After several tests, she was appointed as a technical officer on the Olympic alpine skiing referee team, bringing her even closer to the action. For Luo, being surrounded by hundreds of athletes and spectators was a thrill—a marked contrast to her solitary fieldwork.

羅述金和北京冬奧會的聯繫不只有野生動物研究工作。她還抓住機會，實現了自己對冬季運動的熱愛。經過幾輪考察，她有了個新身份——北京冬奧高山滑雪國內技術官員，這讓她離冬奧比賽更近了一步。對羅述金來說，和數百名運動員、觀眾共事讓她很興奮，這與她平日在人煙稀少的野外考察大不相同。

"I was deeply touched by the exchange and communication at this grand event that spans races, languages and countries," she says. "Such an event causes me to hope that we can leverage our strengths to ensure continued coexistence between wilderness and human settlements."

「我們被跨種族、跨語言、跨國家的一次世界性盛會的交流和溝通而深深觸動，」 羅述金說道，「這樣的盛會讓我希望能夠貢獻出自己的力量，讓野生環境和人類環境的共存狀態維持下去。」

▲羅述金將發表在《科學》雜誌上的文章打印出來，並邀請不同國家地區代表在上面簽名留念

Now that the 2022 Winter Olympics have ended, Luo plans to continue her leopard cat research in Yanqing district, just as her many European counterparts have carried out studies on wildlife around ski resorts near the Alps.

冬奧會結束後，羅述金計劃回到延慶地區，像很多在阿爾卑斯山滑雪場地區進行野生動物研究的歐洲同行那樣，她也會繼續對豹貓和野生動物的研究工作。

"The alpine skiing site on the outskirts of Beijing will be an excellent place to study how wild animals share the same space with humans," she says. "As we watch the skiers racing down the slopes, I know that the striding leopard cat will be watching us."

「北京附近的高山滑雪場地，是研究人和野生動物如何實現共享生存空間的絕佳地點。」羅述金說，「正如我們觀看滑雪運動員從雪坡上滑下來一樣，我知道大步前進的豹貓也會注視着我們。」

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編輯：陳月華

錄音：Stephanie Stone