“喵可貌相”喵星人有多兇？看毛色便知道

Is your puss a bit catty, the sort to scratch and hiss when handled?
你的貓是不是有點(diǎn)兇，摸一下就又撓又叫？

Then it's likely to be black and white, grey and white or tortoiseshell, say veterinary scientists who believe a cat's fur colour is linked to how aggressive it is.
按照獸醫(yī)學(xué)家的說法，這很可能是只黑白、灰白，或黃褐黑白相間的喵了。獸醫(yī)學(xué)家認(rèn)為，貓咪的毛色與其攻擊性多強(qiáng)有關(guān)。

Researchers at the University of California studied 1,274 cats to demonstrate how a moggie's colour is symptomatic of their behaviour.
加州大學(xué)的研究人員對(duì)1274只貓咪進(jìn)行研究，證明貓咪的行為如何通過毛色體現(xiàn)的。

In a study published in the Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science, experts used a survey to test whether calico cats - who have a spotted or particoloured that is predominately white - are 'significantly more aggressive towards people' than other types of cat, as is thought to be the case.
在《動(dòng)物福利學(xué)期刊》（Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science）上刊登的一項(xiàng)研究中，專家通過調(diào)查對(duì)三花貓（帶有以白色為主的斑點(diǎn)或雜色的貓咪）進(jìn)行測(cè)試，看看這種貓是否如人們想的那樣，對(duì)人的攻擊性遠(yuǎn)比別的貓強(qiáng)。

Owners responded to the questionnaire which asked them to detail how often their pet was aggressive during a typical day, how it reacts when handled and its behaviour at the vet.
參加研究的三花貓主人回答了問卷調(diào)查上的問題。該問卷要求他們?cè)斒鰫圬堃惶炖锞哂泄粜缘念l率如何，受到撫摸時(shí)有什么反應(yīng)，以及看獸醫(yī)時(shí)的表現(xiàn)如何。

They replied by giving their cat a rating on a scale of aggression.
主人們只需給愛貓的攻擊程度評(píng)個(gè)級(jí)就行。

The answers given confirmed calico females, black and white and grey and white cats were regularly 'more aggressive towards humans'.
調(diào)查結(jié)果證實(shí)，三花貓、毛色為黑白相間和灰白相間的貓“對(duì)人的攻擊性更強(qiáng)”。

When broken down, the study also found black and white cats were particularly aggressive when handled, grey-and-white cats during a trip to the vet and calico females in everyday contact with humans.
具體來說，研究還發(fā)現(xiàn)黑白毛貓受到撫摸時(shí)攻擊性尤其強(qiáng)，灰白毛貓?jiān)诳传F醫(yī)師時(shí)特別不安，而雌性三花貓與人接觸的每一天都異常好斗。

It concluded that the ideal pet is a black, grey, white or tabby cat.
該研究總結(jié)出黑貓、灰貓、白貓和虎斑貓才是最理想的寵物貓。

The study comes a month after researchers at the University of Lincoln found cats, unlike dogs, do not need humans to feel protected.
此項(xiàng)研究是在林肯大學(xué)研究人員公布其結(jié)果一個(gè)月后得出的。此前，林肯大學(xué)的研究人員發(fā)現(xiàn)，貓不像狗那樣需要從人那里獲得安全感。

In particular, they found cats don't suffer from separation anxiety and any noise they make when their owner leaves is more likely to be out of boredom or frustration.
特別是他們發(fā)現(xiàn)貓?jiān)谥魅穗x開時(shí)并不會(huì)產(chǎn)生分離焦慮癥，而它們制造的噪音也更可能是出于無聊和失望的原因。

Vocabulary

tortoiseshell：（毛色為黃褐黑白相間的）家貓

moggie：[英國(guó)俚語]貓

particoloured：雜色的

boredom：厭倦

英文來源：每日郵報(bào)

譯者：BUPT許楠楠

審校&編輯：丁一