You could call it one of the world's longest games of hide and seek.
這可能是史上耗時最長的捉迷藏了。

For more than 20 years, the Ili pika (Ochotona iliensis), a type of tiny, mountain-dwelling mammal with a teddy bear face, had eluded scientists in the Tianshan Mountains (map) of northwestern China.
伊利鼠兔，這種小小的，長著一張萌萌的泰迪熊臉的高山生哺乳動物已經(jīng)從駐守在中國北部天山山脈的科學(xué)家的眼中消失了20多年了。

People have seen the furry critter only a handful of times since it was discovered by accident in 1983. In fact, people have spotted only 29 live individuals, and little is known about the animal's ecology and behavior.
自從1983年伊利鼠兔被意外發(fā)現(xiàn)之后，人們見到這種毛茸茸的小動物的次數(shù)簡直屈指可數(shù)。實際上，人們只見到過29只伊利鼠兔，因此對于它們的生活習(xí)性和生活環(huán)境等知之甚少。

Then, in summer 2014, researchers rediscovered the pika.
但是，就這樣毫無任何預(yù)兆的，在2014年的夏天伊利鼠兔再次出現(xiàn)了。

Weidong Li, the species' original discoverer and a scientist at the Xinjiang Institute for Ecology and Geography, had gathered a group of volunteers in the Tianshan Mountains for some pika searching. At noon one day, as they were setting up camera traps, the team spotted their prize.
最初發(fā)現(xiàn)伊利鼠兔這個物種的中國科學(xué)院新疆生態(tài)與地理研究所的李維東研究員，為了搜尋鼠兔在天山地區(qū)組織了一支志愿者隊伍。一天中午，當他們設(shè)置好相機陷阱后，就獲得了這個發(fā)現(xiàn)。

"They found it hiding behind a rock, and they realized they had found the pika. They were very excited," said Tatsuya Shin, a naturalist in China who works with the pika's discoverers.
“他們發(fā)現(xiàn)有個小東西藏在石頭后面，仔細一看是一只鼠兔，大家都高興壞了?！焙椭袊鴪F隊一起工作的一位自然學(xué)家說。

The animal was about 8 inches (20 centimeters) long, with large ears and several small brown spots in its gray fur. Li wasn't familiar with the species, nor were nearby herdsmen. Li caught a specimen and sent it to a scientist at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, who said he believed the pika was a new species.
這種動物長大約20厘米，大大的耳朵，灰色的皮毛上有零星的棕色斑點。李維東沒見過這類物種，當?shù)氐娜艘矝]見過。于是李維東就抓了一只做成標本送到了中科院的一位專家手中，專家仔細研究之后，認為這只鼠兔屬于一個全新的物種。

Like other species of pika found in North America, the Ili pika lives at high elevations—between 9,200 and 13,450 feet (2,800 to 4,100 meters)—and subsists mainly on grasses, herbs, and other mountain plants.
和其他在北美地區(qū)發(fā)現(xiàn)的鼠兔一樣，伊利鼠兔生活在海拔在2800米至4100米之間的高海拔地帶，生存環(huán)境主要包括草地和一些高山植物周圍。

Like other high-dwelling creatures, the pika is sensitive to changes in its environment. A 1990s estimate put its population at about 2,000 individuals, and it's believed to be decreasing in number, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
同其他高地生物一樣，鼠兔對于生存環(huán)境的改變十分敏感，上世紀90年代的一項調(diào)查估計它們的種群數(shù)量可能只有2000只左右，而且根據(jù)國際自然保護聯(lián)盟的消息，這一數(shù)量仍在不斷減少。

Grazing pressure from livestock and air pollution have likely contributed to the decline in the Ili pika, which IUCN lists as vulnerable to extinction. China considers the species endangered.
畜牧造成的生態(tài)壓力、棲息地的減少和空氣污染等都是可能造成鼠兔種群數(shù)量減少的原因，國際自然保護聯(lián)盟已經(jīng)把鼠兔歸于易滅絕的動物名單中。中國也把鼠兔劃為了瀕危物種。

Even so, there are no concerted efforts under way to help the Ili pika. Li said he hopes to change that, and use the rediscovery of the animal to create conservation areas for the species.
盡管如此現(xiàn)在仍然缺乏能夠保護伊利鼠兔的有效措施。李維東說他希望鼠兔的再次出現(xiàn)能夠改變現(xiàn)狀，通過建立相關(guān)的保護區(qū)等讓這種動物生存下去。

How could anyone turn down a face like that?
長了一張如此萌的臉，誰能舍得讓它消失在這個世界上呢？