World’s oldest panda Jia Jia dies at 38

The death of panda Jia Jia, whose age in human terms was more than 100 years, was announced by the Hong Kong theme park where she lived.

死亡大熊猫名叫"佳佳"，日前佳佳所在的香港主题公园宣布了它的死讯，换算成人类的年龄的话，佳佳已经超过了100岁。

Her condition had worsened rapidly in recent weeks and she had lost her appetite, the park said.

据园方表示，近几周佳佳的身体状况迅速恶化，也没有胃口吃东西。

She was put down by vets at Ocean Park, her home since 1999.

佳佳自从1999年以来就一直住在香港海洋公园，园方的兽医对它执行了安乐死。

"She was a member of our family and she will be deeply missed… she has served as an important animal ambassador for her species," the park said in a statement.

园方在一份声明中表示说："佳佳是我们大家庭的一份子，我们将深切缅怀它。长久以来，佳佳都是大熊猫物种的一位重要动物大使。"

The park said that in the last two weeks, Jia Jia's daily food intake had dropped from over 10kg to less than 3kg per day, and she had lost weight.

据园方表示，近两周来佳佳每天的进食量已经从原来的10多公斤减少到了不足3公斤，体重也明显下降。

"Over the past few days, she has been spending less time awake and showing no interest in food or fluids.

"在过去的这些天里，佳佳醒着的时间更少了，对吃吃喝喝没啥兴趣。"

"Her condition became worse this morning. Jia Jia was not able to walk about without difficulties and spent the day laying down."

"今天早上它的情况变得更糟了。佳佳没有办法无障碍地行走，一整天几乎都是躺在地上。"

Vets took the decision to put the giant panda down to prevent suffering, the park said.

园方表示，为了使佳佳免遭痛苦，兽医们决定对它执行安乐死。

In a statement obtained by BBC Chinese, a Hong Kong government spokesman thanked the park for providing Jia Jia with care and support and added that it was "saddened" by the news.

在BBC中国分社获得的一份声明中，香港政府一名发言人对园方向佳佳所提供的关怀和照顾表示感谢，并且表示说佳佳的死讯让他们"悲痛异常"。

The park in Hong Kong held a high-profile celebration for Jia Jia's 37th birthday at her enclosure in July 2015.

2015年7月，香港海洋公园为佳佳37岁生日举行了一场盛大的庆祝活动。

Born in 1978 in the wild in Sichuan, China, Jia Jia was given to Hong Kong in 1999 to mark the semi-autonomous city's handover by Britain two years earlier.

1978年，佳佳出生于四川野外。后来1999年，中国政府将佳佳赠与香港，纪念回归两周年。

Pandas normally live to around 20 years of age in the wild, and 25 in captivity.

野生大熊猫通常能活20岁，而圈养大熊猫一般可以活25岁。

Source: BBC