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African elephants are Earth's largest land animals. They are very intelligent and highly social.
非洲象是地球上最大的陆地动物。它们非常聪明，社交能力很强。
A recent study also says that numbers of African elephants sharply decreased over about fifty years.
最近的一项研究还表明，非洲象的数量在大约50年的时间里急剧减少。
The researchers described their work as the most comprehensive study of the two African elephant species - the savanna elephant and forest elephant.
研究人员称他们的工作是对两个非洲大象物种--草原象和森林象--最全面的研究。
The study used data gathered at 475 areas in 37 countries from 1964 through 2016.
这项研究使用了从1964年到2016年在37个国家的475个地区收集的数据。
It found that savanna elephant populations fell by about 70 percent on average and forest elephant populations dropped by about 90 percent on average.
研究发现，草原象的数量平均下降了约70%，森林象的数量平均下降了约90%。
The researchers mainly blame the decline on illegal hunting and the loss of the animals’ natural environment.
研究人员主要将这种下降归咎于非法狩猎和象群自然环境的丧失。
However, the report also says populations of each species increased in other places because of wildlife protection programs.
然而，报告还说，由于野生动物保护计划，每个物种在其他地方的种群数量都有所增加。
"A lot of the lost populations won't come back, and many low-density populations face continued pressures. We likely will lose more populations going forward,” said George Wittemyer.
“很多失去的种群不会再回来，许多低密度的种群面临着持续的压力。我们可能会失去更多的象群，”乔治·维特梅尔说。
He is a Colorado State University professor who works with the conservation group Save the Elephants.
他是科罗拉多州立大学的教授，与保护组织“拯救大象”合作。
Wittemyer helped lead the study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
维特梅尔帮助领导了这项研究，该研究发表在《美国国家科学院院刊》上。
Illegal hunting of animals is also called poaching.
非法猎杀动物也被称为偷猎。
Elephant poachers usually kill the animals in order to remove their tusks.
大象偷猎者通常会杀死这些动物，以便拿走它们的象牙。
These prized objects are then sold on illegal markets, driven mostly by demand in China and other parts of Asia.
然后，这些珍贵的物品会在非法市场上出售，主要是受到中国和亚洲其他地区需求的推动。
The research says agricultural expansion is mainly responsible for the loss of elephant habitat, meaning the natural areas where the animal lives.
研究称，农业扩张是大象栖息地丧失的主要原因，大象栖息地指的是大象生活的自然区域。
Poaching has mostly affected forest elephants. Its population is estimated to be about one-third that of savanna elephants.
偷猎主要影响的是森林大象。据估计，它的数量约为草原象的三分之一。
Poaching has been especially damaged populations in northern and eastern Africa, such as Mali, Chad and Nigeria.
偷猎对马里、乍得和尼日利亚等非洲北部和东部的象群造成的损害尤其严重。
But, in southern Africa, elephant populations rose at 42 percent of the studied areas.
但是，在非洲南部，有42%的研究地区的大象数量上升了。
"We have seen real success in a number of places across Africa, but particularly in southern Africa, with strong growth in populations in Botswana, Zimbabwe and Namibia,” Wittemyer said.
维特梅尔说：“我们在非洲许多地方看到了巨大的成功，特别是在非洲南部，博茨瓦纳、津巴布韦和纳米比亚的象群增长了很多。”
He credited conservation efforts by governments and independent organizations for the growth.
他将象群数量的增长归功于政府和独立组织的保护努力。
The study did not provide a continent-wide population count.
这项研究没有提供整个大陆的象群统计。
It says the different methods used for counting over different periods made it impossible to keep a unified count of the African elephants.
它说，不同时期使用的是不同的统计方法，所以对非洲大象进行统一统计是不可能的。
Instead, it estimates population trends in each of the studied areas.
相反，它估计了每个研究地区的象群趋势。
A separate report from conservationists places the population of African elephants at between 415,000 and 540,000 as of 2016, the last year of the study period.
环保人士发布的另一份报告称，截至2016年，也就是研究期间的最后一年，非洲象的数量在41.5万头到54万头之间。
It remains the most recent comprehensive continent-wide estimate.
这仍然是全大陆范围内最新的全面估计。
Colorado State’s Wittemyer said, "While the trends are not good, it is important to recognize the successes we have had and continue to have.
科罗拉多州立大学的维特梅尔说：“虽然趋势不是很好，但重要的是要认识到我们已经取得的成功，并且未来会继续取得成功。
Learning how and where we can be successful in conserving elephants is as important as recognizing the severity of the decline they have experienced."
了解我们如何以及在哪里能够成功地保护大象，与认识到它们所经历的数量骤减一样重要。”
I’m Caty Weaver.
我是凯蒂·韦弗。
