此外，麋鹿名称不再使用外文Père David's Deer，改为中文拼音Milu。回“家”40年后，麋鹿在西方改回中国名。
From a founding herd of 64 to a thriving population exceeding 4,500, the Shishou Milu National Nature Reserve has authored a globally acclaimed conservation success story over the past four decades. This milestone was highlighted during an event commemorating the 40th anniversary of the Milu's return to China at the Swan Islet National Nature Reserves in Shishou, Hubei province.
In a symbolic shift aligning with their homecoming, the species' English name is now officially the Chinese transliteration "Milu", replacing the former "Père David's Deer".
11月27日清晨，石首天鹅洲长江故道，麋鹿和雁群和谐共处。
麋鹿又被称为“四不像”，中国特有的物种，清末国内灭绝后，仅少量个体被运往欧洲圈养。
Known in Chinese as "sibuxiang" (literally "four unlikes") for its unique composite features, the Milu is a species endemic to China. It became extinct domestically in the late Qing Dynasty, with only a handful of individuals transported to Europe for captivity.
北京麋鹿生态实验中心研究员孟庆辉介绍，殷商甲骨文中就有“麋”字，麋鹿在《孟子》《礼记》《本草纲目》等典籍中均有记载。1865年，法国动植物学家阿尔芒·大卫（Armand David）首次向西方科学界描述中国麋鹿，后被确认为新物种，并给它取名“Père David's Deer”，简译为“大卫鹿”。
十九世纪末二十世纪初，麋鹿被外国人运到欧洲动物园，中国本土麋鹿灭绝。英国十一世贝福特公爵将巴黎、柏林等地动物园里仅存的18只麋鹿买下，养于伦敦乌邦寺庄园。1985年，中国与英国签订麋鹿重引进协议，22头麋鹿重归故里。后来石首麋鹿保护区成立，从北京引进64头麋鹿。1991年，湖北省政府批准建立石首天鹅洲湿地麋鹿自然保护区。1993年至1994年，64头麋鹿先后从北京来到湖北。
According to Meng Qinghui, a researcher from the Beijing Milu Ecological Research Center, references to "Milu" have been found on oracle bone inscriptions from the Shang Dynasty. The animal is also documented in ancient texts like Mencius, Book of Rites, and Compendium of Materia Medica. In 1865, French missionary and naturalist Armand David first introduced the Milu to Western science. Later confirmed as a new species, it was named "Père David's Deer".
By the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with the species extinct in China, the 11th Duke of Bedford purchased the last 18 surviving deer from European zoos and housed them at his Woburn Abbey estate in England. A reintroduction agreement between China and the UK in 1985 paved the way for 22 Milu to return to their native lands. Subsequently, the Shishou reserve was established, introducing 64 deer from Beijing between 1993 and 1994.
石首麋鹿国家级自然保护区历经几十年的培育，已从最初引进的64头麋鹿，发展至4500余头，其中野外扩散种群达1600余头，形成全球最具规模与活力的野生麋鹿种群。
目前，保护区核心种群达2901头，野外种群已扩散至湖北、湖南两省十余县市区，形成石首三合垸、杨波坦、监利兔儿洲及湖南洞庭湖4个自然种群。
After decades of dedicated cultivation, the Shishou reserve's population has soared to over 4,500 individual deer. This includes a wild population of about 1,600, forming the world's largest and most viable wild Milu herd.
The current core population within the reserve stands at 2,901. Wild herds have now been seen across more than 10 counties in Hubei and Hunan provinces.
11月26日，两只公麋鹿在天鹅洲故道里休憩，它们背后的水面停满了前来越冬的小天鹅。
石首麋鹿国家级自然保护区书记杨国祥介绍，当地腾退2.3万亩土地，为麋鹿提供接近自然野生栖息环境。英国肯特大学教授John Mackinnon两次到访石首保护区看到麋鹿野性恢复良好，大为赞赏。交谈中，他均采用“Milu”称谓。
11月26日，石首麋鹿国家级自然保护区，一群小天鹅从麋鹿群旁飞过。随着保护区生态环境日益向好，越来越多的珍稀鸟类来保护区越冬。
孟庆辉说，一名中国麋鹿研究员曾在论文中采用“Milu”投给国外期刊，审稿过程中对方提出“看不懂Milu意思”。这名研究员解释后，对方欣然接受并回信：“为保持学术延续性，请下次也用‘Milu’。”
来源：人民日报 湖北日报
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