传奇鳄鱼的传奇一生

张世会

備受国际关注的钝吻鳄“土星”在莫斯科动物园去世，“享年”84岁。

[难词探意]

1. alligator /??l?ɡe?t?（r）/ n. 钝吻鳄

2. intrigue /?n?tri?ɡ/ n. 密谋策划;阴谋

3. custody /?k?st?di/ n. 保管;监护;监护权

4. menagerie /m??n?d??ri/ n. （一群）野生动物  5. absolve /?b?z?lv/ v. 宣告……无罪;赦免……的罪

Saturn， an alligator of international intrigue， age 84， died at the Moscow Zoo. That in itself made Saturn unusual. In the wild， the normal life span for an alligator is 30 to 50 years. But longevity was the least unusual aspect of Saturns biography.

Saturn was born in the wild somewhere in Mississippi in 1936 and was shipped to the Berlin Zoo from which he disappeared on November 23， 1943 in an allied air bombing campaign on Berlin. One bomb directly struck the zoos aquarium. Of the 16，000 animals once kept in the Berlin Zoo， it is estimated that fewer than 100 survived the war. Saturn was one of them.

When he was blasted into freedom in 1943， Saturn was 7 years old. In June 1946， an almost mature Saturn was discovered and captured by British occupation forces. Custody of the alligator was transferred to the allied Soviet troops in post?WWⅡ Berlin who then sent him on to Moscow where he would live in the next 74 years.

It was in Moscow that the intriguing rumor started that Saturn was a part of a pet menagerie that belonged to Adolf Hitler. This undocumented episode with Hitler gave the 11.5?foot alligator a celebrity status even though zoo officials absolved him of any political responsibility.

“Even if， purely theoretically， he belonged to someone，” the zoos announcement of Saturns death asserts， “animals are not involved in war and politics， and it is absurd to blame them for human sins.”

Far from blaming the alligator， officials at the Moscow Zoo treated him as an honored guest. “We tried to take care of the alligator with the utmost care and attention. He was picky about food.” Even among his keepers， he knew who he liked. He perfectly remembered the trusted keeper.

If a zoo animal can be a historical figure， officials say this one qualifies.

“Saturn is a whole era for us. There is not the slightest exaggeration，” the announcement of his death declared. “He came after the Victory in WWⅡ—and met its 75th anniversary. It is a great happiness that each of us could look into his eyes， just quietly being near. He saw many of us as children. We hope that we did not disappoint him.”

Death may not end Saturns public career. It has been reported that his carcass will be preserved and placed on exhibition at Moscows Charles Darwin Museum of Biology.