圣诞老人style 俄罗斯用驯鹿当警车

Heavy snowfall and chilling temperatures of -30°C do not deter criminals in northern Russia.

即使是漫天大雪和零下三十度的极寒天气也挡不住俄罗斯北部地区的罪犯们。

Now police trying to maintain law in the region are struggling on their snowmobiles and want to use reindeer to combat crime on the bleak tundra.

当地警方觉得，在这片荒凉的苔原上，比起雪地摩托，使用驯鹿更有利于打击罪犯和维护法律。

They say that that mammals are more reliable than their machines and can run fast on deep snow thanks to their adaptablehooves.

他们表示，驯鹿比雪地摩托更可靠，因为驯鹿有天生粗大肥厚的蹄子，能让它们在积雪较深的地区奔跑速度也非常快。

Some areas of the country’s Arctic region are only accessible by reindeer and the Izvestia newspaper has reported that a gang of Siberia’s indigenous people are using reindeer to make a speedy getaway from crime scenes, leaving police on snowmobiles in their wake.

俄罗斯地处北极圈的某些地区只能靠驯鹿才能到达，据报道，西伯利亚当地的一伙犯罪分子依靠驯鹿快速出入犯罪现场，并把驾驶雪地摩托的警察甩在后面。

Russian police chasing the criminals told the newspaper that their snowmobiles can break down and run out of gas – unlike reindeer.

追捕当地罪犯的俄罗斯警方表示，他们驾驶的雪地摩托有时候会故障抛锚，有时候会耗尽燃料，可驯鹿就不存在这些问题。

Irina Pimkina from the region’s Interior said: ‘Of course we have snowmobiles in service, but one should understand that a machine is a machine.’

警方表示：“虽然雪地摩托能够使用，但机器毕竟只是机器。”

‘A snowmobile can break down or get stuck in the tundra, but the deer will run at all times.’

“雪地摩托有时候会抛锚有时候会遇到开不过去的地形，可驯鹿什么地形都能应付，可以一刻不停地奔跑。”

The force believes that the animals will give them an edge in policing the remote area and they have been asking for reindeer recruits for two years.

警方相信如果有了驯鹿的帮助，他们就有了在偏远地区执法的能力，他们提出驯鹿服役警队的申请已经有两年的时间了。

Reindeer’s hooves are unique because they adapt to seasonal weather conditions, Mother Nature Network reported.

驯鹿的蹄子可以说非常独特，可以适应不同季节的天气条件。

When ground is soft in the summer, the bottoms of the animal’s hooves act like sponges to provide traction, while the rim of the hoof becomes exposed in the winter.

夏天苔原地面很柔软，这时候软软的蹄子底部就像海绵一样提供牵引力，到了冬天，蹄子的边缘就会露出来。

This means that they can cut into ice and snow to stop them from slipping. They even use them to dig down through hard snow so they can find their favourite food – a lichen known as reindeer moss.

这让驯鹿可以踩进冰雪，不会溜滑。此外，驯鹿还会用蹄子在雪中挖掘他们最喜欢吃的食物--驯鹿苔。

The vision of reindeer may also outperform a snowmobile’s lights, because the animals can see ultraviolet light.

除此之外，驯鹿的视力也远远超过雪地摩托的灯光，因为驯鹿能够看到紫外光。

Snow reflects up to 90 per cent of UV light and this ability helps the animals to see clearly in dim lighting and landscapes that are largely white, where may objects blend unto the landscape.

由于雪地会反射90%的紫外光，即便在昏暗的照明条件下，只要地面上白色部分较多，驯鹿就能看得一清二楚。

Things like fur and urine, for example, show up clearly in ultraviolet light, compared to what humans see.

毛发和尿液等物体在紫外光照射下比人用眼睛直接看更加显眼。

A study by University College London (UCL) revealed in 2011 that reindeer can see light with wavelengths as short as 320 nanometres (nm), considerably below the human threshold of 400 nm.

伦敦大学学院在2011年的一项研究中发现驯鹿眼睛能感知到波长最短为320纳米的电磁波，这大大小于人类所能感知到的最短波长400纳米。

Researchers from the University of Tromsø discovered that the eyes of reindeer change colour according to the seasons too.

另有研究发现驯鹿的眼睛颜色会随着季节的改变而改变。

While it may seem funny that policemen could use reindeer like a police car, the country’s navy already uses animals to enforce rules.

虽然用驯鹿当警车听上去挺搞笑，可俄罗斯的海军早就开始使用动物作为执法交通工具了。

The Russian Defence Ministry uses donkeys patrol the country’s mountain ranges, while the Navy employed the help of dolphins to enable them to detect underwater mines.

俄罗斯国防部为俄罗斯山区的巡逻兵配备了驴子，而海军则是在海豚的帮助下探测水雷。