Hundreds of hours of survey footage has revealed a rare mammal in the south-west of Rio Grande do Sul state in Brazil. Wildlife camera traps have recorded footage of a giant anteater(食蚁兽) wandering through scrubland in Espinilho State Park in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. It is the first time since the 1890s that this large mammal has been seen in the southwest of the state. Experts think the anteater came from Ibera National Park in Argentina, where a major re wilding project has been underway since 2007.

The anteater was spotted by Brazilian biologist Fabio Mazim as he was reviewing hundreds of hours of footage for a wild if e survey. “The animal seems to be in very good condition and established in the area,” says Mazim. “At the moment it is impossible for us to determine whether it is male or female, one or even several different individuals.”

According to WWF Brazil, the species was once present in all Brazilian states. It is now threatened with extinction in all regions of the country and has been lost from some states entirely. The main causes of the population decline are the damage and loss of occupied zone, hunting, road accidents and forest fires.

Giant anteaters were first l reintroduced to I bera National Park in 2007 by Rewilding Argentina. Since the start of the project, 110 anteaters orphaned by road accidents or illegal hunting have been released, and several generations now live in Ibera Wetlands. The discovery in Rio Grande do Sul state, along with additional sightings over a 100 km range, suggests that Ibera’s giant anteaters are colonizing other regions.

For the next stage of the project, researchers will try to find out if there are more individuals in the area, and determine what their favoured habitat(栖息地) is. “We intend to seize the individual sighted in Espinilho State Park, collect biological samples (样本) for genetic analysis, and compare them with the populations that exist elsewhere in Brazil.” says Flavia Miranda, a biologist who has been studying the species for 25 years.

【小题1】How was the giant anteater discovered?

A．Through cooperation with WWF Brazil.

B．Through a wild adventure in Espinilho State Park.

C．By catching the animal for a bioresearch.

D．By examining picture recording for a wildlife survey.

【小题2】What are the reasons for the decrease of the anteater population?

A．Lack of genetic variety.

B．Loss of living areas and natural disasters.

C．Climate change and natural destruction.

D．Competition for resources with other species.

【小题3】What motivated there appearance of the anteater in this region?

A．A major rewilding project by Re wilding Argentina.

B．The establishment of a protected area for anteaters

C．A reproductive program focused on prisoned anteaters

D．An anti-hunting campaign sponsored by WWF Brazil.

【小题4】What is the future plan of the research?

A．Releasing the giant anteater back into the wild after a health check.

B．Shifting the giant anteater to Ibera National Park for further studies.

C．Trapping the giant anteater to compare genetic samples with other populations in Brazil.

D．Observing the giant anteater from a distance to understand its behavior better.