Wild Horses

Wild Horses. Written by Julie Miller.

《野马》，作者：朱莉·米勒

Introduction. Long ago, huge herds of horses ran across the plains of the American West. There may have been millions, so many that early maps simply named the area Wild Horses.

引言：很久以前，大群大群的马驰骋在美国西部的平原上。 它们的数量可能有上百万之多，早期的地图甚至直接把这片区域命名为“野马区”。

Thousands of horses still run free. They roam the West in herds, usually far from people. These wild horses are called mustangs.

现在仍有成千上万的野马自由驰骋。 它们成群游荡在西部，通常离人类的居住地很远。 这些野马叫做美洲野马。

Where did wild horses come from? When Spanish explorers crossed the Atlantic Ocean 500 years ago, they brought their horses. Over time, the Spanish left behind some horses. Other horses ran off. The horses learned to live free as wild animals across the American plains.

野马是从哪里来的呢？ 500年前，西班牙探险家横渡大西洋的时候，带来了他们饲养的马。 久而久之，西班牙人留下了一些马。 还有一些马自己跑走了。 这些马慢慢学会了像野生动物一样自由生活，栖息在美洲的整片平原上。

Over time, Native Americans tamed some of the wild horses. So did cowboys, who used horses to move large herds of cattle across the land. Other settlers used horses to help with the hard work of making new homes in the West. Once again, many of these tamed horses ran off. Others were left behind when people no longer needed them. Again, they joined herds in the wild.

后来，美洲原住民驯服了一部分野马。 牛仔们也会驯服野马，用马来驱赶大群的牛横穿陆地。 其他定居者也用马来帮忙干在西部安家的重活。 而这些被驯服的马里，又有很多跑走了。 还有一些是人们不再需要之后被遗弃的。 它们再一次加入了野生的马群。

Life of a Wild Horse. Wild horses live in herds or bands. An adult male horse, called a stallion, leads each herd. The stallion is the mate of several female horses or mares who stay with the herd.

野马的生活 野马以群体或者说族群为单位生活。 每个马群由一匹成年公马领头，这种公马叫做种马。 种马是好几匹母马的配偶，这些母马都一直待在族群里。