A male lesser panda kept at the Chiba Zoological Park has received some offers from several private companies to appear in their television commercials. The two-year-old lesser panda Fuhta often stands upright on his hind legs. It has suddenly attracted people's attention. There has been some domestic and overseas media coverage of him. The private companies seem to be intending to take advantage of this popularity of his. But Chiba Zoological Park officlals have a hard problem to deal with before Fuhta's television commercial debut. The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) bans the transactions of wildlife in danger of extinction, including lesser pandas. This agreement only allows the keeping and propagation of lesser pandas for scientific purposes. Some video recordings of Fuhta taken by Chiba Zoological Park officials could be legally available for commercials. But his keepers say that they still have to discuss many other problems to meet the regulations. Many people and families with little children have been rushing to see Fuhta every day. The number of visitors to the zoological park for this year went over 200,000 on May 22, 18 days earlier than usual. That for the past month has increased by 30 percent from the corresponding period last year. The Chiba Zoological Park officials are considering applying for the registration of the lesser panda's name "Fuhta" as their trademark to prevent someone else from capitalizing on his sudden fame. The following URLs show you several photos of lesser pandas standing upright on their hind legs, including Fuhta, which I took as the subject this time. These lesser pandas are respectively kept at a few different Japanese zoological parks except for one couple. ●photos: Lesser panda Fuhta at the Chiba Zoological Park http://tinyurl.com/9ve3r http://tinyurl.com/8b6k7 ●photo: a swarm of vistors around Fuhta's breeding site http://tinyurl.com/e2sau ●photo: Fuhta's grandfather Ronron http://tinyurl.com/822nh ●photos: Fuhta's relative Momotarou at the Nogeyama Zoological Park in Yokohama City http://tinyurl.com/7d6z8 http://tinyurl.com/d4s8v ●photo: a couple of lesser pandas at in Japan's southernmost main island Kyusyu's Miyazaki City Natural Zoological Park http://tinyurl.com/9ytve [Vocabulary] ・cover REPORT NEWS 8 [vn] to report on an event for television, a newspaper, etc.; to show an event on television: She's covering the party's annual conference. The BBC will cover all the major games of the tournament. ・coverage noun [U] 1 the reporting of news and sport in newspapers and on the radio and television: media / newspaper / press coverage tonight's live coverage of the hockey game There was blanket coverage (= reports everywhere) of the royal divorce. 2 the range or quality of information that is included in a book or course of study, on television, etc: magazines with extensive coverage of diet and health topics The book gives good, general coverage of the subject. 3 the amount of sth that sth provides; the amount or way that sth covers an area: Immunization coverage against fatal diseases has increased to 99% in some countries. 4 (AmE) = cover (3): insurance coverage Medicaid health coverage for low-income families ・the mass media noun [pl.] sources of information and news such as newspapers, magazines, radio and television, that reach and influence large numbers of people: the relationship between politics and the mass media ・available adj. 1 (of things) that you can get, buy or find: available resources / facilities readily / freely / publicly / generally available Tickets are available free of charge from the school. When will the information be made available? Further information is available on request. This was the only room available. We'll send you a copy as soon as it becomes available. Every available doctor was called to the scene. 2 (of a person) free to see or talk to people: Will she be available this afternoon? The director was not available for comment. availability noun [U]: the availability of cheap flights (BrE) This offer is subject to availability. ・still adv. in spite of what has just been said: Although he promised faithfully to come, I still didn't think he would. We searched everywhere but we still couldn't find it. The weather was cold and wet. Still, we had a great time. ・intend verb 1 to have a plan, result or purpose in your mind when you do sth: [v] We finished later than intended. [v to inf] I fully intended (= definitely intended) to pay for the damage. [vn to inf] The writer clearly intends his readers to identify with the main character. [v -ing] (BrE) I don't intend staying long. [vn] The company intends a slow-down in expansion. [vnn] He intended her no harm (= it was not his plan to harm her). [vn that] It is intended that production will start at the end of the month. [also v that] 2 [vn] ~ sth (by sth)| ~ sth (as sth) to plan that sth should have a particular meaning mean: What exactly did you intend by that remark? He intended it as a joke. ・wildlife [uncountable] animals and plants growing in natural conditions: measures to protect the area's wildlife the destruction of wildlife habitats ・ month n. [C] a period of about 30 days, for example, 3 June to 3 July: The baby is three months old. a three-month-old baby They lived in Toronto during their first few months of marriage. several months later a six- month contract a month-long strike He visits Paris once or twice a month. -see also lunar month ［参考ESL辞典］ Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English (LDOCE) Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary (OALD) ［関連リンク］ ◇Official website of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) http://www.cites.org/ ◇ワシントン条約（外務省のオフィシャルページ） 「絶滅のおそれのある野生動植物の種の国際取引に関する条約」 （CITES［サイテス］: Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora） http://www.mofa.go.jp/mofaj/gaiko/kankyo/jyoyaku/wasntn.html |
