During the pandemic, when residents retreated (撤退) indoors, the capybara began to colonize (佔領) the manicured (精心修剪的) neighborhood of a wealthy gated community (有門禁的社區) of 45,000 people, north of Buenos Aires.

Since 2020, the number of capybaras has multiplied (激增) to nearly 1,000. Walking in the community, you can find capybara families grazing (啃食) near the tennis courts, napping (打盹) on the volleyball courts, traversing (穿越) the streets.

Most residents admitted (承認) the animals are cute, but they also cause traffic accidents (交通意外), ravage (肆虐) gardens, and sometimes have attacked (攻擊) some of the smallest dogs in the community. As a result, some residents view capybaras as dangerous (危險的) and invasive (入侵性的) and even fear (害怕) for their young children.

But some are avid advocates (擁護者) of this seemingly harmless animal. Advocates have protested (抗議) in the street and gathered signatures (簽名) to push for a capybara nature reserve (自然保護區). They argue that the capybara population is only increasing because developers (開發商) destroyed the animals’ wild habitat (棲息地), forcing them out of the forest and into the suburbs.

Thirty years ago, this community was untouched (未受破壞的) wetlands (濕地) where capybaras roamed freely, hunted by their natural predators (掠食者) like pumas and jaguars. But in the late 1990s, one of the richest men in Argentina, Mr. Constantini, began converting this wilderness (荒野) to a gated community with shopping centers and golf courses.

Naturally, the developers don’t appear to be interested in the plea to give capybaras a piece of land for them to once again roam freely. Instead, they turn to sterilization (絕育) as the only solution.

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