VOA文化艺术2024--Baby Hippo in Thailand Gets Official Song for Worldwide Fans

A baby hippopotamus¹ in Thailand became famous earlier this year when zoo workers published images and videos of her online. Now the pygmy hippo, named Moo Deng, has an official song and video released in several languages for her fans worldwide.

Moo Deng lives at Khao Kheow Open Zoo, southeast of the Thai capital, Bangkok. Zoo worker Atthapon Nundee has been posting sweet moments of the animal's life for the past few months.

During that time, the hippo has received widespread attention on social media. Fans of the animal have expressed how they enjoy watching the pink-cheeked baby actively² interact with her mother and other zoo workers.

Moo Deng - which means "bouncy pork" in Thai - is a kind of meatball. The name, chosen by fans on social media, is similar to those of her two siblings⁴: Moo Toon (stewed pork) and Moo Waan (sweet pork). In addition, the zoo has a common hippo named Kha Moo (stewed pork leg).

Moo Deng's popularity has spread internationally and she has gained the attention of some professional sports teams. Fans say her name fits her lively personality. Moo Deng likes to "deng," or bounce, and her bouncing behavior has led to countless⁵ internet memes.

For example, the German soccer team FC Bayern, American basketball team Phoenix⁶ Suns and the American football team Washington Commanders have all created Moo Deng memes. The images give her interesting things to wear and put her in different human-like situations.

Atthapon, the zoo worker, told The Associated Press he was surprised the newborn pygmy hippo quickly became such a huge internet star. "I wanted people to know her," he explained. "I wanted a lot of people to visit her, or watch her online, or leave fun comments. I never would've thought (of this)," he added.

The widespread publicity⁷ led a well-known Thai composer to write and produce a special song for Moo Deng. The lively, 50-second song is called, naturally, Moodeng. One of Thailand's biggest recording⁸ companies, GMM Music, released the song.

A music video that goes along with the song shows the baby hippo bouncing around, playing with her keeper or spending time with her mother, Jona.

Moo Deng is now four months old. She has also been drawing big crowds at the zoo. Officials estimated the baby hippo has brought in about 3,000 to 5,000 visitors a day on average during the past few months. The zoo has been selling clothes, bedding and other products based on Moo Deng.

The zoo's director is Narongwit Chodchoi. He told the AP that the additional earnings⁹ from Moo Deng will help the zoo's breeding programs for many endangered animals, like the pygmy hippopotamus. Illegal hunting and loss of habitat threatens the animal's existence. Pygmy hippos are native to West Africa. But experts say there are only 2,000-3,000 of them left in the wild.

All four versions of the Moo Deng song are available on YouTube and on streaming services including Spotify and Apple Music.

Words in This Story

bounce - v. to move up or away after hitting a surface

sibling³ - n. a brother or sister

personality - n. a set of emotional qualities that makes a person different from other people

meme - n. an idea, image, video, etc. that spreads very quickly on the internet

breed - v. reproduce

habitat - n. the natural environment an animal or plant usually lives in

1 hippopotamus   

n.河马

参考例句：

• The children enjoyed watching the hippopotamus wallowing in the mud.孩子们真喜观看河马在泥中打滚。
• A hippopotamus surfs the waves off the coast of Gabon.一头河马在加蓬的海岸附近冲浪。

2 actively   

adv.积极地，勤奋地

参考例句：

• During this period all the students were actively participating.在这节课中所有的学生都积极参加。
• We are actively intervening to settle a quarrel.我们正在积极调解争执。

3 sibling   

n.同胞手足(指兄、弟、姐或妹)

参考例句：

• Many of us hate living in the shadows of a more successful sibling.我们很多人都讨厌活在更为成功的手足的阴影下。
• Sibling ravalry has been common in this family.这个家里，兄弟姊妹之间的矛盾很平常。

4 siblings   

n.兄弟，姐妹( sibling的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• A triplet sleeps amongst its two siblings. 一个三胞胎睡在其两个同胞之间。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• She has no way of tracking the donor or her half-siblings down. 她没办法找到那个捐精者或她的兄弟姐妹。 来自时文部分

5 countless   

adj.无数的，多得不计其数的

参考例句：

• In the war countless innocent people lost their lives.在这场战争中无数无辜的人丧失了性命。
• I've told you countless times.我已经告诉你无数遍了。

6 phoenix   

n.凤凰，长生(不死)鸟；引申为重生

参考例句：

• The airline rose like a phoenix from the ashes.这家航空公司又起死回生了。
• The phoenix worship of China is fetish worship not totem adoration.中国凤崇拜是灵物崇拜而非图腾崇拜。

7 publicity   

n.众所周知，闻名；宣传，广告

参考例句：

• The singer star's marriage got a lot of publicity.这位歌星的婚事引起了公众的关注。
• He dismissed the event as just a publicity gimmick.他不理会这件事，只当它是一种宣传手法。

8 recording   

n.录音，记录

参考例句：

• How long will the recording of the song take?录下这首歌得花多少时间？
• I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。

9 earnings   

n.工资收人；利润，利益，所得

参考例句：

• That old man lives on the earnings of his daughter.那个老人靠他女儿的收入维持生活。
• Last year there was a 20% decrease in his earnings.去年他的收入减少了20%。