英巨兔身长1.3米 成世界最大兔子

This Easter Bunny weighs a whopping three-and-a-half stone and is four foot three inches long - making him the biggest rabbit ever recorded.

And he still has not reached his full size, with owner Annette Edwards, 59, preparing herself for another six months of growth before he hits full size.

Darius gorges himself on hay throughout the day which seems to have helped give him an unusual chilled temperament around other animals and humans.

Ms Edwards, from Worcester, has bred big bunnies before but Darius has been recognised as the largest rabbit ever recorded.

She said: "I only measured him this weekend and that was when I realised he was much bigger than Alice, who is the current record holder.

"He is so gentle and I wonder if this has helped him grow bigger than the rest. He does run around all the time, so I guess the combination of food and exercise has worked out for him.

"He really is a handsome beast though, there's always a bit of a glint in his eye when you go near him."

Darius is the son of current record holder Alice and the grandson of earlier owner of the crown Amy.

Ralph, owned by Pauline Grant, who hit the headlines at the start of the year is his stepbrother but is dwarfed by his half-sibling.

Ms Edwards had recently started auditions to find a man to hold Alice at personal appearances around the globe.

But now the lucky job applicant will have to have a few more muscles to his name as Darius is much heavier than Alice.

Ms Edwards said: "I think it's nice that the record is being kept in the family. The frightening thing is that Darius is still growing so he could be absolutely massive by the time he reaches full size.

"People ask me what my secret is, but there really isn't one other than just treating them well and really looking after them."

A spokesman from Guinness World Records said: "This is the biggest bunny in the world. Darius is bigger than all the previous record holding rabbits. It's unbelievable that a rabbit could grow to over four-foot long."

这只复活节兔子重达3.5英石（49磅），长达4英尺3英寸（1.29米），成为世界上有史以来体积最大的兔子。

目前他还在长，他的主人，59岁的安妮特．爱德华兹称他还需要6个月才能发育成熟。

这只名叫达利斯的兔子整天狂吃干草，这似乎让他在与其他动物和人相处时，总是显现出一种不寻常的“冷酷气质”。

来自伍斯特的爱德华兹女士以前也喂养过几只大兔子，但达利斯被认为是有史以来最大的兔子。

她说：“我这周末才给他量了一下，当时我意识到他比目前的纪录保持者爱丽丝要大得多。

“他非常温顺，我想也许正是这种秉性让他比其他兔子长得大。他总是跑来跑去，所以我觉得食物加锻炼是他长胖的主要原因。

“他很漂亮，在你走近他时，你会看见他的眼睛里闪着光。”

目前世界最大兔子纪录保持者爱丽丝是达利斯的母亲，先前的纪录保持者艾米是他的祖母。

保林．格兰特养育的兔子拉尔夫今年年初曾登上新闻头条，他是达利斯的继兄弟，但现在已被达利斯给比了下去。

爱德华兹已于近日开始举行面试，希望找一位能抱着爱丽丝作全球形象展示的男士。

但现在这位应聘者的力气必须要更大一些，因为达利斯比爱丽丝要重得多。

爱德华兹说：“这一纪录能在这个家族中保持下去是一件好事。可怕的是达利斯还在长，所以在他完全发育成熟时绝对是只巨兔。

“人们问我有什么秘诀，其实就是好好喂养他们，悉心照料他们，没有什么特别的。”

《吉尼斯世界纪录大全》的一名发言人说：“达利斯是目前世界上最大的兔子。达利斯的体积比之前所有的纪录保持者都要大。一只兔子居然能够长到四英尺多，真是不可思议。”

Vocabulary:

whopping: very big 巨大的；很大的

gorge: to eat a lot of something, until you are too full to eat any more 贪婪地吃；狼吞虎咽