Muriel Vasconcellos Nov 15, 2019:

Based on your explanation Maybe 'small local woodland animals' vs. 'large wild animals'

neilmac Nov 15, 2019:

Woodland animals ... gets my vote.

peter jackson (asker) Nov 15, 2019:

update The author has finally got back to me and says the animales silvestres are ardillas, búhos, aves y conejos, being animals which I imagine the children in the study here in Castilla-La Mancha would immediately recognise. I really do think the best option is woodland animals but will still welcome any input. The animales salvajes are leones, tiburones, elefantes, etc. Thanks to you all for your generous help.

Carol Gullidge Nov 15, 2019:

Feral The definition I was referring to is of course 2a and 2b above; semi domesticated is exactly what I meant! This question is about a recognised category of animals and not about certain nasty characteristics of some humans! Thanks Muriel!

Muriel Vasconcellos Nov 15, 2019:

Definition of feral FWIW, this is what Merriam-Webster says:

Main Entry:1fe£ral
Pronunciation:*fir*l, *fer-
Function:adjective
Etymology:Medieval Latin feralis, from Latin fera wild animal (from feminine of ferus wild) + -alis -al

1 a : suggestive of a beast of prey *feral teeth*; specifically : characterized by inhuman ferocity *the feral hostility of his fellow officers as they denounced and judged him— Albert Hubbell* b : being, characteristic of, or suggesting an animal in the state of nature *the human and feral inhabitants of the forest* *as feral in her wariness as the fierce T dogs that stalked the countryside— Ann F. Wolfe* c : lacking a human personality due to being reared in isolation from all or nearly all human contacts : not socialized *feral children who had been adopted by wolves*
2 a : existing in a state of nature : not domesticated or cultivated *feral and semidomestic animals* b : having escaped from domestication and become wild *several species introduced by settlers soon became feral*
synonyms see BRUTAL

Yvonne Gallagher Nov 14, 2019:

@ Carol, Oh, I thought I made it clear I wouldn't use "country animals" at all. In fact, if his English is that bad, I'm wondering now if maybe he wanted to describe "farm animals/livestock" as that is also a step further than "domestic animals".
Fact is that "animales silvestres" can be interpreted in quite a few ways and if you look at Google images a variety of animals, including woodland animals but also elephants and lions, is shown. So I would ask the author exactly what he wants to say here...

Carol Gullidge Nov 14, 2019:

@ Yvonne I see what you’re getting at now (I did wonder...!) but still can’t go along with “country animals”, which is meaningless in EN, whatever the author says. Authors are not usually the best translators, as is evident here. I’m guessing that s/he is not a native EN speaker... meanwhile, for the time being I’m still standing by “feral” as (a) it exists as a translation of silvestre in the trusty Collins (ES=>EN), and (b) it fits in the natural progression of Domestic=>feral=>wild

peter jackson (asker) Nov 14, 2019:

@Muriel I don’t have to go with the author’s translation. He also has “inanimated nature” for the category of “naturaleza inanimada” and I’m obviously going to change that.

Yvonne Gallagher Nov 14, 2019:

@ Muriel Yes, I assumed you'd seen that already. I think "local wildlife" might be a synonym for "country animals" (which I would NOT use), which is why I agreed with Marie//
edited now neutral as not sure

Muriel Vasconcellos Nov 14, 2019:

Foxes and otters I see now that the Asker has found the author's translation. Foxes and otters were only a guess. IMO, he should close the question and use what the author wanted, even though it doesn't make much sense.

Carol Gullidge Nov 14, 2019:

Hmm, to me that just highlights why the author is hiring a translator! I’m afraid “country animals” just doesn’t work in English.

peter jackson (asker) Nov 14, 2019:

Although a Google image search does bring up images of rabbits, foxes, etc.

peter jackson (asker) Nov 14, 2019:

I have just found the author's translation of the terms at the end of the article in an appendix. He has used "country animals" and "wild animals". Not too sure about that ...

Carol Gullidge Nov 14, 2019:

don't forget that there are alternative translations for "silvestre"!

My trusty Collins back-translates "feral" as silvestre or salvaje, and falling halfway between domestic and wild animals, feral fits perfectly