The pileated woodpecker (红冠黑啄木鸟) is one of the     1     (large) woodpecker species in North America and its look is unmistakable-a large black bird with white on each side of its neck and a red crest on its head. When it flies, white flashes are visible under its     2     (wing).

The sound of the pileated woodpeckers’ hammering (捶打声)     3     (carry) a long distance   through the woods     4     they live. They hammer to attract mates and establish the boundaries of their territory to warn other males away.

They use their beaks to peck and dig under bark to find carpenter ants and other insects and will often dig large holes in trees     5     (find) their meals. Some holes are so big that they     6     (weak) small and young trees. The birds also strip (剥去) pieces of bark from trees to look for food. Generally, however, pileated woodpeckers help keep a forest healthy     7     eating wood-boring insects.

A nesting pair of pileated woodpeckers     8     (usual) makes a nesting hole in a large and older tree. During the day, both parents take turns incubating (孵化) or     9     (sit) on the eggs to keep them warm. At night, only the male incubates the eggs. The pileated woodpeckers generally lay four eggs at     10     time, which take about two weeks to hatch.

On the west bank of the Mississippi, there is an unusual house with a white fence, preserved (保存)     1    a museum in memory of its former owner — Mark Twain. It is said that many of the     2     (character) and stories from his novels     3     (base) on real-life experiences that he had there as a boy. Mark Twain’s family moved to this house in Hannibal, Missouri when he was 8 years old. However, the family was so poor that they had to move out of the house for a while,    4     (live) above a local drug-store in exchange for his mother’s     5     (serve) as a cook. They managed     6     (move) back long after his father’s death, in 1847. Ten years     7     (late) at the age of 22, Mark Twain started to work as a journalist on a riverboat,    8    he wrote many famous books. These books include The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,    9    anti-racist story that wins its readers’ heart but is     10     (fierce) criticized for using racial terms.

This novel was about an unbelievable but genuine adventure. Its author was a black businessman who     1    (bring) up in America. In 1956, he visited his birthplace,Africa. He lost his money and passport,so he went to the embassy to seek help. But the ambassador     2     rude manners didn’t permit.     3    (stare) at his impatient face, he understood it was the fault of his skin color.