1 . Millions of migratory(迁徙的)birds occupy seasonally favorable breeding(繁殖)grounds in the Arctic, but scientists know little about the formation, maintenance and future of the migration routes of Arctic birds and the genetic determinants of migratory distance. In a new study, a multinational team of researchers under the leadership of Dr. ZHAN Xiangjiang from the Institute of Zoology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences integrated two state-of-the-art techniques-satellite tracking and whole genome sequencing(基因排序)-and established a continental-scale migration system of peregrine falcons in Eurasian Arctic.
The researchers tracked 56 peregrine falcons from six Eurasian Arctic breeding populations and sequenced 35 genomes from four of these populations to study the migration of this species. They found that the birds used five migration routes across Eurasia, probably established between the last Ice Age 22, 000 years ago and the middle-Holocene 6, 000 years ago. “Peregrine falcons initiated their autumn migration mainly in September, and arrived at their wintering areas mainly in October, " said Professor Mike Bruford, an ecologist at Cardiff University. “Peregrine falcons that depart from different breeding grounds use different routes, and winter at widely distributed sites across four distinct regions. Individual birds that were tracked for more than one year exhibited strong path repeatability during migration, complete loyalty to wintering locations and limited breeding dispersal(扩散). ”
The researchers quantified the migration strategies and found that migration distance is the most significant differentiation. They used whole genome sequencing and found a gene-ADCY8, which is known to be involved in long-term memory in other animals in previous research- associated with differences in migratory distance. They found ADCY8 had a variant at high frequency in long-distance migrant populations of peregrine falcons, indicating this variant is being favorably selected because it may increase powers of long-term memory thought to be essential for long-distance migration.
“Previous studies have identified several candidate genomic regions that may regulate migration-but our work is the strongest demonstration of a specific gene associated with migratory behavior yet identified, ”Professor Bruford said. The researchers further looked at models of likely future migration behavior to predict the impact of global warming. If the climate warms at the same rate as it has in recent decades, they predict peregrine populations in western Eurasia have the highest probability of population decline and may stop migrating altogether.
“Our work is the first to begin to understand the way ecological factors may interact in migratory birds, ” said Dr. ZHAN Xiangjiang. “We hope it will serve as a cornerstone to help conserve migratory species in the world. ”
1. What can we learn from the first two paragraphs?| A．Five birds’ historical migration routes were rebuilt. |
| B．Peregrine falcons stick to the areas where they winter. |
| C．Two novel research methods of migration were invented. |
| D．Peregrine falcons leave for Arctic regions in September. |
| A．It is a newly-discovered gene in the new study. |
| B．It serves as a fundamental part of long-distance migration. |
| C．It could be strengthened by the power of long-term memory. |
| D．It turned out to be more favored by birds than the other animals. |
| A．It has discovered a new genomic region of birds. |
| B．It has predicted the rate at which the climate warms. |
| C．It analyses the reasons for the decrease of peregrine falcons. |
| D．It encourages attention to environmental effects on migratory birds. |
| A．Researchers Help Conserve Migratory Species |
| B．Biologists Find Evidence of Migration Gene in Birds |
| C．How Long-term Memory Helps Long-distance Migration |
| D．How Ecological Factors Affect Birds’ Migratory Distances |
Bird Song
“Let it go!” Caroline yelled. Two boys were bending over a bird, as a third one held the poor creature roughly by its wings. “You’ll hurt it.” Caroline looked fearful for the bird.
“That’s the point.” The boys laughed. The tallest stood up and glared at Caroline. “Here, catch this!” He said as he sailed the now broken-winged bird at Caroline. The poor creature cried in pain, as its wings had been badly damaged. The boys ran off, laughing at their handy work.
Caroline bent down to carefully pick up the bird. The poor feathered soul was wriggling (扭动) about, with a fearful look in its eyes. “Don’t worry,” Caroline whispered softly. She took a handkerchief from her pocket and gently placed the bird on it.
Caroline walked as quickly as she could back to her house, careful not to shake the bird around too much. She found a shoe box, filled it with soft cotton balls and then laid the bird down in its new resting place.
“Let me get you some water and food. That’s the least I can do.” She took a tiny saucer from the kitchen, filled it with water, and placed it in a corner of the box. She managed to find some sunflower seeds, as that was the only bird-friendly food she could think of. Caroline was worried. She didn’t want the bird to die. The poor bird was now fast asleep, no doubt tired out from its earlier suffering. “Please don’t die.” Caroline whispered tearfully.
If there was anyone whom she could turn to, it would be Mr. Roberts. Mr. Roberts was working at the nature museum. He had bird feeders throughout his yard, and sometimes would drop in her science class at school. Caroline never knew there was so much information about birds, until hearing him speak. She figured he would know what to do.
注意：
1. 续写词数应为150词左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Caroline called Mr. Roberts and hurriedly told him her tale.
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In the morning, the Blackwell Bird Rescue Society called, informing a car would come to pick up the bird at 10 am.
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3 . You never know when your life is about to change forever. It can happen any day, at any moment, and for some people, that
When I was 13, I climbed my first mountain — a fairly gentle 3,900-foot peak near where I live in Surrey, British Columbia. I loved the challenge of
I often go climbing with my friend Mel Olsen.Two years ago, on December 30, when I was 16, she and I drove to Oregon to
The trails we
The doctors told me it would be a year before I could climb again, but I was back on the
| A．awesome | B．fundamental | C．life-changing | D．influential |
| A．conquering | B．slicing | C．motivating | D．purchasing |
| A．proceed | B．tackle | C．trace | D．dominate |
| A．guaranteeing | B．declining | C．absorbing | D．melting |
| A．push | B．access | C．consequence | D．response |
| A．recommended | B．scheduled | C．followed | D．arranged |
| A．claimed | B．volunteered | C．admitted | D．confirmed |
| A．pack | B．hope | C．mind | D．weight |
| A．Desperately | B．Precisely | C．Apparently | D．Suddenly |
| A．tripped | B．broke | C．revealed | D．lowered |
| A．even though | B．as if | C．in spite of | D．regardless of |
| A．exposed | B．grasped | C．stuck | D．showed |
| A．survey | B．breath | C．expectation | D．rest |
| A．destination | B．trails | C．performance | D．innovation |
| A．energetic | B．ambitious | C．adventurous | D．careful |
4 . We were at the top of the mountain when the call came through on the radio.
I was in the Altai Mountains with Biosphere Expeditions(生物圈考察队) as a member of the first team to take part in a survey of snow leopards(雪豹) in this part of the world.
Getting to the base camp had been an expedition in itself. It was getting dark as we arrived. After a very welcome night’s sleep we were up early for a couple of days training on how to fill in the datasheets, identify tracks and prints and what to do with useful animal droppings amongst other things.
The next day four of us set off up one of the mountains to do our first surveying with our guide Oleg. We spent most of the morning climbing the endlessly steep mountain with little communication from Oleg who only became active when we stopped to take on water. By early afternoon we reached what appeared to be the top but was another ridge(山脊). My 47-year-old bones were shaking and I was struggling to breathe. We hadn’t seen a thing except for rocky mountains. Our guide was keeping going but we had very little idea about what we were supposed to be doing. Energy was dropping rapidly.
Then everything changed. The radio came to life. Hardly able to speak through excitement, one of the other groups told us that they had just discovered fresh snow leopard tracks!
On arrival, we found the other group silently looking a gulf(溪谷). A set of very clear paw prints ran from top to bottom. I was filled with a feeling of complete exhilaration. One of the rarest big cats in the world had passed through where I was standing! They were here and what we were going to do would help them survive.
All the suffering of the past days fell away. The long walk back to the base camp that night seemed to go by in seconds.
1. Why did the author make his expedition in the Altai Mountains?| A．To become a member of Biosphere Expeditions. |
| B．To enjoy the mountainous scenery. |
| C．To measure the height of the mountains. |
| D．To carry out the research on snow leopards. |
| A．He visited the camp with his partners. | B．He got up late after some extra rest. |
| C．He received some basic training. | D．He organized a welcome party. |
| A．Climbing the endlessly rocky mountains at his age. |
| B．Having good communication with his guide. |
| C．Finding the right way to the mountain top. |
| D．Searching for clean drinking water. |
| A．Freedom. | B．Excitement. | C．Peace. | D．Loss. |
On a hot September afternoon, Peter and his friend Isabel were on their way to the library. When they passed by Tubman park, Isabel suggested cutting through it to get to the library. As they entered the park, the sight of the swings (秋千) and the merry-go-round brought back a flood of memories of their childhood spent there. But now everything looked so old, sad, and dirty. Litter lay on the ground next to an overflowing trash bin. There were still young schoolchildren playing there but they had to avoid the trash that littered the playground. A little boy told them that the city took the other trash cans away and the remaining one never got emptied often.
As they headed toward the library, the two high school students wrinkled their forehead. In the library, they encountered Mrs. Evans, their kind-hearted fifth-grade teacher, retired yet still passionate. Mrs. Evans listened as Isabel and Peter eagerly explained what they’d seen. Finally, she recommended them to go to the City Hall to voice their concerns.
The next day, Isabel and Peter went into the building of the City Hall but were met with an impatient officer. They were informed that the city couldn’t help with their problem due to a tight budget. Discouraged, they left and turned to Mrs. Evans for help.
Under her guidance, they decided to ask Go Green, a non-profit organization whose goal is to protect the environment, for help. “This group is good at raising money for projects just like yours, ” said Mrs. Evans. She promised to arrange them to present their ideas to Go Green. Hearing this, their face lit up.
Two main tasks remained ahead: researching ways to clean up the park and preparing a convincing presentation. As Isabel was good at researching while Peter always had a talent for speaking, they cooperated quite well. Isabel learned from a science magazine that a new type of trash bin can squeeze the trash down without being emptied often, which saves time, money, and energy. Based on this, Peter practiced his presentation over and over again.
注意：1. 续写词数应为150左右；2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
A week later, Peter stood nervously at the back of the hall where Go Green was meeting.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________After the meeting, Isabel excitedly told Peter the good news.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________6 . Every winter, huge crowds come to the parking lots of big box stores. Not crazy shoppers... but crows (乌鸦)
“Sometimes there’re 4,010,00 even 20,000 birds,” says Andrea Townsend, a behavioral ecologist at Hamilton College.” They’re really conspicuous. What they like are urban areas, so you’ll see them in trees, on rooftops, certainly, in well-lit parking lots. They’re their favorite places.”
Crows are known as “partial migrants (候鸟)”. Every year, some members of the population migrate between breeding (繁殖) grounds and overwintering grounds. But others just stay put. So Townsend and her colleagues wanted to know if that urge to migrate was something individual crows can turn on and off. With no previous studies to refer to, they caught 18 crows from overwintering spots to find out. They fitted the birds with little backpack satellite devices after collecting blood and feather samples, keeping recording where they went during winter for years.
Overall, three quarters of the birds migrated, an average of 300 miles. And more importantly, if they migrated once, they did it every year—suggesting traveling is not a habit they switch on and off. The researchers also found migrating crows returned faithfully to the same breeding grounds every year—but were more flexible on where to overwinter, which could be a good thing.
“Birds with flexible strategies can change their behavior when the environment changes, while other birds are more locked into their overwintering sites. They may not be able to adjust so quickly or easily to changing environmental conditions.” Townsend also wanted to know how migration is connected with their mental ability and whether it’s a mental trade-off for the birds—since migrants have to remember all location data.
“Maybe they’re not as good at solving problems as a resident bird that doesn’t have to invest so much in that long-term memory.” Then again, with all that time on the wing, migrants simply may not have as much free time to think hard about problems.
1. What does the underlined word “conspicuous” in paragraph 2 mean?| A．Dangerous. | B．Smart. | C．Annoying. | D．Noticeable. |
| A．By analyzing previous research. | B．By tracking some crows’ movements. |
| C．By studying crows in urban areas. | D．By comparing different migrating crows. |
| A．Crows’ migratory habits. | B．Reasons for crows migrating. |
| C．Crows’ behavioral changes. | D．Ways of crows overwintering. |
| A．Problem-solving skill and memory of crows. | B．Impact of the changing environment on crows. |
| C．Relation between crows’ migration and mind. | D．Differences between migrants and resident birds. |
Before it was brought to New Zealand about a century ago and became world-renowned as kiwifruit, this humble fruit
Deng Xiaoqing, a farmer in Baoji city of Shaanxi province, sold out all of this year’s kiwifruit harvest. “The kiwifruit farmers
The juicy fruits
8 . The Best American National Parks to Visit for Christmas
The Christmas season can be stressful if you spend every moment cleaning, cooking, and hosting guests. Or the holidays can be a joyful celebration of beauty and peace if you plan an escape to one of America’s splendid national parks.
Yellowstone National Park
Dreaming of a white Christmas? Yellow stone, the country’s first national park, is your top choice. Your family can enjoy a quiet and private getaway（假日休闲地）at Old Faithful Snow Lodge & Cabins. Sit by the fire with hot cocoa and look out at the vast wilderness all around you. Also you can photograph a bison and other wildlife on a winter photo safari.
Rocky Mountain National Park
If you really want to get away from it all over the holidays, plan a trip to a park less traveled in the winter. Rocky Mountain National Park is quiet and uncrowded, but the wildlife is still active. Seeing a moose（麋鹿）in its natural habitat is an experience you won’t forget. Sledding and skiing are also exciting possibilities.
Grand Canyon National Park
Grand Canyon National Park offers a fun holiday experience for families. Families can get on the Polar Express that runs from Arizona to the South Rim of the park through early January and enjoy a pleasant ride complete with hot chocolate and cookies. When you reach the “North Pole”, Santa Claus is waiting with a gift for each child. It’s the best way for your kids to enjoy the magic of Christmas.
Virgin Islands National Park
If snow isn’t your thing, don’t worry. Virgin Islands National Park is perfect for you to escape winter. With white sandy beaches, clear blue water, and more than 800 subtropical plants, you will feel like you traveled outside the U.S. to a tropical area. Cinnamon Bay is a major spot for Christmastime visitors looking for water sports like sailing, diving, and snorkeling（浮潜）.
1. In which park can you both see animals and go skiing?| A．Yellow stone National Park. | B．Rocky Mountain National Park. |
| C．Grand Canyon National Park. | D．Virgin Islands National Park. |
| A．Art lovers. | B．Explorers. |
| C．Outdoor photographers. | D．Families with children. |
| A．Various water sports. | B．Beautiful train rides. |
| C．The quiet environment. | D．The snow-covered landscape. |
9 . Travel to Yunnan in the Four Seasons
Spring: March to May
Spring in Yunnan is warm with few rains, and the temperature changes quickly.
Average temperature: 6 – 20℃ (43 – 68℉)
Clothes: jackets , hoodies(连帽衫), long sleeves, jeans
Recommended tour destinations: The spring in Yunnan is the best time to visit blooming flowers and newly sprouted(发芽的）plants. Luoping, Dali and Lijiang are the most beautiful places in Yunnan during this time. You may go to Luoping for the seas of yellow rape flowers, and enjoy the cherry blossoms around Cangshan Mountain and Erhai Lake in Dali.
Summer: June to August
It’s not as hot as other places in China, and it’s often rainy. You may take an umbrella and raincoat with you.
Average temperature: 15 – 26℃ (59 – 79℉)
Clothes: T-shirts, short sleeves, thin pants…
Recommended tour destinations: In summer, you may appreciate lotus flowers in Puzhehei Scenic Area, stroll around Lijiang Ancient Town, visit Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, Shuhe Ancient Town and Lugu Lake in Lijiang.
Autumn: September to November – BEST Months to Visit Yunnan
Both the temperature and the rainfall decrease in autumn. It’s cool and clear to go for pleasant trips.
Average temperature: 17 – 25℃ (63 – 77℉)
Clothes: T-shirts, jeans, basketball coat…
Recommended tour destinations: To see the most beautiful autumn leaves and flowers in Yunnan, you can go to Gudong Gingko Village in Tengchong, Stone Forest in Kunming and Potatso National Park in Shangri-La.
Winter: December to February
It’s sunny and dry usually with a lower temperature, even so it’s still warmer than the northern China. Lots of visitors go there to escape from bitter cold and consider it the best time to visit Yunnan China.
Average temperature: 8 – 19℃ (46 – 66℉)
Clothes: sweaters, overcoats, jackets, thick pants…
Recommended tour destinations: There are varied scenic spots and activities to do in winter. The world heritage Yuanyang Rice Terraces is fantastic with the glittering watering fields all over the mountains. Xishuangbanna houses the only tropical rainforest in China, which is also a popular winter destination.
1. What do we know about Spring in Yunnan?| A．It enjoys a significantly high temperature. |
| B．It rains quite a lot with changeable weather. |
| C．You may appreciate blooming flowers and newly sprouted plants at this time. |
| D．You may pack jackets ,short sleeves and thin pants in your luggage then. |
| A．It is still hot and rains a lot in Autumn in Yunnan . |
| B．Summer in Li jiang is much the same as other places. |
| C．You may appreciate lotus flowers in Lijiang Ancient Town. |
| D．Stone Forest features beautiful autumn leaves and flowers. |
| A．Luoping | B．Xishuangbanna |
| C．Lijiang | D．Kunming |
10 . Human beings are not alone in having invented vaccination, while honeybees got there first and they can run what look like vaccination programmes, which has been confirmed by Gyan Harwood of the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.
Queen bees vaccinate their eggs before they are laid. But the question is how the queen receives her antigen supply, for she lives purely on royal jelly, a substance secreted by nurse bees when they are in the life stage of feeding the young. Dr Harwood wondered if the nurses combined the royal jelly they produced with pieces from pathogens they had consumed while eating something brought in from outside.
To test this idea, they collected about 150 nurse bees and divided them among six queenless mini hives equipped with the young to look after. They fed the nurses on sugar-water, and for three of the hives they added Paenibacillus larvae, a bacterium causing a disease, to sugar-water.
Dr Harwood and Dr Salmela labeled the bacteria with a certain dye, to make them easy to track. And, sure enough, microscope confirmed that Paenibacillus larvae were getting into royal jelly secreted by those bees which had been fed with the sugar-water. Moreover, examination of this royal jelly revealed higher levels of defensive substance, compared with royal jelly from bees that had not been mixed with Paenibacillus larvae. This substance is thought to help bee immune systems fight against bacterial infections.
All told, these findings suggest that nurse bees are indeed, via their royal jelly, passing antigens on to the queen, then into eggs. They also mean, because the young receive royal jelly for the first few days after they hatch, the nurses are giving the young the second antigens. Each young bee is therefore being vaccinated twice.
1. What puzzled Dr Harwood from paragraph 2?| A．What the royal jelly consists of. |
| B．Where nurse bees receive pathogens. |
| C．How the antigen come into the queen bees' bodies. |
| D．Whether honeybees run vaccination earlier than man. |
| A．By dividing bees into different roles. |
| B．By keeping track of the special bacterium. |
| C．By changing the components of royal jelly. |
| D．By observing nurse bees' different behaviors. |
| A．Nurse bees are the key to vaccination for bee group. |
| B．The nurse bees pass the antigen only to the queen. |
| C．Bacteria-used royal jelly has fewer defense substances. |
| D．Two vaccinations are given to young bees by caregivers directly. |
| A．A pet guide. | B．A social website. |
| C．An official document. | D．A medical magazine. |
