1 . 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. |
2 . Naturally Pink Lakes
Lake Koyashskoye
The water of Lake Koyashskoye in Crimea ranges from pink to red depending on the season. The lake is filled with halobacteria — microorganisms that produce a pink-colored protein when absorbing energy from the sun. Some also put the color down to brine shrimp (盐水虾), which boom in the salty environment.
Lake Hillier
Lake Hillier is located on Middle Island off the southern coast of Western Australia. Most people believe the deep color comes from a combination of algae and salt-loving halobacteria. However, there’s a bit of mystery to Hillier. Other pink lakes change color depending on the season, the angle of the sun or air temperature. Hillier remains the same shade of pink for the whole year.
LagunaColorada
Though it may be described as a “pink” lake. Laguna Colorada in Bolivia is often characterized as “red” or “red-orange”. Salt-loving algae and bacteria help to create this color, but sediments (沉积物) from the nearby rocks also affect the water’s appearance. Like some of the other pink salt lakes, this one draws flamingos (火烈鸟).
Las Salinas de Torrevieja
The pink water of Las Salinas de Torrevieja in Spain is thought to be good for health and people claim improvement in their skin and lung conditions after a bath in it. The lake is not the only pink-colored thing in Torrevieja. During migration season, flamingos crowd the area.
1. Which lake’s color is affected by sea animals?| A．Lake Hillier’s. | B．Lake Koyashskoye’s. | C．LagunaColorada’s. | D．Las Salinas de Torrevieja’s. |
| A．In Spain. | B．In Bolivia. | C．In Crimea. | D．In Australia. |
| A．Its water is red-orange. | B．It is home to flamingos. |
| C．Its water has health benefits. | D．It changes color with the season. |
3 . People today are not unfamiliar with term such as "going eco-friendly" and "sustainable lifestyle". However, there exists a group of sceptics（怀疑论者）who believe that going eco-friendly is merely a fad（一时的风尚）. I disagree with this viewpoint, Going eco-friendly is not merely a fad and it does, in fact, change the beliefs and attitudes of people.
The long-term presence of environmental organisations shows the efforts that people have made towards going eco-friendly. Organisations such as World Wildlife Fund advocate people to go eco-friendly. The high involvement of the organisations and the participants is thus a strong indicator that going eco-friendly is not merely a fad but a trend that can last decades.
Another strong indicator is the emergence of sustainable products in many industries, such as organic produce and electric vehicles. The consumer demand, coupled with eco-conscious（环保意识的）businesses, is behind the sharp increase in such products. This shows a shift in the beliefs and attitudes of people towards adopting a sustainable lifestyle. Thus, it seems quite certain that going eco-friendly is not merely a fad.
While some people who broadcast their eco-friendly practices are criticised for just hoping to project an eco-conscious image, there are a number of celebrities who have been practising the zero-waste lifestyle for years. For those who do so for years, and not mere days or months, it is indeed a commitment that can only come with a true change in beliefs and attitudes towards caring for the earth.
The call to save the earth looks set to stay. With the development of technology and the appearance of many platforms advocating going green, people are more willing to change their beliefs and attitudes when they can learn about and appreciate the positive impact of the work of different environmental organisations and individuals. It is hoped that these effects will go a long way in ensuring that our planet will remain a suitable place to live in.
1. Why does the author mention World Wildlife Fund?| A．To appreciate its environmental efforts. |
| B．To encourage people to go eco-friendly. |
| C．To evidence the universal recognition of going green. |
| D．To highlight the difficulty in changing people's attitudes. |
| A．Sudden disappearance. | B．Sharp increase. |
| C．Gradual development. | D．Limited application. |
| A．It may discourage people from sustainable lifestyle. |
| B．It may boost the business of organic produce. |
| C．It will be used to project an eco-conscious image. |
| D．It will promote environmental awareness. |
| A．To prove going eco-friendly a lasting trend. |
| B．To popularize the eco-friendly products. |
| C．To offer strategies to go eco-friendly. |
| D．To advertise for eco-friendly platforms. |
4 . One of the greatest challenges in caring for such intelligent animals as chimpanzees (猩猩) is providing them with enriching experiences. Every day, the chimpanzees at Project Chimps receive morning and evening food-based enrichment devices, but caregivers are always looking for more ways to keep the chimps mentally engaged. With 79 chimpanzees, each with their distinctive personality, care staff often find that different chimps react differently to new enrichment.
Last year, we began inviting musicians to perform for chimps to see what they may respond. A violin performance received quite the response. Additional musicians were lined up to visit but the coronavirus has stopped the activities, which we hope to resume in the near future.
This past week, we brought an electric piano for the chimps to investigate. Some chimps, like twins Buttercup and Clarisse, were immediately interested and could not wait to tap out a few notes. Others, like Emma, were more interested in trying to take it apart.
29-year-old Precious has very little tolerance for the piano. She sat off to the side for a few minutes, but eventually she decided that was enough. She called an end to the enrichment session by throwing a handful of waste at the piano. Receiving her message loud and clear, we removed the piano.
We could never have guessed how 33-year-old Luke would react to it. As with many retired lab chimpanzees, Luke has some anxiety issues. He seems particularly distrustful of anything new, including people, food, and enrichment. But when we presented the chimps with the piano, Luke was the first to investigate. We could not believe our eyes—this usually anxious chimpanzee bravely chose to explore something new!
To us at Project Chimps, this is what it is all about: giving chimpanzees the freedom to choose. We are honored to be part of their journey.
1. Why do chimpanzees respond differently to new enrichment?| A．They are of different genders. |
| B．They have natural curiosities. |
| C．They are as intelligent as humans. |
| D．They have their unique characters. |
| A．Buttercup and Clarisse. | B．Emma. | C．Precious. | D．Luke. |
| A．Continue. | B．Suspend. | C．Monitor. | D．Regulate. |
| A．How caregivers care for the retired chimpanzees. |
| B．What care staff do to enrich chimpanzees’ daily life. |
| C．How chimpanzees are trained through various enrichment. |
| D．What Project Chimps does to observe and study wild chimps. |
5 . When man and nature try to co-exist, man usually wins out. But that wasn’t the case in a small town in southern India when a native Robin recently chose to build her nest in an extremely inconvenient location.
The village of Potthakudi contains only 120 homes and has a total of 35 streetlights. Unfortunately ,the misguided mama bird had decided to set up housekeeping in the town’s main lighting switchboard (配电板).
The nest and its inhabitants were first discovered by Karuppu Raja, the man tasked with turning on the streetlights each evening. A lifelong bird lover, Raja posted his find to local social media to warn the citizens of his discovery and ask for their cooperation in taking a hands-off approach to the unexpected guests.
“Switching off the lights is the only solution because the bird will fly once it realizes there is a human touch or contact near its nest,” Raja wrote on WhatsApp. “We should save the bird and its babies at any cost.”
While some initially voiced concerns that lack of nighttime illumination (照明) would be inconvenient ,Raja was eventually able to persuade his fellow villagers that any sacrifice would be worth it in the long run. “I explained that so many birds have died out and we should not let Indian Robin go the same way,” Raja recalled.
So, rather than ousted the bird, the villagers agreed to observe a blackout (断电) until the baby birds were old enough to fly away. The town spent a total of 45 days and nights in the dark, even disconnecting the switchboard from the power source to keep the mom and her chicks safe.
After mama Robin and her babies finally took off, the blackout was lifted, but the village’s extraordinary protection efforts for the sake of one lone bird and her babies didn’t go unnoticed.
A bird in the hand may be worth two in the bush, but a bird in the switchboard has earned Potthakudi a reputation for kindness that’s likely to light up smiles for quite some time to come.
1. What can we know about Karuppu Raja?| A．He does his job carelessly. | B．He loves birds all the time. |
| C．He argues with his villagers. | D．He is the leader of the village. |
| A．Protected. | B．Set free. | C．Killed. | D．Drove away. |
| A．The reasons why many birds have died out. |
| B．The kind villagers in Potthakudi. |
| C．What villagers do to help the birds. |
| D．How to protect Indian Robins. |
| A．Man will conquer nature. |
| B．Man and animals can live in harmony. |
| C．A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. |
| D．A bird is known by its note and a man by his talk. |
6 . Think of Japan in the spring, and the image that comes to mind is likely the country’s famous cherry blossoms, which experience a “peak bloom (开花)” that only lasts a few days and have been honored in Japan for more than a thousand years. But this year, the cherry blossom season has come and gone in the blink of an eye, in one of the earliest blossoms on record -- and scientists warn it’s a symptom of the larger climate crisis threatening ecosystems everywhere.
Yasuyuki Aono, a researcher at Osaka Prefecture University, has gathered records from Kyoto back to 812 AD from historical documents and diaries. In the central city of Kyoto, cherry blossoms peaked on March 26, the earliest in more than 1,200 years, Aono said. And in the capital Tokyo, cherry blossoms reached full bloom on March 22, the second-earliest date on record.
The peak bloom dates shift every year, depending on numerous factors including weather and rainfall, but have shown a general trend of moving earlier and earlier. “Cherry blooms are very temperature sensitive,” said Aono. “Flowering and full bloom could be earlier or later depending on the temperature alone,” he said. This year’s seasons in particular influenced the blossom dates, he added. The winter was very cold, but the spring came fast and unusually warm, so “the buds are completely awake after enough rest.”
Their early bloom, however, is just the tip of the iceberg of a worldwide phenomenon that could make natural systems and countries’ economies unstable, said Amos Tai, assistant professor of earth science at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. There are two sources of increased heat, which is the main factor making the flowers bloom earlier: urbanization（城市化）and climate change. With increased urbanization, cities tend to get warmer than the surrounding rural area, in what is called the heat island effect. But a bigger reason is climate change, which has caused rising temperatures across the region and the world.
These earlier dates aren’t just a matter of tourists scrambling to catch peak bloom before the petals all fall-- it could have a lasting impact on entire ecosystems, and threaten the survival of many species.
1. What is the purpose of mentioning the dates and figures in paragraph 2?| A．To present “peak bloom” in Tokyo came earlier than in Kyoto. |
| B．To suggest when cherry blossoms will bloom next year. |
| C．To report the dates of “peak bloom” in different Japanese cities. |
| D．To show cherry blossoms came out earlier this year than in the past. |
| A．The blossom season this year is a sign of a larger global crisis. |
| B．The weather will be too cold for the blossoms to last long enough. |
| C．The earlier peak bloom will threaten the survival of many species. |
| D．The earlier bloom could affect natural systems and countries’ economy. |
| A．Deciding. | B．Managing. | C．Rushing. | D．Marching. |
| A．The Japanese Climate Crisis |
| B．Sooner’s Not Always Better Than Later |
| C．Cherry blossoms and Their Impact |
| D．The Early Blooming of Cherry Blossoms |
