1 . 听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1. Why were people unwilling to accept Toby?

A．He has an extra nose.

B．He behaves strangely.

C．He just has two legs.

2. What was the music producer’s attitude toward Toby?

A．Disappointed.

B．Concerned.

C．Angry.

3. What is Toby especially good at?

A．Dancing with the music.

B．Playing difficult tricks.

C．Finding hidden things.

2 . 阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

Last Sunday was the official birthday of the world’s oldest land animal. Jonathan, a Seychelles giant tortoise(陆龟) living on the island of Saint Helena, turned 190 years old. The event     1    (celebrate) with a big party, which included a special “salad cake”.

Nobody knows for sure how old Jonathan is. But in 1882, he was brought     2     a gift to Sir William Grey-Wilson,     3     lived in Saint Helena. Pictures     4    (take) around that time show that Jonathan was already full-grown.

Since it takes about 50 years for Seychelles giant tortoises     5     (become) adults, animal experts say Jonathan must have been born around 1832. That’s earned him the Guinness World Record for the world’s oldest land animal. Joe Hollins, the veterinarian(兽医) who looks after Jonathan, says Jonathan is probably     6     (old) than 190, but there’s no way to know.

Mr. Hollins says the tortoise is     7    (general) pretty happy as long as he can sleep and eat. He likes to warm     8    (he) by sleeping in the sun.

Though Jonathan is still very active(for a tortoise), he does have some health problems. He’s blind,     9     he can no longer smell things, so he needs to be fed by hand. But he’s got a good appetite. His sense of hearing is also still strong. He     10    (recognize) Mr. Hollins’s voice and responds to it.

3 . In the vast desert plains of northwest Namibia, rhino (犀牛) trackers start a journey to monitor the desert-adapted black rhinos. These creatures, known for their poor eyesight, walk freely in this remote region.

Led by Sebulon Hoeb, the principal field office r of Save the Rhino Trust Namibia, the tracker carefully approach a grazing rhino named Matty 2. identified by his partner Ebson Mbunguha. Despite the windy conditions working in their favor, they maintain a safe distance, aware of the potential danger of encountering these massive animals.

Every day and night, devoted trackers and local community ranger s patrol (巡逻) the vast expanse of land, totaling 25, 000 square kilometers, where the desert-adapted black rhino thrives. Armed with extensive knowledge of the rhinos’ behaviors and characteristics, they carefully document their observations, contributing to conservation efforts and fighting poaching (偷猎), which remains a constant threat due to the high demand for rhino horns.

Despite challenges, Namibia’s community conservation model has succeeded in protecting the rhino population. By prioritizing the preservation of wildlife and ensuring local communities to benefit from their natural resources, Namibia has become a lighthouse of conservation efforts in Africa. Save the Rhino Trust, established in 1982, has played a vital role in this achievement, witnessing a remarkable recovery in the black rhino population.

The significance of community conservation is stressed by Namibia’s commitment to environmental protection, written in its constitution since gaining independence in 1990. With the establishment of shared conservancies covering over 20% of the country’s territory, Namibia has pioneered a sustainable approach that balances conservation with economic development.

For the rhino rangers who devote their lives to safeguarding these iconic creatures, the job is rewarding. Living under the vast southern sky, they bear weeks of tented living, braving the dangers of tracking rhinos on foot. Despite the challenges, their serious commitment ensures the continued survival of the desert-adapted black rhino, a testament to the power of community-driven conservation efforts in preserving Earth’s oldest mammals.

1. What is the primary role of the rhino trackers?

A．To relocate rhinos to other habitats.

B．To record the exact population of rhinos.

C．To offer rhinos food when necessary.

D．To learn about the current situation of rhinos.

2. What can be learned about the rhinos in Namibia?

A．They favor windy conditions.	B．They will go extinct.
C．They are easy to approach.	D．They can be violent.

3. Which best describes the conservation efforts in Namibia?

A．Limited.

B．Fruitful.

C．Inconsistent.

D．Unnoticed.

4. What’s the text mainly about?

A．The community-driven rhino conservation efforts.

B．The challenges facing rhino trackers in Namibia.

C．The history of rhino poaching in Africa.

D．The dangerous situation of rhinos.

4 . 听下面一段独白，回答以下小题。
1. What is Caroline Smith?

A．A zoo specialist.

B．A social worker.

C．A TV reporter.

2. What does Caroline talk about in the Kyrie Belle Show?

A．Recently extinct wildlife.

B．Latest campaigning activities.

C．Common misunderstandings of animals.

3. What does a monkey’s ear-to-ear smile suggest?

A．They are quite shy.

B．They feel at risk.

C．They are impatient.

4. Why does the speaker deliver the speech?

A．To advertise a national zoo.

B．To present a charity show.

C．To introduce a preservationist.

5 . As I stand in my favorite craft store, I’m faced with choices that mirror the world outside. You see, I love my foam (泡沫橡胶) board, which has foam inside and is sandwiched between two layers of paper or plastic. It’s easy to work with and affordable, but not friendly to the environment. Or take a look at the paintbrushes. The plastic handle brushes are cheap while the brushes with wooden handles cost a fair bit more.

Glues are the unsung heroes of my art, yet their plastic containers are far from eco-friendly. And don’t get me started on the packaging that these art supplies come in. It’s all plastic, and it’s a reminder that even in the art world, being green isn’t always easy.

As an artist, I’m not exactly rolling in profits. Most of what I earn goes right back into my materials, leaving little room for choosing green materials. Fresh out of university, I am still searching for a job. Since I currently don’t have a regular income, I’m living with my family to save costs and paying careful attention to what I can afford. But I also care deeply about climate change, since I’ve seen its impact and can’t bear the thought of it getting worse.

So, to reduce my personal impact on climate change while also living within my means, I make full use of my brushes until they’re on their last hair, and I’ve become a master at repurposing cardboard boxes and various packing materials. The firm plastic packaging that once housed my paints finds a second purpose as glass in my miniature (微型的) windows. The cardboard from those boxes’ serves as bases for a range of miniatures. I don’t waste a bit of foam board either; it’s kept for crafting mini-books for my sets.

It’s an ongoing process — a journey of give and take. While I try to reduce my ecological footprint, I am also learning to balance practicality while enjoying creating my own art.

1. What does the author find in the craft store?

A．Most materials aren’t as green as required.

B．It is difficult to buy cheap and green materials.

C．The prices of some green materials keep going up.

D．Her favorite green materials are always very popular.

2. What can we learn from paragraph 3?

A．The author is a struggling artist.	B．The author likes working at home.
C．The author mainly uses green materials.	D．The author creates art about climate change.

3. How does the author deal with her packing materials?

A．She sells them to buy books.	B．She exchanges them for paints.
C．She gives them to a recycling company.	D．She tries to reuse them in her artworks.

4. What is the best title for the text?

A．My journey as a green artist	B．My expectations of a green artist
C．My experience of picking green materials	D．My exploration in crafting green artwork

6 . Blood may be thicker than water when it comes to human relationships and it appears that the same is true of jackdaws (寒鸦) after scientists found they readily switch friends to gain food but stick with family even at the risk of going hungry.

Alex Thornton, a professor of cognitive evolution, said, “We monitor hundreds of wild jackdaws, each of which is fitted with a tiny PIT tag like the chips (芯片) used for pet cats and dogs — embedded in (嵌入) a leg ring. In this experiment we randomly divided jackdaws into two groups — A or B — and programmed a pair of automated PIT tag-detecting devices to provide worms only if individuals from the same group(AA or BB) visited together.” If birds from different groups arrived together — A with B — the feeders would remain closed. Single birds would get grain, but not the more desirable worms.

Thornton said, “The idea was to find out if jackdaws could readjust their social associations. They might have friends in the wrong group. Do jackdaws ditch them and start to hang out with individuals who are in the right group? The jackdaws turned out to be very strategic, quickly learning to abandon friends from the other group so they could get the best rewards. However, they made an exception when it came to their close relations even if they got nothing. What we were able to do here was test the idea: can individuals keep track of the outcomes of past interactions and update their relationships? It turns out they can.”

Thornton said jackdaws were an excellent subject matter as they were clever and had dynamic social networks. “You’ve got individuals coming and going so beyond their strong relationships, and they have lots of other associations. They are similar to human society.” Michael Kings, of the University of Exeter, said, “These results help our understanding-of the evolution of intelligence as they show that being able to track and remember information about social partners can bring benefits.”

1. Which of the following matters most for jackdaws according to the experiment?

A．Their family.	B．Avoiding going hungry.
C．Staying away from risks.	D．Their friends.

2. What can be learned about the jackdaws in the experiment?

A．Jackdaws on their own got worms.	B．Jackdaws with their family got grain.
C．Jackdaws from the same group got worms.	D．Jackdaws from different groups got grain.

3. What does the underlined word “ditch” in paragraph 3 probably mean?

A．Reward.

B．Abandon.

C．Destroy.

D．Believe.

4. What is the purpose of the last paragraph?

A．To encourage further research.	B．To give possible reasons for the results.
C．To explain the significance of the research.	D．To summarize the findings of the experiment.

7 . My family went to London for visiting specialists. The day before we _______ the ship, Father said goodbye gently to his five-year-old “friend”, an Australian cattle dog, Spider, who was loved by us all. Father’s friend Sandy kept him _______ while we were overseas.

Six weeks later, a _______ arrived from Sandy, giving my father the news that Spider had _______ just two weeks after we had sailed. I will always remember my father’s face _______ and his eyes filled with sadness as he read the letter. Sandy has _______ constantly on ABC radio and other local newspapers. _______ , the dog was never found later. Spider seemed to decide to _______ us elsewhere.

Finally, we made a _______. We sailed back and did everything that we could do ________ waiting. Several months passed but there was still no news concerning. My father took the ________ and kept looking for him.

One cold morning eight months after, my father had a call from an old lady who said she was putting food out “for a very old dog”. My father’s eyes were lighted up with ________. That was enough for my father to ________ immediately. When we arrived at the old lady’s house, she showed us the dog. It was Spider! My father did his special whistle (口哨) for Spider. “Woof!” he barked. Spider was capturing (捕捉) the ________ feeling that occurred when he first locked eyes with my father. To Spider, our ________ and love are the inspiration.

1.

A．sailed

B．parked

C．boarded

D．camped

2.

A．alive

B．away

C．accompanied

D．apart

3.

A．letter

B．story

C．service

D．test

4.

A．fallen ill

B．got stuck

C．lost life

D．run away

5.

A．confusing

B．shocking

C．moving

D．touching

6.

A．announced

B．advertised

C．posted

D．blogged

7.

A．Unfortunately

B．Luckily

C．Hopefully

D．Eventually

8.

A．attend to

B．take over

C．look around

D．search for

9.

A．decision

B．discussion

C．advice

D．plan

10.

A．as to

B．except for

C．instead of

D．due to

11.

A．lead

B．place

C．risk

D．pace

12.

A．silence

B．dissatisfaction

C．excitement

D．praise

13.

A．pulled up

B．drove off

C．stepped in

D．calmed down

14.

A．special

B．familiar

C．painful

D．empty

15.

A．expectation

B．creativity

C．generosity

D．determination

8 . Antarctica and the sub-Antarctic islands are remote, rocky and endlessly fascinating. The wildlife encounters are quietly breathtaking and the scenery is amazing. The chance to experience this special region on an adventure voyage is both an advantage and an inspiration, and now also an opportunity to give back by getting involved in scientific research.

Citizen science — where you help scientists collect data that feeds into important research projects — gathers valuable data for making informed decisions about urgent issues like climate change and wildlife conservation. “It gave the trip more purpose.” is in the words of one citizen scientist.

Becoming a citizen scientist is simple. All of our polar voyage partners operate citizen science programmes on their ships. Fun, interactive and informative, they are completely voluntary and no prior scientific knowledge is required. It’s about sharing new discoveries and deepening your connection to the natural world with small groups of like-minded people.

On a typical citizen science programme, you will usually be invited to participate in at least one session on most days. A typical day might involve a seabird count at 14:00 and a cloud survey at 18:00. Or you might be photographing whales and noting their unique markings. In addition, a citizen science coordinator (协调员) will arrange short lectures.

Take two examples from Polar Latitudes (the first to offer citizen science projects in the polar regions), and their ship the Seaventure: citizen scientists studying cloud formations in Antarctica have provided a great deal of information about how global warming is deeply impacting climate change. Just a few readings taken during the course of each voyage have resulted in a wealth of data. Thousands of whale tail photos taken by citizen scientists, meanwhile, provided data that was crucial to the creation of a 20,000-sq-km slow-down zone to reduce ship strikes.

There are often multiple chances to collaborate (协作) on different projects during your voyage and on-board citizen science coordinators will keep you posted on the projects you can participate in each day.

1. What is an adventure voyage in Antarctica now special for?

A．The chance to contribute to scientific studies.

B．The opportunity to experience wildlife encounters.

C．The possibility of visiting remote and rocky regions.

D．The availability of interactive entertaining programmes.

2. How can a visitor become a citizen scientist?

A．By presenting short lectures on the ship.	B．By passing a basic scientific knowledge test.
C．By making a citizen scientific research plan.	D．By volunteering to attend a citizen science project.

3. What is a typical activity for a citizen scientist during their voyage?

A．Conducting field experiments.	B．Analyzing historical weather data.
C．Organizing book sharing meetings.	D．Assisting with animal conservation efforts.

4. What does the last but one paragraph imply about citizen science programmes?

A．They require broad scientific knowledge.

B．They make a great difference to scientific research.

C．They are available on every voyage in the Antarctic.

D．They mainly focus on global warming and its impact.

9 . The winner of the Natural History Museum of London’s Wildlife Photographer of the Year Award is Nima Sarikhani, for her image of a polar bear sleeping on sea ice, which is called “Ice Bed”. It was taken in Norway’s Svalbard archipelago.

Sarikhani spent three days looking for polar bears but without success as they were trapped in a thick fog. But then, as the ship came across some sea ice, she saw two polar bears. She and her team tracked them for eight hours. And under the light of the midnight sun, the bear clawed out a bed on a small iceberg before sleeping.

The photograph inspires strong emotions in all its viewers. While climate change is the biggest challenge for humans, the photograph also inspires hope that there is still time to fix the mess we have caused.

Polar bears are known to dig themselves spots to sleep in, which are sometimes referred to as “day bed”. They’re also known to take one-to two-hour-long sleeps, especially after a good meal.

According to the museum, the area where the polar bear was taken on film is among the most isolated (孤立) in the world, and holds a population of 19 polar bears that rely on the sea ice to travel and hunt offshore. But air temperatures in Svalbard have increased by 3℃ to 5℃over the past 40 to 50 years, which has resulted in heavy winter rainfall and some areas being ice-free most of the year. While the bears that follow sea ice may still be able to hunt year-round, this is increasingly over deeper waters, which may be less productive.

Less sea ice for polar bears to use as a way to safely travel has also led to the animals having less genetic (基因的) diversity. There aren’t as many opportunities for different groups to mix. This is leading to increased inbreeding among local bears.

At present, Svalbard’s polar bear population is still considered to be stable, but as global temperatures continue to increase, that may not be the case for long.

1. What made it difficult for Sarikhani to spot polar bears in the beginning?

A．The outdated equipment.	B．The terrible weather.
C．The lack of support.	D．The tight schedule.

2. What poses a risk to polar bears in Svalbard?

A．The loss of sea ice.	B．The extremely low temperature.
C．The isolated position.	D．The increase in genetic diversity.

3. What is the author’s attitude to the future of Svalbard’s polar bears?

A．Uncaring.

B．Worried.

C．Unclear.

D．Optimistic.

4. What is the best title for the text?

A．Norway’s Svalbard Archipelago	B．The Biggest Challenge for Polar Bears
C．An Award-Winning Photo “Ice Bed”	D．The Reduction in Polar Bear Population

10 . 听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1. What are the speakers mainly talking about?

A．A terrible storm.

B．A big earthquake.

C．A heavy rain.

2. When did the disaster happen?

A．This morning.

B．Last night.

C．Two days ago.

3. Why can’t the woman reach her parents?

A．The line is busy.

B．The power failure in that area.

C．Her parents are sleeping.

4. Where is the man from?

A．Houston.

B．New York.

C．Los Angeles.