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2 . A study from the University of California, Davis is the first to document personality in golden-mantled ground squirrels, which are common across the western US and parts of Canada, The study found the squirrels show personality for four main aspects: boldness(大胆), aggressiveness, activity level, and sociability. The findings suggest that understanding how an animal’s personality influences the use of space is important for wildlife conservation.
The fact that ground squirrels have personalities may not seem surprising. But the scientific field of animal personality is relatively young, as is the recognition that there are ecological consequences of animal personalities. For instance, bolder, more aggressive squirrels may find more food or defend a larger area, but their risky behavior may also make them easily hurt by predators(捕食者)or accidents. Lead author Jaclyn Aliperti conducted the study while earning her PhD in ecology at UC Davis.
Scientists have been studying golden-mantled ground squirrels at the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory in Gothic, Colorado for decades. It was established as a long-term study site more than 30 years ago by Aliperti’s advisor, Dirk Van Vuren. Aliperti drew from this powerful data set for her study, while also starting a series of experiments there over the course of three summers to observe and quantify the squirrels’ personalities. Overall, the study, published in the journal Animal Behaviour, found that bolder squirrels had larger core areas where they concentrated their activities. Bold, active squirrels moved faster. Also, squirrels that were bolder, more aggressive and more active had greater access to habitats, such as rocks. The location of the habitat is important because it can provide a belter point for observing and evading predators. Interestingly, habitat is also associated with sociability.
“Animal personality is a hard science, but if it makes you relate to animals more, maybe people will be more interested in conserving them,” said Alipcrti.
1. What’s the significance of the findings in paragraph 1?A.To better protect wildlife. |
B.To know more about space. |
C.To observe squirrels’ behavior. |
D.To explore squirrels’ personalities. |
A.Hunt for more food. | B.Work against each other. |
C.Show their personalities. | D.Attract less predators. |
A.Keeping. | B.Refusing. |
C.Killing. | D.Avoiding. |
A.Skeptical. | B.Supportive. |
C.Worried. | D.Tolerant. |