1 . Recent research confirms what our farming ancestors have known for centuries about hedges (树篱). They conserve precious soil by acting as windbreaks and absorbing rainwater that would otherwise wash it from the fields. And hedges store carbon, putting them in the front line of our bi d to tackle the climate crisis.
However, hedges have had a tough time in the poor countryside, with farmers encouraged to tear them down in pursuit of maximum production and larger field s to accommodate ever-larger machinery. What’s more, some hedges have been ignored. If left to their own devices, they’ll eventually become a line of trees. Some hedges each year lose their structures and fail to fulfil the primary duty as a barrier. Around a half of the nation’s hedges have disappeared in the past century.
There are signs that “the tide is turning”. The search for net zero has aroused many organizations’ interest in the humble hedge’s role as a carbon sink. The Climate Change Committee is recommending a 40 percent increase in hedges: an additional 200,000 km. Such recommendations are starting to drive policy. Cash-pressed farmers will be encouraged to create new hedges and improve their management of existing ones under the new Environmental Land Management Schemes, which will replace many of the existing agricultural support payments in coming years. Meanwhile, initiatives such as Close the Gap, led by the Tree Council, is providing funding and support to plug the gaps in existing hedges with new planting. There’s even an app to help time-pressed farmers do a quick survey to spot where their hedges need some help.
This is a good time for hedges. Take some of the most pressing challenges facing the countryside, and indeed, the world as a whole — the climate crisis, soil erosion (侵蚀), insect attack and wider biodiversity loss — and hedges are part of the solution.
1. What does recent research show about hedges?A.They are unique landscapes in the rain. |
B.They act as dividing lines between fields. |
C.They have long been helpful to agriculture. |
D.They are frequently washed away from the fields. |
A.Their suffering. | B.Their production. |
C.Their duties. | D.Their structures. |
A.Puzzled. | B.Concerned. | C.Humble. | D.Indifferent. |
A.Hedges: Ancient Resources |
B.Hedges: Official Recommendations |
C.Restoring Hedges: Bringing Benefits to the Environment |
D.Researching Hedges: Originating from Farmers’ Request |
A.Snowy. | B.Rainy. | C.Sunny. |
1. When will the clouds clear up today?
A.By breakfast time. | B.By lunchtime. | C.By supportime. |
A.Windy and cold. | B.Cloudy skies and rain. | C.Dry and sunny. |
A.Around 21 degrees. 1 000 | B.Around 29 degrees. | C.Around 32 degrees. |
Three cows swept away by Hurricane Dorian have been found miles from home in a national park, a spokesman said. Dorian brought strong winds, damaging tornadoes (龙卷风) and heavy rain
During
The cows were not wild. Horvat said they had caretakers in Cedar Island
One cow was found shortly after Dorian hit, while the other two were found about two weeks later by
5 . The Battista family of New York City was on vacation in Ocean City, Maryland when their 2-year-old Fisher went lost on July 4, 2020.
The Battistas immediately blanketed the area with missing posters, barraged (炮击) social media, and even got Fisher face-time on a local floating billboard (广告牌).
With no leads, the family decided to remain in the area for an extended stay. They hired a tracker and even consulted with an “animal communicator” in hopes of tapping into Fisher’s whereabouts (行踪) — all to no avail.
The family also set up a find-fisher Facebook page, which quickly gathered 8,000 followers, and launched an online fundraiser to raise awareness and help them in their efforts to bring their beloved fur baby home.
“Signs have been posted, and we’ve extended our stay in Ocean City and arranged to bring in a professional dog tracker, in addition to making continuous searching trips in a car, on foot, and on a bike,” Matthew Battista wrote.
On April 20, 2021, 290 days after Fisher made his unauthorized Independence Day exit, Baltimore City resident Wayne Horn was repairing his motorcycle when he noticed a stray (走失的) dog in the road. When a friend of Horn’s posted picture of the found dog to Facebook, the responses of “That’s Fisher!” came back faster than a boomerang (回旋镖).
Informed of the news, Elissa Battista recognized Fisher immediately. “From the moment I saw the photos I knew it was him from the markings and his little tongue sticking out,” she posted to Facebook.
The reunion was quickly arranged. The Battistas had some local friends pick him up from the Horns, and then Elissa made the five-hour trip to retrieve Fisher and bring him home. Apart from minor signs of possible frostbite (冻伤), Fisher was in excellent shape.
1. What was described in detail in the text?A.Battistas’ regret for losing their loved dog. |
B.Online responses to the Battistas’ request. |
C.Different comments on the touching story. |
D.Efforts made to search for the lost dog. |
A.Online viewers recognized its photos posted online. |
B.One of family members discovered it in the road. |
C.Wayne Horn sent it back shortly after he found it. |
D.A professional dog tracker brought it back soon. |
A.Break down. | B.Take apart. | C.Pay back. | D.Get back. |
A.Chance favors the prepared mind. | B.Loyalty always comes first. |
C.Never giving up pays off. | D.Misfortune may be an actual blessing. |
6 . Time is running out for coral reefs as the climate gets hotter. So scientists are searching the globe for corals that are better at enduring heat, Now, new research shows how those “super corals” can survive: less roommate drama.
Reefs depend on a crucial partnership between the corals and the algae (海藻) that live in the corals’ tissue, The algae make food for the corals using sunlight and in exchange, get a nice spot to live. But when oceans heat up, that relationship goes bad, and the corals kick the algae out, Without their roommates, corals can die, turning a ghostly white, bleached (白化) color.
Still, some corals seem to resist bleaching better than others, A new study shows that those corals depend on algae that are better at tolerating heat. Researchers hope that pinpointing these abilities will help develop new conservation tools to preserve the world’s reefs as temperatures rise. About 1/4 of all marine life rely on coral reefs in some way, along with half 1 billion people around the world also depend on reefs for their food and livelihoods.
“Heat stress can kill a lot of corals really fast,” says Kate Quigley, a research scientist at James Cook University and the Minderoo Foundation in Australia. “I hope that nature does have some mechanisms to get us through the next few years while we get our act together.”
While the hope is that those algae could also aid in reef conservation in the future, researcher Patrick Buerger says it’s likely that it wouldn’t help all coral species. And even the toughest corals can only endure so much. Currently, the world is on track for just under 3degrees Celsius of warming by 2100, a level that would wipe out nearly all coral reefs.
“The action has to be on climate change,” he says. “This is a short-term solution that might buy some time for corals to adapt. But the main focus has to be on climate. There’s not a silver bullet to the problem.”
1. What is the feature of super corals?A.Sun-loving. | B.Long-living. | C.Good-looking. | D.Heat-bearing. |
A.Habitat. | B.Food. | C.Sunlight. | D.Friendship. |
A.The population of marine life. | B.The importance of coral reefs. |
C.The seriousness of global warming. | D.The living conditions of coral reefs. |
A.It is useless | B.It is the last hope. | C.It is temporary. | D.It is the silver bullet. |
For many years, my only companion was our dog, Sno. A small but mighty Bichon Frise, our dog may have looked ordinary, but he was smart, creative, and always ready for ice cream and rolling at my request. While I worked, he slept, waking to chase the red cat from next door, greet a delivery person, or sit in the sunshine.
We didn’t agree on everything, especially when to get up and when to go to bed. He sighed with boredom when a project was due and I didn’t have time to play. He didn’t understand weekends, deadlines, and visitors who left him. However, we both agreed on walking.
At least once a week, we took a long walk to the beach. For him, there were tall grasses and exciting smells. For me, there were other dog walkers and neighbors to catch up with. We returned tired, thirsty, and very happy.
Being a dog with huge ambition and short legs, Sno needed several breaks along the way. The one at the entrance to the beach was his favorite, possibly because he knew we were circling back home. There, on a windy summer day, he looked up at me just as I was looking down at him. We both grinned (咧嘴笑). This was the best walk ever.
When he was old and dying, our walks were shorter and closer to home. I’d take him for a walk and then go out for my own walk, wandering around the beach like we used to do. I always grinned when I got to the entrance to the beach, remembering that summer day when he was young and energetic.
In his final days, Sno still insisted on walking. It took twice as long to take even the shortest walk, but we enjoyed every step. Then came that Sunday when he leaned hard toward the beach walk. How could I refuse his last-walk wish?
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。
We took the walk.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
After he died, I went for the long walk.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Wetlands are the link between the land and the water. They are transition zones where the flow of water, the cycling of nutrients and the energy of the sun meet to produce
The National Nature Reserve of Guangdong Nanpeng Islands in Guangdong Province was established in 2003. It
The main focus of the reserve is to protect the unique underwater natural landscapes, the ecosystems of the nearby
Researchers have discovered 1,308 marine species in the area, including 772
9 . I was mostly based in Samburu National Reserve, recording details of the population and leading collar (颈圈) operations. We put trackers (跟踪仪) around wild elephants’necks, so we can learn about their activities.
In May 2009, in the middle of the wet season, Rommel appeared again. And it was histurn to be placed a collar. We sent three cars out to search for him. There’s a river running through the park where many elephants gather in the mornings. At 10:30 am, one of my partners clocked Rommel.
A tranquillizer (镇静剂) was carefully shot into his body so we could safely place a collaron him, but for a bull of Rommel’s size it could take longer. After that, he turned away, heading in an unexpected direction and seemed to be near danger by killing himself in thewater. It would be a bad accident. Only by pulling his trunk (象鼻) from the river, could weensure his survival. The problem was that the river was a little bit changeable. Immediately, I decided to act. I jumped in and lifted his heavy, twitching trunk from the water with the help of lifeguards. The team tried to fit him with a collar, but we discovered that we didn’t have one big enough.
We couldn’t risk keeping him there while we created a bigger collar. So I struggled on, holding his trunk high with all my strength. And medicine that took away the efforts of the tranquillizer was delivered.
As soon as his ears started to move, a sign of coming to life, I dropped his trunk and moved to safety. Within a couple of minutes, he was back to life. That was one of my proudest moments
1. What is the purpose of putting trackers around wild elephants’necks?A.To record their sizes. | B.To know their activities. |
C.To control and train them. | D.To save them from danger. |
A.To sent him to a zoo. | B.To treat his wounds. |
C.To place a collar on him safely. | D.To check his health. |
A.He gave him certain medicine. | B.He lifted his trunk out of water. |
C.He performed an operation on him. | D.He called other members for help. |
A.Pride. | B.Surprise. | C.Anger. | D.Worry. |
10 . For many people, retirement is a chance to take a break. Not so for Victorin Laboudallon from the Seychelles who spends his days planting forests to fight climate change. Wherever there’s a forest fire in the Seychelles, you can be sure you’ll find Laboudallon ready to fight back, armed with seeds and shovels.
Laboudallon is widely known across the Seychelles for his decades of environmental action and his big personality. While planting trees in the wet dirt, barefoot and laughing, he says his surname means “friend of the mud” in his local Creole language. “I’m not somebody who lives under the big concrete. I live under the beautiful trees,” he says, pointing above at the iconic coco de mer palm.
The Seychelles is a nation of 115 islands—known for beautiful beaches and biodiversity—off the east coast of Africa. Here climate change is not a distant prospect, but a daily reality. “We’ve got the sea rising,” says Laboudallon. “You can see places where there used to be houses. Now there are none. There is something on this planet going wrong.”
Nature enthusiasts like Laboudallon have taken matters into their own hands. While giving a tour of his tree nursery, he explains how different types of trees offer different services when adapting to climate change. For the Seychellois, mangroves (红树林) are fundamental.
Mangroves defend against the impacts of rising seas and coastal erosion (腐蚀) by reducing the height and force of the waves before they hit the shoreline.
This strategy of using nature—and the services it provides—to adapt to climate change is known as ecosystem-based adaptation. It’s often cheaper than concrete infrastructure (设施). Not to mention that it creates a space for nature. Communities can adapt to climate change while protecting biodiversity. It is no longer a choice between people and nature. Considering the Seychelles’ economy is highly dependent on ecotourism, ecosystem-based adaptation is seen as a promising approach.
1. What does Victorin Laboudallon do in his retirement?A.He travels around the world. | B.He enjoys his free time at home. |
C.He plants trees in different countries. | D.He fights climate change in the Seychelles. |
A.He prefers to live in big cities. | B.He is afraid of mud and dirt. |
C.He enjoys the beauty of trees and nature. | D.He feels safe when surrounded by concrete. |
A.Uncertain and potentially dangerous. | B.Hopeful and optimistic. |
C.Challenging but manageable. | D.Insignificant and not worth worrying about. |
A.It’s more costly than concrete infrastructure. |
B.It met with indifference among local communities. |
C.It’s a win-win strategy for local economy and ecosystem. |
D.It has no effect on the local environmental protection. |