1 . According to reports, three-quarters of all crops around the world depend on pollinating (授粉的) insects like bees and butterflies. By pollinating, pollinators enable the production of seeds. Without them, crop farming can become extremely difficult or costly threatening food supplies and prices globally.
Research has shown a rapid and consistent decline in pollinator populations. Average butterfly populations have almost halved since 1991 and bee populations in particular face a sharp decline. Given the world’s growing dependence on these insects, we can only expect the problem to worsen if no action is taken.
Much has been written about how intensive farming practices the use of chemical pesticides (杀虫剂), and pollution are threatening the survival of these helpful insects. To add to the already critical situation, global warming is contributing significantly to the rapid disappearance of pollinators.
Climate change is a major threat to pollinators, with rising temperatures and increasing frequency and intensity of extreme weather events affecting the food sources and habitats, on which pollinators depend for their survival.
Climate change also changes the timing and availability of lowering plants, leading to mismatches between pollinators and their food sources. A study has found that climate change has shifted plants’ blooming to earlier times and caused certain plants to move to higher areas, resulting in a decline in pollination.
Another study has found that climate change could lead to a decline in the quality of nectar, which is the main food source for many pollinators. As temperatures rise, the sugar content of nectar decreases, making it less nutritious for pollinators. This leads to a decline in the health and reproductive success of pollinators, as well as a decline in the pollination of plants.
Needless to say, cutting global emissions (排放量) is key. It’s essential that we continue to advocate for emission reductions. From country-level to individual businesses, more concrete roadmaps to net zero are a must.
We must at least minimize, if not prevent, the usage of pesticides, since these chemicals are harmful to pollinators and can have a far-reaching effect on pollination as a whole.
1. What does paragraph 1 try to show?| A．The influence of crop crises. | B．The importance of pollinators. |
| C．The serious challenges faced by humans. | D．The increasing difficulty of crop production. |
| A．Curious. | B．Suspicious. | C．Humorous. | D．Anxious. |
| A．Why chemical pesticides are harmful to pollinators. | B．Causes of the decline in pollinator populations. |
| C．The importance of pollinators to the ecosystem. | D．How climate change has affected pollinators. |
| A．Climate change greatly affects pollination. |
| B．Pollution seriously threatens pollinators survival. |
| C．Global warming contributes to the loss of pollinators’ habitats. |
| D．Improper farming practices cause some pollinators to disappear. |
| A．Starting keeping bees. | B．Reducing pesticide use. |
| C．Increasing the amount of nectar. | D．Building more habitats for pollinators. |
2 . Several new species of tropical birds have been found on remote islands in Indonesia. Researchers have discerned the Wakatobi sunbird, a new species that lives on the small Wakatobi Islands, located in central Indonesia. They also studied olive-backed (橄榄背的) sunbirds and black sunbirds and found that some of the birds they examined actually belonged to some previously unrecognized species.
The new Wakatobi sunbird looks similar to the olive-backed sunbird, but has darker feathers, shorter wings, and a higher-toned song. Zoologists believe that because it has such short wings, it never spread beyond the tiny islands. The olive-backed sunbird, however, can fly long distances, so it was able to inhabit other locations.
These discoveries were part of a long-time cooperation between scientists at Trinity College Dublin and Universitas Halu Oleo in Sulawesi, Indonesia.
“Specifically, we became interested in the Wakatobi sunbird because of the work of Ernst Hartert, a German bird expert active at the beginning of the 20th century,” Fionn O Marcaigh, first author on the paper, says. “He described the Wakatobi sunbird as a population with distinctive dark feathers, but he and the rest of the scientific community eventually decided that it was only a subspecies of the widespread olive-backed sunbird. We were eager to use modern methods to put this to the test.”
For their research, scientists used DNA, recordings of songs and body measurement analysis to compare the sunbirds they studied, “We used a system called integrative taxonomy, which combines data on a number of aspects of the birds, including their songs, feathers, and body structures,” O Marcaigh says. “We recorded their songs using digital recorders, measured live birds caught and released by licensed netters, and used computational statistics to analyze the differences.” The scientists also obtained genetic samples which they analyzed in the lab and they found that the patterns they found were also reflected in the birds’ DNA.
“I’m excited that we’ve added to the list of known species from this wonderful part of the world,” O Marcaigh says.
1. What does the underlined word “discerned” in paragraph 1 probably mean?| A．Overestimated. | B．Imagined. | C．Overlooked. | D．Identified. |
| A．It has colorful wings. | B．It flies shorter distances. |
| C．It lives throughout Indonesia. | D．It sings more beautiful songs. |
| A．He is a scientist from Universitas Halu Oleo. |
| B．He still takes an active part in bird research. |
| C．He is the first scientist to use DNA to study birds. |
| D．He inspired the researchers’ interest in the Wakatobi sunbird. |
| A．To determine its category. | B．To investigate its habitat and behavior. |
| C．To analyze its genetic makeup. | D．To continue the study of Ernst Hartert. |
| A．Its methods. | B．Its theories. | C．Its impact. | D．Its background. |
3 . Dogs have been man’s best friends for 30,000 years — and now scientists think they know why.
Dogs are usually not relaxed in a lab environment, but with a little petting and lots of treats, they can be trained to sit still even in an MRI (磁共振成像) scanner. That’s how researchers at Hungary’s ELTE University were able to get images of their brains at work.
Researcher Attila Andics said it helped them better understand the dogs’ relationship with humans. “We have known for a long time that dogs and humans share similar social environment, but now our results show that dogs and humans also have similar brain mechanisms (方法；机制) to process social information,” said Andics.
After training 11 dogs to stay motionless while their brains were scanned, the researchers checked their neurological (神经系统的) responses to about 200 emotionally significant sounds, from whining and crying to playful barking and laughing. They then compared the responses from human subjects. They found great similarities. Andics said it opened new possibilities for the research.
“It establishes a foundation of a new branch of comparative neuroscience, because until now it was not possible to measure the brain activities of a non-primate and a primate (灵长类) brain in a single experiment,” said Andies.
Evan Maclean, Professor in Duke University, said that the Hungarian results were an important step forward.
“We’ve known for a long time that dogs have a lot of behavioral similarities compared to humans. But we don’t know anything or very little at least about whether some of these behaviors are represented similarly inside the brain of the dog, so this research is providing a first glimpse into whether these behavioral similarities are underlined by similar neural processes,” said MacLean.
The Hungarian scientists tell ordinary dog owners to treat their dog companions as intelligent friends, not mere animals, because they evidently understand human feelings.
1. Why were treats used in the research?| A．To reduce dogs’ nervousness. |
| B．To help dogs live a still life. |
| C．To find out dogs’ favorite food. |
| D．To analyze dogs’ images of brains. |
| A．dogs are unlikely to understand human feelings |
| B．dogs eagerly accept human beings as their best friends |
| C．dogs tend to have different responses to different sounds |
| D．dogs are close to humans in processing social information |
| A．analyzing their physical movements |
| B．observing their facial expressions |
| C．measuring brain activities through scanning |
| D．assessing their different vocalizations |
| A．Treating them as private property. |
| B．Considering them as smart creatures. |
| C．Regarding them as wild animals. |
| D．Viewing them as tools for specific tasks. |
| A．To call on dog owners to treat dogs well. |
| B．To advance the research on dogs’ brains. |
| C．To establish comparative neuroscience. |
| D．To reveal why dogs are men’s best friends. |
4 . Nature can be unforgiving, especially when it comes to the animal world. As such, squirrels need every advantage they can get in order to protect themselves from a variety of predators that may want to make them their next meal. Squirrels pay incredibly close attention to their surroundings, and they pick up alarm calls from other nearby animals in reference to nearby predators. Now, a new study reveals that squirrels also listen to nearby birds’ conversations to make sure there is no threat close by.
Researchers from Oberlin University say that if the talk from birds is relaxing and normal, the squirrel knows it is not in immediate danger. The authors said that squirrels were listening to bird conversations and sounds to assess their safety, so in order to test their theory they observed the behavior of 54 wild Eastern gray squirrels scattered across various parks and areas in Ohio.
First, a threat was shown by playing a record of a red-tailed hawk(鹰), an animal known to hunt and eat both squirrels and other smaller birds. Then, researchers played one of two different recordings; one recording was of many songbirds chattering among one another happily, and the other was with no bird noises. After playing these recordings, each squirrel’s behavior was monitored for three minutes.
As expected, after hearing the initial record, all the squirrels displayed defensive attitudes, such as running away, looking around, or freezing their movements. Interestingly, the squirrels that heard the happy sounds of songbirds returned back to a normal, relaxed state much faster than the other group that heard the quiet sounds.
The study’s authors say that this indicates squirrels use the sounds of nearby animals to ensure their own safety. This allows the squirrel to either get back to what they were doing in a faster manner, or prepare for potential threats more efficiently.
“Perhaps in some circumstances, cues of safety could be as important as cues of danger,” the study reads. The study is published in the scientific journal PLOS ONE.
1. What does the underlined word “predators” mean in the first paragraph?| A．Animals that hunt squirrels as food. |
| B．Animals that make friends with squirrels. |
| C．Animals that hunt squirrels and birds at night. |
| D．Animals that steal the food from the squirrels’ nests. |
| A．They will stay and freeze. |
| B．They will behave normally. |
| C．They will keep on their guard. |
| D．They will look around and run away. |
| A．By studying the different data. |
| B．By listing the different figures. |
| C．By comparing the different responses. |
| D．By playing different games with the squirrels. |
| A．Three interesting experiments. |
| B．Squirrels listen to birds to stay safe. |
| C．Judging danger from nearby sounds. |
| D．Squirrels can record the dangerous sound. |
5 . Foxes in southern England have apparently developed a taste for automobiles. Instead of wanting to drive them, though, they’re eating vital components. The damage hasn’t just cost U.K. drivers thousands in repair bills. The foxes have also caused dangerous accidents when people have taken to the roads without realizing their brakes no longer work.
Already in 2009, police in the southern county of Kent warned drivers to check their cars’ wires and test their brakes before driving. Indeed, for some reason, the foxes seem to find brake lines particularly attractive. With their cars’ cables broken, drivers have had to get their vehicles fixed. That has resulted in occasionally sky-high bills. The damage has also resulted in accidents. Fortunately, we didn’t find any casualties linked to the foxes, but faulty brakes and cables connected to the animals have been behind crashes and stranded (抛锚) vehicles.
To stop the greedy beasts, motorists have tried all manners of techniques. Yet, the most effective way to keep the foxes away they’ve discovered is wrapping their cars in chicken wire. It’s a trouble to constantly have to take the wire off and put it back on, not to mention the potential scrapes and scratches on the paint. But suppose it’s better than having to get your brake lines repaired — again.
But why are the foxes so crazy about biting car cables? Nobody can say for sure, but it’s most likely a sum of multiple causes. First of all, the insulation materials (绝缘材料) on car cables in the U.K. were changed from petroleum-based materials to soy-derived substances some 15 years ago. Rodents (啮齿动物), from rats to squirrels, have been attracted to the vegetable-based coatings and it could be that foxes find them delicious as well. Another reason probably lies in England’s disappearing woodlands. With fewer wild places left, the foxes are increasingly driven towards cities to find food. And then there’s the issue of people feeding them.
“Foolish people have been feeding foxes and treating them as pets,” said animal psychologist Dr. Roger Mugford. “They normally avoid humans and anything’s been touched by humans but if they are getting food given to them, that’s changed.” If some drivers have been feeding foxes. they’ve brought this problem on themselves. Unfortunately, those same foxes will then proceed to haunt the entire neighborhood
1. What have the foxes in southern England done?| A．They have developed a good taste. |
| B．They have eaten drivers’ repair bills. |
| C．They have damaged some parts of the vehicles. |
| D．They have hit cars and caused some accidents. |
| A．The cost of each car repair is very high. |
| B．Police in Kent are helping drivers chase away foxes. |
| C．Foxes biting car cables have caused a number of rollover accidents and deaths. |
| D．Drivers in some areas were warned years ago about the damage caused by foxes. |
| A．It may cause damage to the car. |
| B．It may trap the drivers sometimes. |
| C．It’s easy to be removed and put back on. |
| D．It can be used to repair the brake lines. |
| A．Changes in car cable insulation materials. |
| B．The area of forestland continues to decrease. |
| C．Some people like to feed foxes |
| D．Foxes and rodents are similar in appearance. |
| A．Praising. | B．Supportive. | C．Grateful. | D．Opposed. |
6 . Every year, millions of monarch butterflies migrate 3,000 miles to Mexico from North America. “Everybody knows about the monarchs’ migration,” says Andy Davis, an animal ecologist at the University of Georgia. “But one of the things that we still don’t understand is how they’re capable of making such tremendous flight while being such small animals with limited energy.” Amazingly, some of the monarch’s continent-spanning magic may be owed to the size of its wing spot, according to a study published in PLOS One.
The question of how color influences the monarch’s flight began when Mostafa Hassanalian, a professor of mechanical engineering, published a paper about how the colors on the wings of the albatross (信天翁) might help it fly for longer distances. The black on the top of the bird’s wings absorbs more solar energy, creating a pocket of warm air; the white on the bottom absorbs less. Together, the opposite colors create more lift and less drag, helping the albatross to fly up more efficiently.
Motivated by Hassanalian’s paper, Andy Davis contacted him and they teamed up with three other experts to investigate whether the orange, black. and white patterns on North American monarch butterflies’ wings influenced their flight distance. Specifically, they explored whether these color patterns determined how far the butterflies could fly. They discovered that surviving migratory monarchs had 3% less black pigment (色素) and 3% more white pigment a surprising contrast from the albatross. They also observed larger white spots on Eastern monarchs, which migrate farther than Western and Floridian populations, along with deeper shades of orange. The team assumed that these color patterns might offer an aerodynamic (空气动力) advantage, although the reason for the larger white spots remains unknown.
Should the connection between white markings and flight performance prove true, they plan to apply it to drone technology. “If small coloration (自然色彩) effects can improve like 10% of your efficiency, that’s a lot,” Hassanalian says, “Another aspect is that your drone would be able to carry more, because this coloration helps it gain extra lift.” The enhancement could also benefit other aircraft, but he points out one warning: planes fly at a much faster speed than butterflies, so coloration may not be as relevant to them.
Other butterfly scientists have reacted to their work with both enthusiasm and skeptlesm. “It is a totally new idea and it’s quite exciting,” says Marcus Kronforst, an evolutionary biologist. “I’ve worked on butterfly color patterns my whole life, basically, and never, never considered this. It’s never crossed my mind that it might influence how the butterflies fly.”
1. According to Andy Davis, what remains a mystery of the monarchs’ migration?| A．How the monarchs manage the migration. |
| B．Why the monarchs make the migration. |
| C．Why the monarchs migrate to Mexico |
| D．How the monarchs choose the route. |
| A．To reveal the mechanism of the albatross’ flight. |
| B．To show Hassanalian’s achievements in albatross study. |
| C．To indicate where the researchers drew their inspiration. |
| D．To introduce common color patterns of the albatross’ wings. |
| A．They reduce orange pigment. | B．They limit migration distance. |
| C．They resemble albatross spots. | D．They offer extra lift for migration. |
| A．By conducting an experiment. | B．By making comparisons. |
| C．By doing field research. | D．By studying models. |
| A．Scientifically curious. | B．Cautiously optimistic. |
| C．Technologically skeptical. | D．Environmentally concerned. |
7 . Dozens of dolphins swam out of the polluted waters of Haifa Harbor on Tuesday. This was the first time that dolphins had visited this crowded Mediterranean Port, and researchers were surprised by the unexpected event.
Between 40 and 50 of the dolphins appeared in the busy port on Tuesday morning, obviously drawn by the fish-rich waters of Haifa Bay.
However, the bay is also full of harmful chemicals. Avia d Sheinin, professor of Haifa University’s Maritime Studies Department, said he didn’t think the dolphins were harmed by the pollution, but that he hoped they would swim back to the sea soon. “It seems that they are quite relaxed. They don’t seem to be stressed,” he said.
Haifa Bay is lined by chemical companies that have been pouring poisonous waste into the water for decades. While pollution levels have dropped in recent years, the water is still considered a health hazard, whispering warnings to those who draw near.
“There are lots of fishes in Haifa Port. Unfortunately, we couldn’t tell the dolphins that the fish are not healthy, and I don’t know what the result will be,” he told Israel Army Radio.
Hundreds of Haifa residents gathered around Haifa Bay to see the interesting sight, and researchers said this provided a rare chance to film and study the rough-toothed dolphins. In addition to the dozens of dolphins which swam into the port on Tuesday, a similar number stayed outside the breakwater (防波堤). Later Tuesday the dolphins left the port but remained near the entrance and Israel’s coastguard was patrolling (巡逻) the area to try to make sure the dolphins didn’t re-enter the poisonous waters.
Relatively little is known about rough-toothed dolphins, which are usually found in deep and warm tropical waters.
1. What cause the dolphins to appear at Haifa Harbor?| A．Clean water. | B．Food supply. |
| C．Social behavior. | D．Water temperature. |
| A．Danger. | B．Benefit. |
| C．Plan. | D．Survey. |
| A．He is curious about the dolphins. |
| B．He will do research on the dolphins. |
| C．He is uncertain about what will happen to the dolphins. |
| D．The dolphins might affect the existence of fish in Haifa port. |
| A．To avoid traffic jam. |
| B．To deal with the harmful waters. |
| C．To prevent people killing dolphins. |
| D．To protect the dolphins from the polluted waters. |
| A．People love dolphins. |
| B．Dolphins are well protected in Israel. |
| C．Haifa Bay is full of harmful chemicals. |
| D．Dolphins made a surprise visit to the polluted harbor. |
8 . Check out these stories of some animals.
The cat Homer
Homer the blind cat weighs only four pounds. Gwen Cooper adopted him when he was three weeks old. One night his growling (狂吠) wakes up Cooper, He’s never growled before. Surprised, Cooper opens her eyes. A burglar is standing at the foot of her bed! Cooper reaches for her phone to call 911.
“Don’t do that!” the burglar says. The sound of his voice shows his exact location, and blind Homer leaps. No match for a cat with sharp claws, the would-be robber flees.
The dog Geo
Geo follows 10-year-old Charlie Rilcy everywhere. One day Charlie, his mom, and two younger brothers are standing at a street corner. Geo is sitting at Charlie’s side. Suddenly, an out-of-control truck is heading straight for Charlie!
But Geo makes a flying leap. “He hits me so hard that I fall over,” Charlie says. The speeding truck hits Geo instead. Geo is rushed to the animal hospital.
The dog Teddy
It’s 3 a.m. in West Jordan, Utah. A mother and two children stand outside as firefighters hose (用软管浇) water on their burning house. “Is anybody inside?” the firemen ask.
The mom says no, because she feels certain that her older son escaped out the back. But just to be sure, Don Chase and his partner plunge (冲入) through the flames to look.
And what do they find? Teddy the pet dog standing by the door. Chase reaches for him, but Teddy runs down the basement stairs. Midway down, he stops and waits. But just as the firemen reach him, he takes off again. “I’m really maddened.”Chase says. “We’re wasting time chasing a dog when we should be searching for human victims.”
Then they see him — the older son, unconscious on a basement couch. Grabbing his legs and chest, the astonished firemen move him to safety, as Teddy runs behind.
1. How does Homer know where the burglar is?| A．Cooper shows him. | B．He sees the burglar. |
| C．Through the burglar’s voice. | D．Through the burglar’s actions. |
| A．interested | B．surprised | C．excited | D．annoyed |
| A．Real animal heroes | B．Funny stories about pets |
| C．How to take care of your pets? | D．Why arc dogs better pets than cats? |
9 . Could animals from the past one day walk among us? One company is now looking to introduce extinct(已灭绝的) animals into the real world.
US company Colossal Biosciences announced on Jan 31 that it would be trying to bring back to life the dodo—a large bird that was native to the island of Mauritius in the Indian ocean. They lived there until the 17th century.
“[The place] to reintroduce the dodo into the wild would be Mauritius,” Ben Lamm, the co-founder of the company told The Guardian. A reintroduction of dodos to the ecosystem of the island, instead of just being a novelty(新奇), is thought to potentially bring benefits to the endemic (地方性的) plants and other animals that already live there.
Having discovered the genetic code(基因序列) of extinct animals from their remains, the company seeks to change the DNA of currently living creatures to make them close to the animal of the past. The Nicobar pigeon(尼柯巴鸠) will be used as the genetic base for the dodo, according to MIT Technology Review.
The company also has plans for other extinct animals. When the company first formed in 2021, it announced its plans to bring back mammoths(猛犸象). They believe that mammoths introduced to the Arctic regions could help tackle climate change as they turn the wet tundra(苔原) into sunlight-reflecting dry grasslands by cating the grass, according to The New Yorker.
However, some people are skeptical. According to BBC Science Focus, with a third of all bird species currently in decline, strategies to protect existing species are needed more than ever instead of focusing on animals of the past.
Despite the lack of consensus (共识), it has yet to be seen if this miracle of science can actually be pulled off. A real-life Jurassic Park isn’t likely to open anytime soon.
1. What do we know about dodos, according to the text?| A．They were native to the island of Mauritius. | B．They died out around the 19th century. |
| C．They will be reintroduced into India. | D．They could help slow down climate change. |
| A．The remains of the dodo. | B．The Nicobar pigeon. |
| C．The mammoth. | D．The current DNA data bank. |
| A．They think extinct animals are not important. |
| B．They think the plans will not work in practice. |
| C．They believe the plans go against nature. |
| D．They believe protecting existing species is more necessary. |
| A．It’s worth trying. | B．It sounds risky. |
| C．It will bring many benefits. | D．It still has a long way to go. |
10 . Scientists have discovered a new structure that allows lunge feeding whales, also called rorqual whales (长须鲸), to take in massive amounts of water without choking.
To capture prey (猎物), rorqual whales use a method called lunge feeding. They speed up, and take in a volume of water large enough to fill their entire bodies.
Scientists didn’t know how these whales avoided choking on prey—filled water and flooding their respiratory tracts (呼吸道) during a lunge feeding event. Now Dr. Gil and his colleagues have discovered a large structure that they’ve termed the “oral plug” —a structure never before described in any other animal—that they think makes lunge feeding possible.
Dr. Gil and his colleagues analyzed dead fin whales. By physically dissecting (解剖) the mass of muscle and tissue that plug the back of the whale’s mouth, the researchers determined that when the animal is at rest, the plug blocks off the whale’s pharynx (咽道), a tube-shaped structure that leads to both the respiratory and digestive tracts. When a whale lunges, the “oral plug” protects both tracts from being flooded by the water and the living creatures that the animal has taken in.
When the animal is ready to swallow its latest meal, the oral plug shifts upward to protect the upper respiratory tract. At the same time, the larynx (喉) closes up and shifts downward, blocking the lower respiratory tract. In other words, during swallowing, the pharynx only leads to the digestive tract.
“This fills in a blank that we didn’t even know really existed,” said Dr. Gil of the team’s findings. Ari Friedlaender, who studies whale feeding behaviors at the University of California but was not involved in this research, sees great value in filling in these anatomical blanks about whales.
“The more we can understand how they develop these means for being able to eat so much, the more we understand about what their abilities are, and how they function as part of marine ecosystems,” Dr. Friedlaender said.
1. Which words can best describe the lunge feeding method of rorqual whales?①speedy ②massive ③precise
| A．②③ | B．①② | C．①③ | D．①②③ |
| A．It just blocks off the two airways when the whale rests. |
| B．It just protects the upper airway when the whale swallows. |
| C．It just blocks the lower airway when the whale lunges. |
| D．It ensures that the meals and water just go into the pharynx. |
| A．Dr. Friediaender shared his findings of whale feeding behavior with Dr. Gril. |
| B．Dr. Friedlaender praised the research for it further explains how marine ecosystems function. |
| C．Dr. Friedlaender will cooperate with Dr. Gil and his team for the future research. |
| D．Dr. Gil was probably surprised to find the existence of the “oral plug”. |
| A．Negative. | B．Indifferent. | C．Cautious. | D．Positive. |
| A．Why do whales lunge for food? | B．Why don’t whales choke? |
| C．Why do whales have respiratory tracts? | D．Why are whales unique? |
