1 . How can a creature weighing over 5 tons and normally taking 150 kilograms of food and 120 liters of water per day survive in a desert environment?

In the southwest African country of Namibia, and the Sahara lands of Mali further north, the desert elephant does just that.

Although not regarded as a separate species from the African elephant, the desert cousin differs in many ways. Their bodies are smaller, to absorb less heat, and their feet are larger for easier walking across sandy surfaces. They are taller, to reach higher branches. They have shorter tusks (象牙), and most importantly, longer trunks to dig for water in riverbeds.

Desert elephants can travel over 70 kilometers in search for feeding grounds and waterholes, and have a larger group of families, They drink only every 3-4 days, and can store water in a “bag” at the back of their throat, which is only used when badly needed. Desert elephants are careful feeders — they seldom root up trees and break fewer branches, and thus keep what little food sources are available. Yong elephants may even eat the dung (粪便)of the female leader of a group when facing food shortage.

During drought (干旱) they are unlikely to give birth to their young but with good rains the birthrate will increase greatly. Desert elephants have sand baths, sometimes adding their own urine (尿液) to make them muddy!

As we continue to overheat our weak planet, it can only be hoped that other animal species will adapt (适应) as extraordinarily well to change as the desert elephant.

1. The underlined part in Paragraph 2 means “_______”.

A．remains in the African countries

B．drinks 120 liters of water a day

C．manages to live in desert areas

D．eats 150 kilograms of food daily

2. Desert elephants are called careful feeders because they_______.

A．rarely ruin trees

B．drink only every 3-4 days

C．search for food in large groups

D．protect food sources for their young

3. What can be inferred from the last sentence in the passage?

A．Overheating the earth can be stopped.

B．Not all animal species are so adaptable.

C．The planet will become hotter and hotter.

D．Not all animals are as smart as desert elephants.

2 . Population data for European mountain birds have been for the first time combined in a recent study, with worrying results: the abundances of mountain-specialist birds has declined by as much as 10% in the 2000s.

Ecological communities in mountain areas include species not found in any other habitats. These species are also very susceptible to climate change, as global warming is reducing their liveable habitats. In principle, species may relocate further up the mountains, but closer to the top their habitat inevitably shrinks.

According to the new article, the abundance of European mountain birds has in fact declined in line with climate change projections.

The recently released study examined the population trends of 44 bird species in the 2000s in the mountain and fell regions of Fennoscandia, Great Britain, the Alps and the Iberian Peninsula. A decline was seen in 14 of the observed species, while eight of them saw significant increase.

“On average, population decline among the species studied was 7% over the 13-year research period, making the situation of mountain birds distinctly worse compared to, for example, European forest birds, whose numbers did not change during the same period,” explains Aleksi Lehikoinen, an Academy of Finland research fellow at the Finnish Museum of Natural History Luomus (part of the University of Helsinki), who headed the study.

The situation is the direst for species that only inhabit mountain regions and are unable to live in other European environments. For these species, known as mountain specialists, the numbers dwindled by as much as 10% during the monitoring period.

1. What can we get from the passage about European mountain birds?

A．They are newly found species.

B．They can be found at any place of the world.

C．The number of the birds has decreased greatly.

D．The number of the birds has increased greatly.

2. Why did the liveable habitats of the species reduce?

A．Air pollutions.

B．Global warming.

C．Human activities.

D．Competition with other species.

3. Which one is TRUE according to a recently released study?

A．All 44 bird species decreased.

B．Only 8 of the species declined.

C．14 of the observed species declined.

D．There was no change in the number of the bird species.

4. What does the word “direst” mean in the last paragraph?

A．Serious.	B．Useful.
C．Suitable.	D．Waterless.

3 . When I was a baby, I entertained you and made you laugh．Whenever I was “bad”, you’d shake your finger at me and ask: “How could you?”—— but then you’d give up, and roll me over for a belly scratch and I believed that life could not be any more perfect．

My housetraining was a long process, because you were terribly busy, but we worked on that together. We went for long walks, runs in the park and car rides. We stopped for ice cream. I took long naps in the sun waiting for you to come home at the end of the day.

Gradually, you began spending more time at work and on your career, and more time searching for a human mate. Eventually, you fell in love. She, now your wife, is not a dog person, but I still welcomed her into our home. I was happy because you were happy. Then the human babies came along and I shared your excitement, I was fascinated by their pinkness, how they smelled, and I wanted to mother them too. Your wife was afraid I would bite them. But nevertheless, as they began to grow, I became their friend.

Now, you have a new job in another city and you and they will be moving to an apartment that does not allow pets. You’ve made the right decision for your “family”, but there was a time when I was your only family.

I was excited about the car ride until we arrived at the dog pound. It smelled of dogs and cats, of fear, of hopelessness. You filled out the paperwork and said: “I know you will find a good home for her.” They shrugged and gave you a pained look. The children were in tears as they waved me goodbye. And “How could you?” were the only three words that swept over my mind.

Is it better to live with hope or without hope? At first, whenever anyone passed my pen, I rushed to the front, hoping it was you, that you had changed your mind and that this was all a bad dream.

My beloved master, I will think of you and wait for you forever. I hope you receive more faithfulness from your family than you showed to me.

1. Who tells this story?

A．A dog.

B．A child.

C．A dog’s owner.

D．A dog trainer.

2. Why did the dog’s owner take his dog to the pound?

A．He had a newborn baby.	B．His wife did not like the dog.
C．He was moving into a new building.	D．He thought the dog tootroublesome.

3. Which is true about the dog when it lived at the pound?

A．It hoped to be adopted by another family.	B．It continued to love its former owner.
C．It did not trust humans any more.	D．It was excited about the pound.

4. Which of the following words can be used to describe the dog?

A．relieved

B．aggressive

C．scared

D．loyal

4 . Scientists say a huge percentage of bird species are in danger because their habitats, or homelands, are disappearing.

Traditional migration paths take birds through countries that are not protecting the places for birds to stop, rest and feed. The scientists studied the migration or flight paths of almost 1,500 species. They decided that 91 percent of them passed through dangerous areas.

The major danger for migratory birds is development. Buildings and pavements have covered the places where birds stop and feed as they move from one part of the world to another. One of the scientists who worked on the study says “Many of these important places have been lost to land reclamation because of urban, industrial and agricultural land expansion”.

The problem, according to scientists, is that many of these small birds die along their migration paths because they don’t have a safe place to feed and rest. There is no place to restore their energy for the next part of their journey. Countries in North Africa, Central Asia and those along the coasts of East Asia are having the most difficult time in protecting land. The scientists say these countries do not have enough areas that are safe for birds. One species that doesn’t exist now is the Eskimo curlew. “Our world gets poorer every time we lose a species,” one of the scientists says.

The researchers say countries need to work together and come up with safe stopping areas for birds that pass through their boundaries. For example, one country might have preserved safe zones for migrating birds. But a neighbor country might not. A bird might die.

One scientist who is not connected with the report tells Los Angeles Times that while some habitats are changing, more work can be done to make urban areas safe for birds.

He says small changes, like planting more native plants or keeping cats out of the areas birds would be likely to use, could make a big difference.

1. What mainly caused the disappearing of birds’ habitats?

A．The decrease of awareness to protect birds.	B．Natural disasters.
C．Overuse of land by human beings.	D．The rising sea level.

2. What may be the main reason for many birds’ death on the way of migration?

A．Tiredness and hunger.	B．Beast attack on the ground.
C．Hunting of humans.	D．The long journey.

3. According to the last two paragraphs, how should we protect the migrating birds?

A．By keeping fewer cats or dogs.

B．By restoring their destroyed habitats.

C．By helping change the birds’ migration paths.

D．By preserving the ecological environments on their migration paths.

4. What is the author’s purpose in writing the passage?

A．To call on people to protect the birds’ habitats.

B．To analyze the reasons for disappearing of birds’ habitats.

C．To offer some solutions to the problem of birds’ habitats.

D．To tell us a huge percentage of bird species are in danger.

5 . Unbelievable Stories of Animals Acting Just Like Humans

Horses are picky eaters

Horses have an even better sense of smell than humans do. When horses raise their noses and open their nostrils (鼻孔), their nervous system allows them to sense smells we can’t sense. This might explain why they refuse dirty water and carefully move around meadows, eating only the tastiest grasses, experts say.

Whale says thanks

In 2018, a whale expert spotted a humpback whale trapped in a fishing net and spent an hour freeing it. Afterward, in an hour-long display of thanks, the whale swam near their boat and leaped into the air about 40 times.

Pandas like to be naughty

Is there anything more lovely than a baby panda, except maybe a human baby? In fact, baby pandas sometimes behave like human babies. They sleep in the same positions and value their thumbs. Pandas are shy by nature for its shy behaviors such as covering its face with a paw or ducking its head when confronted by a stranger.

A cat honors its owner

Paper towels, and a plastic cup are just a few of the gifts that Toldo, a devoted three-year-old gray-and-white cat, has placed on his former owner Iozzelli Renzo’s grave every day since the man died in September 2018. Renzo adopted Toldo from a shelter when the cat was three months old, and the two formed an inseparable bond. After Renzo passed away, Toldo followed the coffin to the cemetery, and now “stands guard” the grave for hours at a time.

1. What can horses do to pick delicious grasses?

A．Feel them.

B．Taste them.

C．Smell them.

D．Observe them.

2. What do the whale and the cat have in common according to the passage?

A．They are clever.

B．They have a grateful heart.

C．They are active and lovely.

D．They have a good sense of smell.

3. Which of the following acts like a human baby according to the passage?

A．The whale

B．The cat.

C．The horse.

D．The panda.

6 . The Amazon rainforest is as undisturbed a place as most people can imagine, but even there, the effects of a changing climate are playing out. Now, research suggests that many of the region’s most sensitive bird species are starting to evolve in response to warming.

Birds are often considered sentinel (哨兵) species — meaning that they indicate the overall health of an ecosystem — so scientists are particularly interested in how they’re responding to climate change. In general, the news has not been good. For instance, a 2019 report by the National Audubon Society found that more than two-thirds of North America’s bird species will be in danger of extinction by 2100 if warming trends continue on their current course.

For the new study, researchers collected the biggest database so far on the Amazon’s resident birds, representing 77 non-migratory species and lasting the 40 years from 1979 to 2019. During the study period, the average temperature in the region rose, while the amount of rainfall declined, making for a hotter, dryer climate overall. According to the report on November 12 in the journal Science Advances, 36 species have lost substantial weight, as much as 2 percent of their body weight per decade since 1980. Meanwhile, all the species showed some decrease in average body mass, while a third grew longer wings.

Because of the study’s long time series and large sample sizes, the authors were able to show the morphological (形态学的) effects of climate change on resident birds. However, the researchers themselves are unsure and wonder what advantage the wing length changes give the birds, but suppose smaller birds may have an easier time keeping cool. In general, smaller animals have a larger rate of surface area to body size, so they dissipate more heat faster than a bigger animal. Less available food, such as fruit or insects, in dryer weather might lead to smaller body size.

1. Why are scientists fond of doing research on birds?

A．They have small body sizes.	B．They are sensitive to hot weather.
C．They are ecological balance indicators.	D．They live in an undisturbed rainforest.

2. What can we learn from the new study?

A．Two-thirds of species showed a considerable decrease in weight.

B．About 26 species responded to climate change with longer wings.

C．36 species lost 2% of their body weight every year from 1979 to 2019.

D．A third of species have been extinct for a decade due to the hotter climate.

3. What does the underlined word “dissipate” in the last paragraph mean?

A．Put off.

B．Give off.

C．Put away.

D．Give away.

4. What would probably the researchers further study?

A．Why it is easier for smaller animals to keep cool.

B．Why the Amazonian birds have lost substantial weight.

C．Whether bird species in Amazon will be extinct in 2100.

D．What effects the wing length changes have on birds.

7 . 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。

Saving nature is at the very heart of what we do as World Wildlife Fund(WF). For nearly 60 years, we have made it our mission    1    (find)solutions that save the amazing herd of life on our planet by     2     (apply)the best science available and working closely with local    3     (community). But our work is far from done. Humans     4     (be)behind the present rate of species extinction,     5     is at least 10—1, 000 times    6     (high) than nature intended. We’ve seen     7     surprising 60% drop in the size of populations of mammals, birds, fish and reptiles in just over 40 years, according to WWF’s Living Planet Report 2018. And the influences will reach far beyond the possible cultural loss of some species like tigers, rhinos and whales. The good news is that we’ve also seen what’s working. WWF has been part of     8     (success)wildlife recovery stories, from southern Africa’s black rhinos     9     blackbucks(印度羚羊)in the Himalayas. And this, in turn, is helping to protect rich and various ecosystems while ensuring people continue benefiting from nature.

This is clear: we cannot afford to fail in     10     (we)mission to save a living planet.

9 . People have been wondering why elephants do not develop cancer even though they have lifespans(寿命)that are similar to humans, living for around 50 to 70 years.

Now scientists believe they know why. A team at the University of Chicago, US has found that elephants carry a large number of genes that stop tumors(肿瘤)developing. To be precise, they found 20 copies of an anti-tumor gene called TP53 in elephants. Most other species, including humans, only carry one copy.

According to the research, the extra copies of the gene improved the animal’s sensitivity to DNA damage, which lets the cells quickly kill themselves when damaged before they can go on to form deadly tumors.

“An increased risk of developing cancer has stood in the way of the evolution of large body sizes in many animals,” the study author Dr Vincent Lynch told The Guardian. If every living cell has the same chance of becoming cancerous(癌变的),large creatures with a long lifespan like whales and elephants should have a greater risk of developing cancer than humans and mice. But across species, the risk of cancer does not show a connection with body mass.

This phenomenon was found by Oxford University scientist Richard Peto in the 1970s and later named “Peto’s paradox(悖论)”. Biologists believe it results from larger animals using protection that many smaller animals do not. In the elephant’s case, the making of TP53 is nature’s way of keeping this species alive.

The study also found that when the same genes were brought to life in mice, they had the same cancer resistance as elephants. This means researchers could use the discovery to develop new treatments that can help stop cancers spreading or even developing in the first place.

“Nature has already figured out how to prevent cancer,” said Joshua Schiffman, a biologist at the School of Medicine, University of Utah, US. “It’s up to us to learn how different animals deal with the problem so that we can use those strategies to prevent cancer in people.”

1. Why are elephants unlikely to develop cancer?

A．Certain genes in their body kill existing tumors.

B．They have a rather large body size.

C．They carry many genes to prevent tumors developing.

D．Their genes suffer no DNA damage.

2. According to the passage, what has been a risk in the evolution of large animals?

A．The huge body mass.

B．Deadly tumors.

C．Cells killing themselves.

D．Sensitivity to DNA damage.

3. What does the underlined part “This phenomenon” in Paragraph 5 probably refer to?

A．The risk of cancer is not related to body size.

B．Larger animals have protection from TP53.

C．Larger animals suffer the same risk of cancer as smaller ones.

D．The larger animals are, the bigger risk of cancer they will have.

4. What can be concluded from the passage?

A．Depending on nature is surely enough to fight against cancer.

B．The TP53 genes have proved useful in stopping cancer in people.

C．The extra copies of elephants’ genes are used to cure cancer patients.

D．Humans are expected to prevent cancer with the making of TP53.