As the severe winter conditions set in, the Chinese merganser (秋沙鸭) starts its annual migration (迁徙). These birds leave northeastern China
The Chinese merganser, a species
The significant presence of the Chinese mergansers in the wetlands of Jingmen City is
2 . The Best Houseplants for Every Space and Situation
The best indoor plants are the ones that suit your aesthetic (审美的) preferences and aren’t too difficult to maintain. Here’s what you need to know about these different categories of houseplants, so you can choose the ones that work best in your own home.
Low-light Indoor Plants
Not every home has a large bay window for plants to soak up the sunshine. Fortunately, there’s a large variety of plants that aren’t die-hard sun-worshippers. Whether you have a dim corner that’s crying out for a little greenery or you’re craving some color in your bedroom, the best low-light indoor plants don’t require a lot of time or energy.
Tall Indoor Plants
Tall houseplants can instantly bring a space to life by adding definition and texture (质感) to any home-decor style. Working with limited space? Not a problem. You can still make the most of tall indoor plants. Even just one of them can be a striking visual point for a room, and it can help draw the eye upward, making the room appear larger.
Small Indoor Plants
Just because you don’t have a mansion doesn’t mean you can’t have a lush indoor garden. There are plenty of plants that grow in smaller spaces, the teeniest of which can look adorable like a tiny family on a windowsill or shelf. Keep in mind, however, that the smaller the pot is, the quicker the soil will dry out.
Indoor Hanging Plants
What makes indoor hanging plants so special? They fill a blank space in a room with a beautiful silhouette, for starters. They create the illusion (假象) of a jungle, where plants peek out at different heights. They also move the eye upward, opening up the space.
1. What do tall indoor plants and indoor hanging plants have in common?| A．They do with limited space. | B．They fill a space like a jungle. |
| C．They match any decor style. | D．They improve visual effect. |
| A．Low-light indoor plants. | B．Tall indoor plants. |
| C．Small indoor plants. | D．Indoor hanging plants. |
| A．Gardening. | B．Health. | C．Fashion. | D．Wildlife. |
3 . When Zhou Longshan started filming birds 10 years ago at Baiyangdian Lake, a major wetland in northern China, he just wanted to record his favorite species—egrets. Then, things snowballed. In the following years, the teacher became a bird-watcher, a volunteer ranger at the lake, a photographer documenting over 110 bird species and an educator popularizing bird-related information among students.” Sharing bird-protection knowledge with children can make them feel the beauty of their hometown and the importance of birds, and help them cultivate the habit of protecting birds from an early age,” he says.
Over time, Zhou’s interest in birds continued to grow. In 2021, he was appointed as a bird observer by the natural resources bureau (自然资源局) of Anxin county, responsible for conducting regular patrols (巡逻) and popularizing bird-related knowledge. To monitor birds, Zhou would ride a bike to Baiyangdian almost every day before dawn, whatever the weather. He would record the birds appearing at the lake, along with their locations, where they fed and when they migrated, thus providing reference data for staff members of the natural resources bureau of Anxin county.
Although Zhou takes delight in the role, there are still many challenges. Sometimes, he has to navigate earth embankments on his bike. One summer day in 2021, he fell into a ditch with water more than a meter deep, resulting in water damage to his cellphone.
However, these difficult episodes have not undermined Zhou’s love of birds. Over the years, he has taken more than 100,000 pictures of the birds at Baiyangdian. During his spare time, he reads books on China’s birds, talks with other enthusiasts and university professors, and updates his WeChat official account to introduce Baiyangdian to a wider audience.
These days, Zhou’s schedule is growing busier. In addition to his regular patrols near the lake, he is sometimes invited to local schools to give lectures, keeping students informed about birds and how to protect them. Zhou will retire next month. “I will continue patrolling the lake and photographing the birds to contribute to the protection of birds in my hometown,” he says.
1. Why did Zhou start taking photos of birds at first?| A．To share bird-protection knowledge with children. |
| B．To cultivate the habit of protecting birds. |
| C．To keep track of his favorite species. |
| D．To become a volunteer ranger at the lake. |
| A．He rode a bike to Baiyangdian every day before dawn. |
| B．He went to Baiyangdian in all weathers. |
| C．He recorded all the birds along with their locations. |
| D．He provided reference data for natural resources bureau. |
| A．He didn’t meet any challenges while doing the job. |
| B．He reads books about birds all over the world in his free time. |
| C．He is invited to local schools to give lectures every day. |
| D．He uses social media to introduce Baiyangdian to more people. |
| A．Enthusiastic and controlling. | B．Knowledgeable and persistent. |
| C．Farsighted and reserved. | D．Considerate and stubborn. |
On a cold winter day years ago, I slipped in the snow in the wilderness and broke my legs. As I lay on the ground, unable to move my body, I believed I was fated to freeze to death. My dog, Becky, however, didn't run away. Instead, she determined to save me. She lay on top of me to keep me warm for many hours, barking continually until help arrived, long after I lost consciousness. Eventually, I was saved.
A few cold winters later, Becky was discovered to have a baseball-sized lump (肿块) on her belly. Before long, my husband Bob took Becky for surgery to remove the lump. To take care of my babies, I had to stay at home, filled with anxious thoughts. After her surgery, when Bob left to pick her up, it was snowing heavily. Becky could barely walk, so Bob carried her.
They couldn't get in the door easily because Becky was wearing a big, hard plastic cone(圆锥体) around her neck to prevent her from licking her sutures (伤口缝合线). I held the door wide open. She was sad and crying. There was snow inside her cone. It took over five minutes to get them in because Becky shook her head wildly to try to remove the cone. The sound of the con e hitting the door made her panic and cry even louder.
Once inside, she was so frightened that she kept her tail between her legs. She thought she had done something wrong. Her expression said, “I’m sorry for what I did that led to me having to wear this.” Because of her surgery, Becky wouldn't take her special treat of a cube of cheese. She wouldn’t sit or lie down. All she did was stand and cry. “How long will she have to wear it ?” I asked. “Two weeks,” Bob replied.
“It’s my turn to take good care of her, just as she did for me years ago,” I thought.
Paragraph 1:Then, I stayed with her on the floor, helping her get through her firs tough night.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Paragraph 2:
Eventually, the day arrived when Bob took her to have her sutures removed.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________5 . Have you always dreamed of having a garden,but thought you didn’t have enough space (空间)?
Plan your layout (布局) carefully.
Make use of vertical (垂直的) space. One of the best ways to make the most of your small garden is to use vertical gardening skills. Vertical gardening is an excellent way to add more greenery to your small garden without taking up too much space.
Include the eatable into your garden. Growing your own food is not only satisfying,but it can also save you money on groceries Even if you only have a small garden. you can still consider growing various fruits,vegetables, which can be grown ta containers like boxes and pots.
With these tips in mind,you can create a beautiful and productive garden in even the smallest space. Happy gardening!
| A．Follow design rules. |
| B．It’s time to think again. |
| C．Choose suitable plants. |
| D．First,owning a garden is important. |
| E．You can grow plants on walls or ladders. |
| F．Before planting. think about how to use your garden. |
| G．They can provide fresh and delicious food throughout the season. |
6 . Here are four organizations that rescue and train shelter dogs to be service animals.
Merlin’s Kids
Merlin’s Kids is a wonderful organization that rescues and trains shelter dogs to become service animals for children and adults with special needs for physical or emotional support. Merlin’s Kids dogs are also trained for disease detection by screening people for cancer, diabetes and so on. Other dogs have been used to go into hospitals or assist living facilities. In the public’s eyes, these working dogs have proved that shelter animals are amazing.
Pets for Vets (退伍军人)
This organization recognizes that many veterans return home with scars, both seen and unseen,which makes it difficult for them to live a normal life. Many suffer from severe anxiety. Pets for Vets was founded to rescue and train shelter animals to provide therapy (治疗) dogs for the retired service people.
Paws with a Cause
This organization has been around since 1979 and improves the independence and quality of life for people with disabilities. Paws with a Cause specializes in helping people with disabilities complete essential tasks and the pups can open doors, pull a wheelchair, alert (使警觉) a hearing-impaired person, and offer help whenever necessary.
Service Dog Express
This organization’s motto is “A dog’s life saved, a human’s life enriched” and believes that the connect ion between the service dog and his or her person is life transforming. Service Dog Express specializes in the training of service dogs for wounded service people. People in need of a service dog are encouraged to go to a rescue organization to choose a dog. This reduces the cost of services and saves a dog who may otherwise have been out to sleep.
1. What do we know about shelter dogs from Merlin’s Kids?| A．They can cure people of cancer. |
| B．They often bring the public amazement. |
| C．They repair living facilities in the hospital. |
| D．They benefit ones with physical and mental health problems. |
| A．Merlin’s Kids. | B．Pets for Vets. | C．Paws with a Cause. | D．Service Dog Express. |
| A．It teaches dogs to pull a wheelchair. | B．It focuses on injured soldiers. |
| C．It charges for services. | D．Its motto moves people in need. |
7 . For Christina and her team, planting trees isn’t the only goal. She hopes to employ residents, especially youth, to get their hands in the dirt and see how they can grow change.
Groundwork Bridgeport hired a team of youth and trained them to provide ongoing care for trees in the community (社区). They serve the neighborhoods where they live, monitoring the trees, providing basic care, and connecting with their neighbors. Their “patrolling” is improving each tree’s longevity while giving them valuable experience and a good payment.
“We’re using data and technology to be able to find even down to the specific city block of where trees are needed the most,” said Amy Lester, Ventures Project Coordinator, Arbor Day Foundation. With a NatureQuant NatureScore® of 10, the east Bridgeport neighborhood was flagged as desperately needing trees. NatureQuant is a tech and research company that helps the Arbor Day Foundation determine where trees are needed most in urban spaces.
The most recent program that happened in partnership with the Arbor Day Foundation was a tree giveaway. Fifty trees were given to residents of the neighborhood identified by NatureQuant.
Residents showed their support for the effort by coming out in full force. They know what the trees mean to their community, to their health, to the next generation of those growing up in east Bridgeport.
1. What did Groundwork Bridgeport hire a youth team to do?| A．To cut down trees. | B．To provide guidance. |
| C．To care for trees. | D．To get a good payment. |
| A．By counting numbers. | B．By using technology. |
| C．By giving away trees. | D．By observing trees. |
| A．Far-reaching. | B．One-sided. | C．Short-lived. | D．Time-wasting. |
| A．A Tree Planting Plan by Groundwork Bridgeport |
| B．Employ the Next Generation of Tree Planters |
| C．A Tree Giveaway Program to Communities |
| D．Tree Planting Cooperation Between Communities |
1. How long did Mike work on his school paper?
| A．3 hours. | B．2 hours. | C．1 hour. |
| A．It got injured. | B．It became trapped. | C．It was lost. |
| A．He fed it. |
| B．He saved it by himself. |
| C．He called for help. |
| A．Opposed. | B．Supportive. | C．Indifferent. |
9 . Recently a report was made public by NatureServe, a Virginia-based environmental group, which said 40 percent of animals and 34 percent of plants in the United States are at risk of disappearing.
The group examined data from over 1,000 scientists in the United States and Canada, using 50 years of information on the health of animals, plants and ecosystems. The report provided pictures and maps of areas that are unprotected and where animals and plants are most threatened.
Sean O’Brien, president of NatureServe, said what the report showed was dreadful. For example, among the species (物种) at risk of extinction is the Venus flytrap, a plant that “eats” insects. The report said it is only found in the wild in a few places in the states of North and South Carolina. The report also said 200 species of trees might die out and that America’s large northern grasslands are among the ecosystems most threatened. The main threats to plants, animals and ecosystems include environmental destruction (破坏), land-use change, river pollution, and climate change, according to the report.
California, Texas and the southeastern United States are where the highest percentages of plants, animals and ecosystems are at risk. Those areas have many different forms of life. Wesley Knapp, head plant scientist at NatureServe, said those parts of America haven’t seen much population growth in recent years. Knapp said lawmakers usually do not provide as much money for protecting plants as they do for animals. He hoped the data could guide state and area officials in creating effective State Wildlife Action Plan (SWAP) to protect endangered species.
Now $50 million nationwide is shared among all states to carry out their SWAP. If the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act was passed, it would increase that amount to $ 1.4 billion. Knapp said the bill would have better served the protection of plants and animals.
1. What can we infer about the environmental group?| A．It has been running for 50 years. | B．It has saved 40 kinds of animals. |
| C．It put much effort into the report. | D．It just protects threatened plants. |
| A．Pleasant. | B．Similar. | C．Common. | D．Terrible. |
| A．It could play an active role. | B．It may cover all the species. |
| C．It might help reduce the cost. | D．It will take the place of SWAP. |
| A．The Protection by Law Making Sense | B．Many US Animals and Plants at Risk |
| C．State Wildlife Action Plan on the Way | D．NatureServe Working for a Green World |
1. What did the teacher do to his plants?
| A．He gave them too much attention. |
| B．He never watered them. |
| C．He rarely took care of them. |
| A．The teacher’s plants survived. |
| B．The teacher’s plants were destroyed. |
| C．The baker’s plants were not destroyed. |
| A．Guiding is better than giving. |
| B．No pain, no gain. |
| C．Prevention is better than cure. |
