From red apples and yellow lemons to blueberries and green melons, fruit comes in many different colors. Why do different kinds of fruits have so many colors?
According to Chinese Academy of Sciences, fruit colors actually come from their different pigments (色素), such as red or yellow carotenoid (类胡萝卜素) and blue or purple anthocyanin (花青素). These pigments appear in different amounts, depending on the fruit’s environment. This causes the fruit to turn a certain color.
To find out how the environment affects fruit colors, Chinese scientists studied more than 280 different fruit colors, including white, red, blue, purple and black.
They found that red fruit tends to grow in cooler places. And instead of just growing in one place, you can find them growing in many places around the world. Blue and purple fruit mostly grows in warm places. These fruit tends to grow a lot in just one special area. The scientists also found that the closer the fruit is to the equator (赤道) , the darker its color will be.
Animals have also had an impact on the evolution (进化) of fruit colors. Animals eat fruit and drop the seeds in other places later. This helps the fruit spread and grow in different places. Therefore, in order to attract animals, some fruits develop colors that are easy for animals to see.
However, animals see colors in a different way. Fruit needs to develop colors that are suited to animals’ visual abilities. For example, birds can see red more easily than humans can. Therefore, there tends to be more red fruit in areas where birds live. The lemurs (狐猴) of Madagascar are red-green color-blind. Many yellow fruits can be found in their habitats (栖息地), as they can easily see this color.
56. You are more likely to find blue and purple fruit in ________ places.
A.cooler | B.warmer | C.higher | D.lower |
57. Some fruits develop certain colors to ________ .
A.scare animals away | B.absorb more sunlight |
C.attract animals to eat them | D.protect themselves |
58. What do we know from the passage ?
A.Dark fruit tends to grow close to the equator. | B.Green fruit tends to grow in cool places. |
C.Humans can see red more easily than bird. | D.Lemurs are color-blind and can’t see any colors. |
59. Which of following factors have influenced the evolution of fruit colors?
a. the environment b. the pigment c. animals d. scientists