Question

    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 locations to stop, rest and feed. The scientists studied the migration, or flight, paths, of almost 1,500 species and decided that 91 percent of them passed through dangerous areas.  The major danger for migratory birds is development in human society. Building and paving has covered over nature where birds stop and feed as they move from one part of the world to another. For example, a bird called the bar-tailed godwit migrates from its breeding grounds in the Arctic flying all the way to the southern earth in Australia and New Zealand stopping at Yellow Sea mudflats in China along the way.

One of the scientists who worked on the study says “many of these critical sites have been taken up owing to urban, industrial and agricultural expansion.” The problem, according to researchers, is that many of these small birds die along their migration because they don’t have a safe place to eat and rest 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 conserving land. The scientists say these countries do not have enough areas that are safe for birds. In addition, many of the sanctuaries(避难所) are not wide enough to cover the paths of migratory birds.

One species that doesn’t exist any longer is the Eskimo curlew. “Our world gets poorer every time we lose a species,” one of the scientists says. The researchers say if one country might have preserved safe zones for migratory birds while a neighboring country might not, a bird might die.

One scientist who is not involved in the report says 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 areas birds would be likely to use--- could make a big difference.

1.Why is development in human society considered as the major danger for migratory birds?

A.Construction activities occupy birds’ paths.

B.Serious industrial pollution damages birds’ habitats.

C.Hunting activities happen more frequently.

D.Airplane flights directly harm birds’ safety.

2.What’s the current situation of protecting migratory birds?

A.Countries in East Asia don’t want to make any changes.

B.The progress still remains at the primary stage.

C.Some of the efforts of humans aren’t working well.

D.Not many countries are involved in the activities.

3.According to the researchers, __________.

A.governments need to work together and provide safe areas

B.safe zones in neighboring countries need to be combined together

C.more bird species will die out if they continue migrating through countries

D.human activities should give way to the birds when the migrating season comes

4.What can we know about the migratory birds according to the passage?

A.They always travel from the north to the south.

B.They need to stop during the migration to correct directions.

C.All of them are endangered because of lacking protection.

D.Some of them take rests or feed in cities.

5.What’s the main idea of the passage?

A.The migration of birds influences society development.

B.Migratory birds are dying from losing their homes.

C.Countries need to work together to protect migratory birds.

D.Protecting migratory birds is very necessary.

Answer

1.A

2.C

3.A

4.D

5.B

【解析】

这是一篇说明文。文章主要介绍城市化建设和工农业发展，使得候鸟栖息地遭到严重破坏，这将直接导致大量鸟类物种的消失。

1.细节理解题。根据第二段的The scientists studied the migration，or flight，paths，of almost 1，500 species and decided that 91 percent of them passed through dangerous areas． The major danger for migratory birds is development in human society（科学家们研究了近1500个物种的迁徙或飞行路线，发现其中91%都经过了危险地带。候鸟面临的主要危险是人类社会的发展）可知人类社会的发展被认为是候鸟的主要危险是因为建筑活动占据了鸟类活动的路径。A. Construction activities occupy birds’ paths.（人类活动占据了鸟类的路径）符合以上说法，故选A项。

2.推理判断题。根据最后一段的One scientist who is not involved in the report says that while some habitats are changing，more work can be done to make urban areas safe for birds（一位没有参与这份报告的科学家说，虽然一些栖息地正在改变，但是可以做更多的工作来保证城市地区鸟类的安全）故推测人类保护鸟类的一些努力并没有起到作用。C. Some of the efforts of humans aren’t working well.（人类的一些努力并不凑效）符合以上说法，故选C项。

3.推理判断题。根据倒数第二段的The researchers say if one country might have preserved safe zones for migratory birds while a neighboring country might not，a bird might die．（研究人员说，如果一个国家可能为候鸟保留了安全区域，而一个邻国可能没有，那么一只鸟可能会死亡）可推测各国政府需要共同努力为鸟类提供安全的区域。A. governments need to work together and provide safe areas（政府需要合作，提供安全区域）符合以上推测，故选A项。

4.推理判断题。根据第二段的Building and paving has covered over nature where birds stop and feed as they move from one part of the world to another可推测候鸟中的一些在城市里休息或进食。D. Some of them take rests or feed in cities.（候鸟中的一些在城市休息或者进食）符合以上推测，故选D项。

5.主旨大意题。这是一篇说明文，其主旨大意一般在首段或者尾段。根据第一段Scientists say a huge percentage of bird species are in danger because their habitats，or homelands, are disappearing（科学家表示，很大比例的鸟类物种正处于危险之中，因为它们的栖息地或家园正在消失）可知文章主要介绍了候鸟因失去家园而濒临死亡。B. Migratory birds are dying from losing their homes.（候鸟因为失去家园而濒临灭绝）可概括本文，故选B项。