Question

    The adder is the only poisonous snake native to Britain. Adders have the most highly developed poison injecting mechanism of all snakes, but they are not aggressive animals. Adders will only use their poison as a last means of defence, usually if caught or trodden on. No one has died from adder bites in Britain for over 20 years. By far the most common snake in Britain is the adder. In Scotland, in fact, there are no other snakes at all. The adder is also the only British snake with a poisonous bite. It can be found almost anywhere, but prefers sunny hillsides and rough open country, including high ground. In Ireland there are no snakes at all.

Most people regard snake bites as a fatal misfortune, but not all bites are serious, and very few are fatal. Sometimes attempts at emergency treatment turn out to be more dangerous than the bite itself, with amateurs heroically, but mistakenly, trying do-it-yourself surgery and other unnecessary measures.

All snakes have small teeth, so it follows that all snakes can bite, but only the bite of the adder presents any danger. British snakes are shy animals and are far more frightened of you than you could possibly be of them. The adder will attack only if it feels threatened, as can happen if you take it by surprise and step on it accidentally, or if you try to catch it or pick it up, which it dislikes intensely. If it hears you coming, it will normally get out of the way as quickly as it can, but adders cannot move very rapidly and may attack before moving if you are very close.

The effect of a bite varies considerably. It depends upon several things, one of which is the body-weight of the person bitten. The bigger the person, the less harmful the bite is likely to be, which is why children suffer far more seriously from snake bites in Britain , and thought these bites can make some people very ill, there are probably just as many cases of bites having little or no effect, as there are of serious illness.

1.What does the underlined phrase “trodden on” probably mean?

A.Found out

B.Heard from

C.Stepped on.

D.Robbed of.

2.Where are adders to be found?

A.In fertile fields in Scotland.

B.On wild land throughout Britain.

C.In many parts of Britain and Ireland.

D.Everywhere in Britain except Scotland

3.What should you do if you are with someone who is bitten by an adder?

A.Catch the biting adder at once.

B.Don’t worry about the bitten person.

C.Don’t try to treat the bite by yourself.

D.Operate on the person as soon as possible.

4.What’s the best title of the passage?

A.Poisonous Snakes

B.Adders in Britain

C.Take Care of Sake Bites

D.Protect Endangered Adders

Answer

1.C

2.B

3.C

4.B

【解析】

这是一篇说明文。文章讲述了，英国本土毒蛇——蝰蛇，它的分布、习性，蝰蛇只有在感到受到威胁时才会咬人，如果被咬伤，不要随便处理。

1.

短语猜测题。由第一段中的“Adders will only use their poison as a last means of defence, usually if caught or trodden on.”（蝰蛇只会把毒作为最后的防御手段，通常是在被抓住或trodden on的情况下。），可知蝰蛇只有在被抓住/踩住的情况下咬人，trodden on在此处意为Stepped on（踩上）。故选C项。

2.

细节理解题。由第一段中的“The adder is the only poisonous snake native to Britain.”（蝰蛇是英国本土唯一的毒蛇。）和“In Scotland, in fact, there are no other snakes at all. The adder is also the only British snake with a poisonous bite. It can be found almost anywhere, but prefers sunny hillsides and rough open country, including high ground. In Ireland there are no snakes at all.”（实际上，在苏格兰，根本没有其他蛇。蝰蛇也是唯一一种有毒的英国蛇。它几乎可以在任何地方找到，但更喜欢阳光明媚的山坡和崎岖的开阔地，包括高地。在爱尔兰根本就没有蛇。），可知蝰蛇可以在整个英国的荒野上都能被找到。故选B项。

3.

推理判断题。由第二段中的“Sometimes attempts at emergency treatment turn out to be more dangerous than the bite itself, with amateurs heroically, but mistakenly, trying do-it-yourself surgery and other unnecessary measures.”（有时候，尝试紧急治疗比咬伤本身更危险，业余爱好者英勇地，但错误地尝试自己做手术和其他不必要的措施。），可知遇到有人被蝰蛇咬伤，自己错误地处理很危险。由此判断出，别想一个人治这咬伤。故选C项。

4.

主旨大意题。第一段讲“蝰蛇的分布”，第二段讲“被蝰蛇咬伤后的注意事项”，第三段讲“蝰蛇的习性、蝰蛇咬人条件”和第四段讲“决定蝰蛇咬伤严重性的因素”，可知本文主讲英国的蝰蛇，B项“英国蝰蛇”为短文最佳标题。故选B项。