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Hundreds of snow leopards (雪豹)are being killed every year across the mountains of central Asia,threatening the already endangered species,according to an official report.
Snow leopards live in 12 nations, but more than 90% of the reported snow leopard illegal hunting takes place in these countries—Pakistan, India and Tajikistan, of which each has just a few hundred of the animals.
Over half the so-called“ghosts of the mountains”are killed by farmers for attacks on livestock (牲畜) and 20% are trapped by snares (陷阱) set for other animals. Another 20% are killed for the illegal fur trade.The report found up to 200 snow leopards are being illegally traded each year.But the number has fallen sharply in recent years,perhaps because of increasing law enforcement(实施).
The leopards are also at risk from climate change,with warming temperatures threatening to leave a third of their habitat uninhabitable. The tree line shifts up the mountains and causes farmers to plant crops and raise livestock at higher altitudes.
To reduce the killings,the report's authors recommend the rolling-out leopard-proof corrals(防豹畜栏) for yaks and horses and insurance schemes for farmers. Such schemes are already being tested, for example,in a village in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh.The natural food of snow leopards are Himalayan blue sheep and ibex,but their numbers have fallen as their habitat is turned into farmland.
Stronger law enforcement is also needed.Less than a quarter of cases of snow leopard poaching (偷猎)have been found and just one in seven charged.
“We all should work together to greatly reduce human-wildlife conflict and ensure that mountain communities can co-exist with snow leopards,”said Rishi Sharma,from WWF and a co-author of the report.“Compensation schemes and innovative predator-proof corrals are making a difference and we urgently need to expand these to benefit communities and snow leopards across Asia's high mountains.”
1.Why do leopards become endangered?
A.They are often attacked by livestock.
B.They are killed by people for kinds of reasons.
C.They have experienced many earthquakes.
D.Their meat tastes delicious and people kill them.
2.What's the main idea of paragraph 3 and paragraph 4?
A.Leopards are“ghosts of the mountains”.
B.Snow leopards are threatening people.
C.People are killing more and more leopards.
D.There are several reasons for the decreasing number of snow leopards.
3.What can we know about snow leopards from the text?
A.Cases of snow leopard poaching are happening in 12 nations throughout the world.
B.Most of the reported snow leopard poaching was investigated and charged.
C.The number of snow leopards has fallen mainly because their habitat is turned into farmland.
D.Illegal snow leopard trade has been brought under effective control recently.
The world is losing monarch butterflies at a striking rate,as kinds of human activities destroy natural habitats. 1 Climate change, with its extreme storms, prolonged droughts and warming temperatures,is to destroy the forest that serves as the butterfly's winter home.
Scientists believe, to help these lovely butterflies, it is necessary to create an ecosystem where the butterflies will be able to survive.They've decided to start a monumental project. 2
“It's an idea that may sound crazy,”said Cuauhtemoc Saenz-Romero, a forest geneticist,“but by the end of the century,it may be absolutely needed.”
The butterflies seek shelter in the firs in winter. 3 The firs protect the butterflies from chilly winter rains and create a microclimate cold enough to keep the butterflies in a state of hibernation(冬眠)but not so cold as to kill them.
4 The region is warming at such an accelerated pace that the trees won't be able to adapt,scientists say, and will need help migrating to areas where the climate is predicted to be suitable for them in future years.
Over the last several years, the team of researchers has overseen the relocation of about 1,000 young fir plants, which were growing at lower altitudes, up to higher and cooler elevations. 5 They are now establishing the trees at even higher altitudes on other nearby mountains—seeding ecosystems now that monarchs could potentially use later if temperatures continue to rise.
Every winter is witnessing tens of thousands of butterflies in the new forests, some fluttering about and others resting in massive clumps on the firs,their bodies obscuring the branches and trunks.
A.They hope to expand the project.
B.There is still hope to restore the forests.
C.Their dense tops act as an umbrella for the butterflies.
D.But the biggest threat yet has only recently come into focus.
E.They are trying to move an entire forest 1,000 feet up a mountain.
F.Scientists fear that climate change may kill off these firs altogether.
G.The project is believed to protect the butterflies and the natives as well.
The victims were carried in one by one, their paws and fur burned, suffering from dehydration (脱水) and fear. Their caretakers 1 their wounds, and 2 them in baskets with the only thing that was 3 —the leaves of eucalyptus (桉树)tree. As miserable fires have 4 more than 2 million acres in Australia, only dozens of koalas have been 5 from the smoky trees and 6 ground.
Koalas, unlike kangaroos, birds or snakes, do not 7 from fires, but instead climb trees to the top,where they can curl themselves into a ball for 8 and wait for the danger to 9 .
But during big fires, such as those that have burned in recent weeks, the animals are far less likely to 10 .Even if the fire itself does not reach the tree 11 ,the animals may overheat and fall to the ground,where they can be burned to death.
The tough situation of the koala has raised 12 among scientists and conservationists(环保主义者). While koalas have developed to exist alongside the wildfires, they are facing new 13 , not just from climate change but also from human development, which has dislocated koalas' populations,14 their ability to survive fires.
We have these 15 animals not found anywhere else on this planet, and we are killing them.This is a big wake-up call.
1.A.touchedB.treatedC.ignoredD.discovered
2.A.threwB.lockedC.laidD.forced
3.A.familiarB.plentifulC.beautifulD.expensive
4.A.reachedB.leftC.burnedD.trapped
5.A.killedB.recognizedC.hurtD.rescued
6.A.flatB.blackC.broadD.safe
7.A.escapeB.dieC.sufferD.rise
8.A.balanceB.protectionC.challengeD.comfort
9.A.attackB.comeC.passD.avoid
10.A.jumpB.climbC.fallD.survive
11.A.topB.leavesC.trunkD.roots
12.A.passionB.concernC.fearD.interest
13.A.chancesB.choicesC.neighborsD.threats
14.A.weakeningB.developingC.enrichingD.ensuring
15.A.lonelyB.stupidC.lazyD.unique
第一部分 语法填空
Recognizing a cat's emotions from its face is often hard, even for its owners. Now, researchers from Canada's University of Guelph insist that cats also express emotions on their faces—one just has to learn 1.________to interpret them!
For their study, Professors Lee Niel and Georgia Mason surveyed 6,300 2._________(volunteer)from 85 countries.The participants 3.________(show)the cats'faces from a series of short videos.
The researchers, who published their findings in the November 2019 issue ofAnimal Welfare,found that only 819 participants were able to read the cats'emotions 4.________(accurate)over 75 percent of the time.Further research showed that the so-called“cat whisperers”were primarily women and veterinarians(兽医),and younger adults also seemed to be able to read the expressions even 5.________(well)than older individuals.
Surprisingly, being a cat owner did not help study participants, 6.________(indicate) that a strong attachment 7.________the animal did not necessarily mean better understanding of its emotions.
The researchers believe cats'expressions can be learned over time,8.________explains why veterinary staff scored high in the study.“This is important to be able to do because it could help strengthen the bond between owners and cats,and so improve cat care and welfare,”said Niel.
9.________(find) out if you have what it takes to be a“cat whisperer”, take the fun cat faces quiz 10.________(create)by the study's researchers.
第二部分 书面表达
假定你是中学生李华,你校正在进行野生动物保护宣传周活动。请用英语写一封倡议书,内容包括:
1.野生动物的现状;
2.要采取的措施;
3.发出倡议。
注意:
1.词数80左右;
2.可以适当增加细节,以使行文连贯。
阅读下面材料,根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段,使之构成一篇完整的短文。
On a rainy night in March 2013, my husband Reece went out to get a box that he had forgotten in his car. On his way back inside, he noticed a small shadow moving on the driveway. He walked towards it quietly, and found it was a small hedgehog (刺猬), all wet in the grass, eating mud. Reece quickly removed his jacket and picked it up. The hedgehog was very weak and unable to move about quickly. But he did not seem to be frightened;nor did he resist being scooped up(抱起).
Once he was inside, Reece called out to me, saying that he had something that would make my heart melt, and he was right! We named the hedgehog Alf, because, just like the TV show character of the 80s, he came out of nowhere. And, like Alf the alien, this little hedgehog was amazingly intelligent.Not only did he learn to eat his dinner and drink water from his bowls,but he also learned to wait for us inside his little indoor cubby house and hop into his pet carrier whenever we took him out with us.
Alf knows us very well and recognizes both our voices.He does not roll into a ball or put his spines up. Every day he allows us to pat him. He loves playing with paper and towels and will bite and tug on the bed sheets if given a chance. Like all pets, Alf loves his treats, in particular small pieces of sugarcoated biscuits.
Unfortunately,in April 2014,I was in a car accident and had to spend two months in the hospital.I missed Alf so much! Reece told me that Alf would search around the house for me, checking in places where I'd normally be,such as my desk,my favorite seat in front of the TV and even my side of the bed.
注意:续写的词数应为150左右。
One evening,Reece set up a video call for me from my hospital bed.
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I cannot describe the feeling when I arrived home and saw his little face again.
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