飞蛾为何要“扑火”？

Turn on a light outside at night， and it won’t be long before lots of insects start gathering around it. This behavior has led to a popular comparison for attraction， “like a moth to a flame.” However， according to a new study published in the journal Nature Communications， it turns out that insects aren’t “attracted” to artificial lights， but rather confused by it.

The new finding is based on a theory about insect orientation （定位） . Due to their small and lightweight bodies， insects experience less air resistance， allowing them to achieve higher accelerations （加速度） ， which in turn makes it challenging for them to sense up and down during flight. So， they typically rely on stable light sources like the moon and stars to orient themselves at night， keeping the sky at their backs to stay upright. However， the introduction of artificial lights confuses their natural sense of direction. The insects you see circling street lights， in other words， are probably lost.

To reach these conclusions， scientists used high-resolution cameras to film insects flying around artificial lights in Costa Rica. They also attached tiny sensors to insects and filmed motion-capture videos of them in flight. In this way， researchers are able to slow down the insects’ pace and study their movements in greater detail. The videos showed insects turning their backs toward sources of artificial light — even at the price of flipping over or crashing.

This can be dangerous for insects， as circling around artificial lights can put them at risk from enemies， exhaustion， and starvation， causing many to die before morning. Night artificial light is a major cause of insect population loss， which could severely impact crop pollination （传粉） and food supplies for larger animals， including humans. “Insects have been flying around for 370 million years， and it’s just in the last 150 years that it’s really gone wrong for them，” says entomologist Samuel Fabian of Imperial College London. “If we don’t want to influence large amounts of insect populations， we should not have lights shining up into the sky.”

（材料来自Smithsonian magazine）

1. According to the new study， what does the comparison “like a moth to a flame” symbolize？

A. Insects’ natural habitat destroyed by a flame.

B. Insects’ confusion with artificial lights .

C. Insects’ attraction to artificial lights.

D. The possible danger of using artificial lights.

2. According to the previous theory， what is the main reason why insects have difficulty sensing direction when flying？

A. The brightness of the moon and stars.

B. The presence of artificial lights.

C. Their body size and weight.

D. The lack of air resistance.

3. What does the third paragraph talk about？

A. Why the scientists studied the artificial lights.

B. How the insects moved and crashed .

C. Why the researchers used cameras.

D. How the professionals conducted the study.

4. What does Samuel Fabian suggest to minimize the impact on insect populations？

A. Installing more artificial lights to help insects navigate.

B. Avoiding the natural light putting the insects at risk.

C. Limiting the use of lights that shine upwards into the sky.

D. Developing new types of artificial lights that insects can avoid.

1. B。解析：词义理解题。材料第一段提到“‘like a moth to a flame’这个短语通常用来比喻昆虫被人造光源吸引。然而，根据新的研究成果，昆虫实际上是被人造光源迷惑了”，B选项“昆虫被人造光源迷惑”与材料内容相符，故选B。

2.C。解析：细节理解题。材料第二段的第二句提到“根据之前的昆虫定位理论，由于昆虫身体小且轻，它们在飞行中遇到的阻力较小，能够实现更高的加速度，这使得它们在飞行中难以感知上下方向”，C选项“它们的体型和重量”与材料内容相符，故选C。

3. D。解析：主旨大意题。材料第三段主要讨论了科学家如何具体开展研究，包括“used high-resolution cameras to film...attached tiny sensors to insects and filmed...to slow down the insects’ pace and study their movements...”，D选项“专家如何开展研究”与材料内容相符，故选D。

4. C。解析：观点态度题。材料最后一段的最后一句提到了昆虫学家塞缪尔·法比安的建议，“如果我们想最小化对昆虫种群的影响，就不应该让灯光照向天空”，C选项“限制使用向上照射天空的灯光”与材料内容相符，故选C。