Question

【题目】Every year seals would crowd ashore in Farne Island and give birth to their pups. Between early October and early December, 1,500 seal pups will be born. Almost half of them will not make it past the first three weeks of life.

“The pups have to stay out of the water for the first three weeks, when they have their white coat, which is not very waterproof,” explains the warden (监察员)，who spends nine months on the Island.

“But when you’re born in November on a rock in the North Sea, it’s a tough start to life,” he said. Storms often wash young pups into the water. And occasionally, young, inexperienced mothers abandon their pups and head out to sea.

“We lost 41% last year,” said David Steel, the National Trust’s head warden on the Farne Islands. “Mother Nature certainly keeps them in check.”

Despite the early challenges for every newborn seal, the population is healthily and slowly and steadily growing. There are almost 4,000 seals on a set of islands, which is named a Special Area of Conservation(SAC), meaning it is protected under EU regulations. This successful human safeguarding of the seals’ habitat is huge turnaround(转机).

Just a few decades ago, the seal population was deliberately decimated. The animals used to be thought of as a threat to local fish stocks. During the late 1960s and 1970s, thousands of seals were shot in a cull(剔除)that aimed to protect the local fishing industry. According to the National Trust, between 1962 and 1983 approximately 2,000 adult females and 3,000 pups were shot.

But, as the fishing industry collapsed, it was gradually replaced by tourism. Today, several companies use fishing boats to take groups of people to visit the islands and admire the scenery, seabirds and, of course, the seals that make their homes in this bleakly beautiful place.

【1】In the first three weeks after they were born, almost half of the seal pups _______.

A. would be abandoned by their mothers

B. would be protected by the wardens

C. couldn’t live independently

D. would die mostly in the sea water.

【2】According to David Steel, death of so many pups________.

A. is a normal and natural phenomenon

B. is mainly caused by farmers’ killing

C. can be prevented efficiently by man

D. will be controlled by Mother Nature

【3】The underlined word “decimate” in Paragraph 6 is closest in meaning to ____.

A. increase B. kill C. reduce D. control

【4】What’s the best title for the passage?

A. The Beautiful Farne Island

B. A Tough Beginning

C. How to Protect Grey Seals

D. Tourism or Fishing Industry

Answer 1

【答案】

【1】D

【2】A

【3】C

【4】B

【解析】

试题分析：本文写了海豹幼崽的降生，又说明了现在海豹幼崽的死亡率。

【1】D细节理解题。由The pups have to stay out of the water for the first three weeks可知他们在水里待了三周，故选D。

【2】A推理判断题。 Mother Nature certainly keeps them in check根据他的话可知海豹幼崽死亡是自然的，故选A。

【3】C细节理解题。由 the seal population was deliberately decimated. The animals used to be thought of as a threat to local fish stocks.可知动物们以前受到鱼的威胁，所以它们死亡是少的，故选C。

【4】B主旨理解题。由文章开始可知1500只海豹幼崽要降生了，所以它们的威胁很多，所以这是一个艰难的开始，故选B。