READING FOR MAIN IDEAS IN ACADEMIC TEXTS 1 Match the main ideas (a–d) to the body paragraphs (2–5) in the article. a how the food rats eat affects the survival of the species b why rats shouldn’t be blamed for ‘the Black Death’ c why rats can be found in many different countries d how rats’ ability to hear and touch helps them
Rats: Facts and fiction
1 They say that we are never more than two metres from a rat at any time. While this is probably not true, what is certain is that we share our planet with billions of rats. In fact, rats are the most common mammal on Earth. They live on every continent except Antarctica. They are also one of the most misunderstood animals. 2 Many people believe that rats are native animals around the world, but that’s not true. The fact that there are rats in every country is mostly due to human exploration. Ships sailing on rivers and oceans often carried hidden passengers: rats. When humans landed in new parts of the world, they introduced rats to their new home without knowing it. 3 One reason rats are such a successful species is their diet. Rats are omnivores, which means they can eat almost anything. They eat mainly grains and seeds, but the foods they eat also include nuts, flowers, leaves, insects, birds, reptiles, fish and eggs. Their mouths are also developed to bite through many different materials, including wood, copper, aluminium and even some concrete. 4 Rats’ senses help them survive. Rats have a poor sense of sight, but since they are active at night, they don’t need to see much. Instead, they use their very strong senses of touch and hearing. They use long and sensitive hairs on their face to feel new places before entering. Their hearing is also very good and they hear sounds that people cannot hear. They also make special sounds to communicate with other rats. 5 You might be surprised to learn that rats are actually very clean animals. Rats spend several hours each day cleaning themselves and other rats. They are often blamed for spreading disease. For example, people thought that rats caused ‘the Black Death’ in the 14th century, which killed more than 75 million people. While rats did contribute to the spread of the disease, it was actually caused by insects which lived on the rats. 6 It is important to separate rat facts from rat myths. Since humans and rats will probably be sharing the planet for a long time, we should all learn what we can about this extremely successful species.
PART B ADDITIONAL SKILLS
READING FOR DETAIL 2 Read the article again and answer the questions. 1 Which continent does not have rats on it?
2 How did people transport rats to different parts of the world?
3 According to the article, which metals can a rat bite through?
There is a lot of misunderstandings about rats. First, rats were not originally from most countries. Explorers actually accidentally introduced rats by carrying them on (1)ships / planes. Next, rats survive so well anywhere because they can (2)smell / eat anything. Their teeth are so sharp they can even bite some hard materials like metal. Also, rats have a (3)great / bad sense of touch and hearing, which helps them adjust to new places easily. Their whiskers help them with touch and they can hear sounds which humans cannot. Finally, rats are not (4) clean / dirty; they actually spend (5)minutes / hours cleaning themselves! Rats are usually blamed for ‘the Black Death’, but it was the (6)insects / people on rats which caused the disease.
1 Circle the correct words to complete the sentences. 1 Although the use of wind and solar power is becoming more common, the burning of fossil fuels is still a source of energy in Europe. a major b fatal 2 Other causes of air pollution, such as smoke from forest fires and volcanoes, are . a native b natural 3 used in farming and cleaning are harmful when they get into the air. a Species b Chemicals 4 Air pollution can cause lung , which makes it difficult for a person to breathe. a disease b chemical 5 Smoking can be . It leads to more than 80,000 deaths per year in the UK. a common b fatal 6 increases in air pollution, more and more people in the town have health problems. a Major b Due to 7 It is important to use clean energy that does not the air. a pollute b protect 8 Humans are not the only ones who suffer from air pollution. It affects animal and plant , too. a species b diseases 9 A sign of a sick plant is yellow leaves. You can often see this in cities and in forests. a common b cruel 10 Humans sometimes accidentally a species to a new country, by carrying animals on ships, planes or cars without realizing it. a protect b introduce
2 Complete the paragraph with the words in the box.
cruel destroy endangered native protect survive
Animals which are (1) are disappearing from our world. Why are they dying? Why can they not (2) ? As you probably know, many human activities are harmful to the environment. People may hate the idea of being (3) to other living things, but our needs have often meant we (4) and pollute habitats, so that animals have nowhere to live. In these cases, the plants which are (5) to the habitat are also affected. They can no longer grow. People need to (6) these habitats and help the plants and animals which live there. To sum up, we need to work harder to share the Earth with plants and animals, and not hurt them.
1 We need farmers to with the government to protect important habitat.
2 Scientists can follow the movements of an endangered species by a small electronic device to each animal. 3 After doctors caught and treated the gorilla, they him back into the wild. 4 What steps can people take to help this species and not become extinct? 5 If one species goes extinct, it other species which depend on it for their survival. 6 Orcas in the wild live up to 100 years. In , they only live about 30 years in captivity.
COMPARATIVE ADJECTIVES 4 Complete the sentences using the comparative form of the adjectives in brackets. 1 The tiger shark is than the whale shark. (small) 2 Are humans than animals? (intelligent) 3 The blue whale is than the whale shark. (heavy) 4 The grey squirrel is than the red squirrel. (large) 5 The whale shark never attacks people. It is than the tiger shark. (dangerous)
Word order 1 Put the words in the correct order to make sentences. 1 insect species / That / endangered / is / .
2 were / in the UK / a common sight / Red squirrels / .
3 in / Many tigers / protected areas / live / .
4 to save / are working / However, / hard / the species / conservationists / .
5 invasive species / some visiting ships / introduced / In addition, / .
COMBINING SENTENCES 2 Join the pairs of sentences using the words in brackets. Take out any repeated words. 1 The giant panda eats bamboo. The red panda eats bamboo. (Both)
2 The whale shark doesn’t eat people. The tiger shark doesn’t eat people. (Neither, nor)
3 The koala is not endangered. The koala population is decreasing. (but)
4 The snow leopard does not live in the US. The snow leopard does not live in the UK. (or)
5 The grey squirrel is not endangered. The red squirrel’s population is decreasing. (whereas)
Look at the Venn diagram about the red panda and the giant panda. Then read the introduction and conclusion of the essay which compares these species. Use the information in the Venn diagram to complete the essay by writing two body paragraphs which compare and contrast the two species.
red panda both giant panda
Animal class: Ursidae found in Asia Animal class: Ailuridae about 0.6 m masked face 1.3–1.8 m 3.2–5.9 kg diet is mostly 68–137 kg lives for 10–15 years bamboo, eat 20–30% lives for about 20 years of body weight looks like raccoon daily looks like bear long, bushy tail endangered due to short tail mostly stays in trees habitat loss and mostly stays on ground hunting eats bamboo stems eats bamboo leaves under 10,000 in the wild about 1,800 remain in the wild
Introduction The giant panda and red panda are two of Asia’s most well-known animals. At first sight, they look similar with their cute masked faces. However, they are in fact two different species which live in the same part of the world. Conclusion There’s no doubt that the red panda and giant panda are both memorable with their cute, furry, masked faces. We need to protect both animals, and learning more about each species helps us to better understand how to save them.
