Assignment - Igcse Level

Passage A: Tiger Encounter
The following passage is set in Bandhavgarh National Park, India.

The writer is describing a meeting with an Indian tiger, one of the
world's endangered species. The writer is accompanied by other
visitors and a guide called Anil.
It's early morning and the dappled sunlight is just breaking through
the trees of the deep Bandhavgarh forest. We're driving down a
small dirt lane between Sera and Rajbera Meadows, behind the
massive plateau from which Bandhavgarh takes its name. Our roadis
suddenly blocked by the massive grey bulk which is Gautam, the
lead elephant used forpatrols, tiger monitoring, and tourist forays
into the jungle. Sitting astride Gautam, is Kuttapan, the renowned
mahout, the keeper and 'driver' of the elephant. He has been at
Bandhavgarh for 24 years and knows more about its tigers than
anyone. Kuttapan gets my attention andpoints to something on the
road. It's the distinct impression of a tiger's body which hasrecently
lain there. The imprint - torso, fore-paws and tail - lies clearly over
any tracks or disturbances which may have come in the night.
Off to the right we hear the distinct 'bleep-bleep' - the alarm call of
the chital, or spotted deer, announcing the presence of a predator.
Kuttapan and Gautam go off to investigate and webegin to drive
around to intercept them on the other side of the forest. Not ten
metres downthe road, we hear a loud 'varoom' - the call of the tiger -
and we slide to a halt on the dustyroad. Walking directly towards us
at a distance of 100 metres is a large male tiger. It is one of the 3-
year-old males known to share this territory with his brother.
We sit in stunned silence in open-topped jeeps. Some cameras
continue to whir and clickand some knuckles begin to whiten as
grips tighten on the seats and roll bars of the jeep.The tiger continues
his casual stroll directly towards us. About 20 metres from our jeep,
hewalks into a small clearing off the road, turns to mark a tree with
his scent, then comes back out on to the road and walks past us, just
a metre away from the jeep. Suspension of all
breathing is the easiest thing in the world at a moment like this.
When the tiger is about 50 metres past us, our reverie is broken by a
commotion in the forestacross the road. Anil, our guide, whispers
loudly, "Wolves!". There, propped up like littlestatues in a clearing
in the forest, are two Indian grey wolves. Rigid, alert, clearly in a
state of alarm and agitation, they begin yelping at the tiger. The
tiger spins around on the roadand charges off into the forest after
them.
We drive down the road to where we were originally going to meet
Kuttapan and Gautam.There, in an open clearing, stands the tiger,
looking around as if to ask, "Where'd they go?".We park the jeeps
and watch a silent drama unfold.
As the tiger turns to walk away, out of the forest comes the larger of
the wolves, probablythe male, and scampers up to within a few
metres of the tiger. The tiger turns his head andthe wolf scampers
back into the forest. The tiger continues to walk away down the
road. Outof the forest comes the larger wolf again and moves up
cautiously to within what is apparentlya safe distance from the tiger.
This time the tiger turns round and glowers at the wolf, probably
assessing the distance between them and the speed it would take to
catch the wolf. They stare at each other for a few seconds; the tiger
is still, and the wolf is nervously pacing back and forth. The muscles
of the tiger begin to twitch and off goes the wolf into the forest
again. Finally, after one more of these encounters, the tiger moves
some distance away and the wolf disappears into the forest for one
last time. We can only assume that the aggressive and bold
behaviour of the wolf meant he was protecting some cubs and
wanted to be surethe tiger was driven out of his territory.
The tiger, now left in peace, continues his stroll.
Explain using your own words what the writer means by the
word in italics in the following phrases:
• 'tourist forays into the jungle'
• 'The tiger continues his casual stroll'
• 'Suspension of all breathing is the easiest thing...' (lines

21-22)
• 'scampers up to within a few metres' (line 32)
Question
Imagine that you are Anil, the guide in Passage A. You have
been asked to write an article for a local magazine to give an
account of your working life. Write your magazine article.In
your magazine article you should:
• describe a typical day in your working life
• give your impressions of the tourists and visitors to the

Bandhavgarh National Park
• explain what you find rewarding about working with

animals in the park
• Base your magazine article on what you have read in

Passage A, but do not copy from it. Be careful to use
your own words. Address each of the three bullet
points. Begin your magazine article: 'Every day in
Bandhavgarh National Park brings a new
experience...' Write about 200 to 300 words.

Assignment - Igcse Level

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Passage A: Tiger Encounter

The following passage is set in Bandhavgarh National Park, India.

• 'The tiger continues his casual stroll'

• 'Suspension of all breathing is the easiest thing...' (lines

• give your impressions of the tourists and visitors to the

• explain what you find rewarding about working with

• Base your magazine article on what you have read in

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