英語四級(jí)難度提升閱讀訓(xùn)練 Text 17

Text 17

One thing the tour books don't tell you about London is that 2,000 of its residents are foxes. As native as the royal family, they fled the city about centuries ago after developers and pollution moved in. But now that the environment is cleaner, the foxes have come home, one of the many wild animals that have moved into urban areas around the world.

The number and variety of wild animals in urban areas is increasing, says Gomer Jones, president of the National Institute for Urban Wildlife, in Columbia, Maryland. A survey of the wildlife in New York's Central Park last year tallied the species of mammals, including muskrats, shrews and flying squirrels. A similar survey conducted in the 1890s counted only five species. One of the country's largest populations of raccoons now lives in Washington,　D.C., and moose are regularly seen wandering into Maine towns. Peregrine falcons dive from the window ledges of buildings in the largest U.S. cities to prey on pigeons.

Several changes have brought wild animals to the asphalt jungles — and, vice versa. Foremost is that air and water quality in many cities has improved as a result of the 1970s pollution control efforts. Meanwhile, rural areas have been built up, leaving many animals on the edges of suburbia. In addition, conservationists have created urban wildlife refuges.

The Greater London Council last year spent $750,000 to buy land and build 10 permanent wildlife refuges in the city. Over 1,000 volunteers have donated money and cleared rubble from derelict lots. As a result, pheasants now strut in the East End and badgers scuttle across lawns near the center of town. A colony of rare house martins nests on a window ledge beside Harrods, and one evening last year a fox was seen on Westminster Bridge looking up at Big Ben.

For peregrine falcons, cities are actually safer than rural cliff dwellings. By 1970 the birds were extinct east of the Mississippi because the DDT had made their eggs too thin to support life. That year, ornithologist Tom Cade of Cornell University began raising the birds for release in cities, for cities afforded abundant food in the form of pigeons and contained none of the peregrines natural predators.

Before they were exterminated, some migrated to cities on their own because they had run out of cliff space, Cade says. "To peregrines, buildings are just like cliffs." He has released about 30 birds since 1975 in New York, Baltimore, Philadelphia and Norfolk, and of the 20 pairs now living in the East, half are urbanites. "A few of the young ones have gotten into trouble by falling down chimneys and crashing into window glass, but overall their adjustment has been successful.”

1.The first paragraph suggests that_______.

A.environment is crucial for wildlife

B.tour books are not always a reliable source of information

C.London is a city of fox

D.foxes are highly adaptable to environment

2.The selection is primarily concerned with_______.

A.wildlife of all kinds returning to large cities to live

B.falcons in New York, Baltimore, Philadelphia, and Norfolk

C.moose stumbling into plate-glass storefronts

D.foxes returning to London

3.In the 4th paragraph the pheasants, badgers, and martins, etc are mentioned to_______.

A.explain their living habit

B.make known their habitat

C.show the endeavors of Londoners to make the city habitable for wildlife

D.to encourage volunteers to do something for the species

4.Para. 3 denotes_______.

A.that air and water quality has improved in the cities

B.why wildlife likes the noise and commotion in the cities

C.that wildlife refuges have been built in the cities

D.why wildlife is returning to cities

5.Cities make good homes for peregrine falcons because they provide_______.

A.bountiful nesting areas, abundant food, and rainwater control basins

B.abundant food, buildings that resemble cliffs, and no natural predators

C.large buildings with chimneys, other wildlife, and well lighted nesting areas

D.abundant food, chimneys, rubble and window sills

長難例句分析

［長難例句］Foremost is that air and water quality in many cities has improved as a result of the 1970s pollution control efforts.

［結(jié)構(gòu)分析］這是一類典型的同位語表達(dá)結(jié)構(gòu)，但要注意as a result of這樣一個(gè)表示原因的名詞性短語在翻譯時(shí)要前置，而且轉(zhuǎn)化為一個(gè)原因從句的表達(dá)。

［參考譯文］最主要的變化是自從20世紀(jì)70年代頒布的控制污染法實(shí)施以來，許多城市的空氣和水質(zhì)都有很大的改善。

［長難例句］By 1970 the birds were extinct east of the Mississippi because the DDT had made their eggs too thin to support life.

［結(jié)構(gòu)分析］主語the birds 有一個(gè)修飾語east of the Mississippi在句式上為了避免頭重腳輕而后置，另外從句中的too... to結(jié)構(gòu)表達(dá)的是“太……而不能”的意思。

［參考譯文］到了20世紀(jì)70年代，在密西西比東部地區(qū)，由于DDT的使用使得游隼的蛋殼變得太薄，難以維持生命，它們幾乎絕跡。

全文參考譯文

旅游指南沒有告訴你有關(guān)倫敦的一件事是：它的居民中有2000個(gè)是狐貍。如同英國皇室一樣，它們也是土生土長，只是在幾個(gè)世紀(jì)以前，當(dāng)開發(fā)商和污染到來之后，它們才逃離了這座城市。但是現(xiàn)在這里的環(huán)境比過去干凈，狐貍也回家了，它們是世界上把家搬到城市的許多野生動(dòng)物之一。

馬里蘭州哥倫比亞市城市野生動(dòng)物國家研究院院長Gomer Jones說：“市內(nèi)地區(qū)野生動(dòng)物的數(shù)量和種類正在不斷增加?！比ツ陮?duì)紐約中央公園野生動(dòng)物的調(diào)查發(fā)現(xiàn)10種哺乳動(dòng)物，包括麝鼠、鼩鼱和鼯鼠。1890年所做的類似的調(diào)查僅僅找到5種哺乳動(dòng)物。目前在華盛頓特區(qū)生活著全國數(shù)量最大的浣熊群體，人們也常常能夠見到駝鹿漫不經(jīng)心地進(jìn)入緬因州的城鎮(zhèn)。在美國的一些大城市，游隼從天俯沖而下，到高大建筑的窗臺(tái)上捕捉鴿子。

城市所發(fā)生的一些變化把野生動(dòng)物帶到了這些柏油叢林——反之亦然。最主要的變化是自從20世紀(jì)70年代頒布的控制污染法實(shí)施以來，許多城市的空氣和水質(zhì)都有很大的改善。同時(shí)，農(nóng)村的開發(fā)也已興起，把許多動(dòng)物趕到了郊區(qū)的邊緣。此外，自然資源保護(hù)者也已在市區(qū)建起了野生動(dòng)物庇護(hù)所。

大倫敦區(qū)市議會(huì)去年斥資75萬美元購買土地，并在市區(qū)興建了10個(gè)永久野生動(dòng)物避難所。1000名志愿者捐款，清除廢物場(chǎng)的碎石。結(jié)果是：雉雞如今在倫敦東區(qū)高視闊步，獾在市中心的草坪上東奔西跑，一群家燕在哈羅德大樓旁邊的窗臺(tái)上筑巢；去年一天傍晚，人們看到一只狐貍在威斯敏斯特橋上翹望大本鐘。

對(duì)于游隼來說，城市實(shí)際上要比鄉(xiāng)間懸崖峭壁上的家更加安全。到了20世紀(jì)70年代，在密西西比東部地區(qū)，由于DDT的使用使得游隼的蛋殼變得太薄，難以維持生命，它們幾乎絕跡。在同一年，康奈爾大學(xué)鳥類學(xué)家Tom Cade開始喂養(yǎng)這種鳥，然后在城市放飛，因?yàn)槌鞘锌梢蕴峁┮曾澴拥男问酱嬖诘某渥愕氖澄?，而沒有它的天敵。

Cade說：“在其滅絕以前，一些游隼自動(dòng)遷徙進(jìn)入城市，這是因?yàn)閼已律弦呀?jīng)沒有更多的空間了。對(duì)于它們來說，大樓就是懸崖。”自1975年以來，他已經(jīng)在紐約、巴爾的摩、費(fèi)城和諾?？朔棚w了30只游隼?，F(xiàn)在生活在東部的20對(duì)游隼中，有一半是城市“居民”。一些小游隼遇到麻煩，它們掉進(jìn)了煙囪、撞碎玻璃窗戶，但是總的說來，它們已經(jīng)成功地適應(yīng)了城市生活。

題目答案與解析

1.第一段暗示________。

A.環(huán)境對(duì)于動(dòng)物至關(guān)重要　B.旅游指南并不是一個(gè)可靠的信息來源

C.倫敦是一個(gè)狐貍的城市　D.狐貍的環(huán)境適應(yīng)能力強(qiáng)

【答案】A

【解析】推理暗示題。隨著開發(fā)商的到來，城市出現(xiàn)了污染，狐貍就離開了。后來環(huán)境清潔了，狐貍又回來了。顯然，第一段暗示環(huán)境對(duì)于動(dòng)物至關(guān)重要。B、C和D三項(xiàng)均與原文不相符合。通過第一段推斷得出A項(xiàng)為正確選項(xiàng)。

2.本選段主要在講________。

A.各種的野生動(dòng)物回到大城市生活　B.紐約、巴爾的摩、費(fèi)城和諾?？说挠析?/p>

C.駝鹿碰碎了商店的玻璃門　　　　D.狐貍返回了倫敦

【答案】A

【解析】細(xì)節(jié)判斷題。第一段寫狐貍回到了城市，第二段寫城市中動(dòng)物的數(shù)量和品種在增加，第三、第四、第五段寫人為因素使城市適合動(dòng)物的生存，最后一段寫動(dòng)物自己回到城市生活。總的說來，是寫動(dòng)物回到城里生活。從全文把握，可知A項(xiàng)為正確答案。

3.第四段提雉雞、獾、燕子等，是為了________。

A.解釋它們的生活習(xí)性

B.讓大家知道它們的生活習(xí)性

C.說明倫敦市民在把城市建設(shè)成為野生動(dòng)物的棲息地方面所做的努力

D.鼓勵(lì)志愿者做點(diǎn)什么來保護(hù)物種

【答案】C

【解析】推理暗示題。原文提到這些動(dòng)物是在詳釋倫敦人為使動(dòng)物回到城里所付出的人力和物力的結(jié)果。A、B和D項(xiàng)均與原文主要內(nèi)容及題干意思不相符。從第四段中可知，倫敦市議會(huì)投資75萬美元興建動(dòng)物避難所；1000名志愿者捐款改善環(huán)境，這些都表明了倫敦人為使野生動(dòng)物成為城市居民所做的努力。

4.第三段指出，________。

A.城市里水和空氣的質(zhì)量都得到了改善　B.為什么野生動(dòng)物喜歡呆在喧鬧的城市里

C.城市里已經(jīng)建立了野生動(dòng)物避難所　　D.為什么野生動(dòng)物正在返回城市

【答案】D

【解析】推理暗示題。第三段主要寫城市所發(fā)生的一些變化把野生動(dòng)物帶回城市，故此段的主要意思是由于環(huán)境的改善，野生動(dòng)物們返回城里，D項(xiàng)與此意相符，A、B、C項(xiàng)均不符合題意。

5.城市是游隼生存的好地方，是因?yàn)檫@里有________。

A.大量可以筑巢的地方、豐富的食物和有雨水的水池

B.豐富的食物，建筑物像懸崖峭壁，沒有天敵

C.帶煙囪的大型建筑物、其他野生動(dòng)物、陽光充裕的筑巢地

D.豐富的食物、煙囪、碎石和窗臺(tái)

【答案】B

【解析】細(xì)節(jié)判斷題。從倒數(shù)第二段for cities afforded abundant food in the form of pigeons and contained none of the peregrines natural predators可知，答案為B項(xiàng)。