Humpback WhalesHumpback whales are sometimes ...

Humpback Whales

Humpback whales are sometimes calledperformers of the ocean.This is because they can make impressive movements whenthey dive.The name“humpback”, which isthe common name for this whale, refers to the typical curve shape the whale'sback forms as it dives.

Sometimes the humpback will dive with a fantasticmovement known as a breach.During breaching the whale uses its powerful tailflukes to lift nearly two-thirds of its body out of the water in a giant leap.A breach might also include a sideways twist with fins stretched out likewings, as the whale reaches the height of the breach.

A humpback whale breathes air at the surface of thewater through two blowholes which are located near the top of the head.It blowsa double stream of water that can rise up to 4 metres above the water.

The humpback has a small dorsal fin located towardsthe tail flukes about two-thirds of the way down its back.Other distinguishingfeatures include large pectoral fins, which may be up to a third of the bodylength, and unique black and white spots on the underside of the tailflukes.These markings are like finger prints: no two are the same.

Humpback whales live in large groups.They communicatewith each other through complex “songs”.

1.According to Quick Facts, ahumpback whale _____.

A. cannot survive in waters near the shore

B. doesn't live in the same waters all the time

C. lives mainly on underwater plants

D. prefers to work alone when hunting food

2.To make a breach, a humpback whale must _____.

A. use its tail flukes to leap out of the water

B. twist its body sideways to jump high

C. blow two streams of water

D. communicate with a group of humpbacks

3.From the passage we can learn that a humpback whale _____.

A. has its unique markings on its tail flukes

B. has black and white fingerprints

C. gets its name from the way it hunts

D. is a great performer due to its songs

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Humpback whales

1.According to Quick Facts, a humpback whale ______.

A. cannot survive in waters near the shore          B. doesn’t live in the same waters all the time

C. lives mainly on underwater plants            D. prefers to work alone when hunting food

2.To make a breach, a humpback whale must ______.

A. use its tail flukes to leap out of the water     B. twist its body sideways to jump high.

C. blow two streams of water               D. communicate with a group of humpbacks.

3.From the passage we can learn that a humpback whale ______.

A. has its unique markings on it tail flukes        B. has black and white fingerprints

C. gets its name from the way it hunts         D. is a great performer due to its songs

高三英语阅读理解困难题查看答案及解析

A humpback whale is struggling hard in the sea. The humpbacks can weigh 40 tons and stretch 50 feel from nose to tail. That’s the kind of ______ and size that easily overturn small boats. To jump onto the ______ of one of these giants is ______ to result in a disaster. But that’s just what Sam Synslelien did when he saw a humpback ______ caught in a rope that was ______ to a buoy (浮标) in Central Californians Morro Bay this week.

Sam, along with crewmate Nicholas Taron, had already tried ______ the unfortunate whale to the U.S. Coast Guard 一 but they were told it would be hours before ______ could be sent. ______, the commercial fishermen ______ this whale didn’t have. If the whale was to ______ they had to go get it. There was no other ______ for the whale. They decided to go for it, totally ______ the fear. Turon’s ______ in the rescue was mostly in the ______ cheering department. In the clip, you can hear him directing the operation from the side of the boat while filming the entire ______.

“Swim! Swim!” He yells, “Move! Just get it! Get it!”

The anxious whale was just swimming in counter-clockwise circles, ______ and being held to the bottom. It threw its heavy tail against the boat. But Sam ______ it and jumped onto the whale’s back to save its life. He managed to hang in there, ______ cutting through the rope that ______ the creature. And then with a whoosh (击水声), it dove deep down beneath the great ______. It wasn’t much of a thank you, but Synstelien and Taron were left with a whale of a tale.

1.A. length B. violence C. ability D. weight

2.A. nose B. head C. back D. tail

3.A. willing B. likely C. anxious D. flexible

4.A. hopelessly B. loosely C. curiously D. secretly

5.A. stuck B. directed C. adjusted D. attached

6.A. shipping B. delivering C. reporting D. hunting

7.A. boats B. rescuers C. fishermen D. experts

8.A. Strength B. Advantages C. Patience D. Hours

9.A. figured B. objected C. hesitated D. proved

10.A. paddle B. survive C. relax D. breathe

11.A. barrier B. accommodation C. option D. equipment

12.A. hiding B. exhibiting C. fostering D. ignoring

13.A. interest B. ambition C. role D. contribution

14.A. disturbing B. enthusiastic C. clumsy D. scared

15.A. operation B. creature C. performance D. fighting

16.A. silent B. stressed C. confused D. unconscious

17.A. wrestled B. spotted C. trained D. approached

18.A. eventually B. naturally C. directly D. normally

19.A. prohibited B. injured C. lied D. monitored

20.A. waves B. noises C. ferry D. darkness

高三英语完形填空中等难度题查看答案及解析

Music for Humans and Humpback Whales　　 As researchers conclude in Science, the love of music is not only a universal feature of the human species, but is also deeply fixed in complex structures of the human brain, and is far more ancient than previously suspected.

In the articles that discuss the field of bio-musicology, the study of the biological basis for the creation and appreciation of music, researchers present various evidence to show that music-making is at once an original human "business", and an art form with skillful performers throughout the animal kingdom.

The new reports stress that humans hold no copyright on sound wisdom, and that a number of nonhuman animals produce what can rightly be called music, rather than random sound．Recent in-depth analyses of the songs sung by humpback whales show that, even when their organ would allow them to do otherwise, the animals converge on the same choices relating to sounds and beauty, and accept the same laws of song composition as those preferred by human musicians, and human ears, everywhere.

For example, male humpback whales, who spend six months of each year doing little else but singing, use rhythms (节奏) similar to those found in human music and musical phrases of similar length—a few seconds．Whales are able to make sounds over a range of at least seven octaves (八度音阶), yet they tend to move on through a song in beautiful musical intervals, rather than moving forwards madly．They mix the sounds like drums and pure tones in a ratio (比例) which agrees with that heard in much western music．They also use a favorite technique of human singers, the so-called A-B-A form, in which a theme is stated, then developed, and then returned to in slightly revised form．

Perhaps most impressive, humpback songs contain tunes that rhyme．"This suggests that whales use rhyme in the same way we do: as a technique in poem to help them remember complex material," the researchers write.

1.The underlined words "converge on" in Paragraph 3 probably means__________.

A．tend towards

B．refer to

C．turn into

D．put forward

2.Which of the following shows the advanced musical ability in humpback whales?

A．They can remember complex material.

B．They can create pleasing patterns of music.

C．They can make sounds like drums continuously.

D．They can sing along with rhythms of western music.

3.What is the main idea of the article?

A．Animals are able to compose and enjoy music like humans.

B．Human beings borrow ideas in music from humpback whales.

C．Humpback whales are skillful performers in the animal kingdom.

D．Music-making is an ancient activity of both humans and animals.

4.The main purpose of the passage is to __________.

A．argue and discuss

B．inform and explain

C．compare and advertise

D．examine and assess

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

The USA, New York—Whales and dolphins are facing increasing threats from climate change, according to a new report published by WWF and the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society （WDCS）．

The report "Whales in hot water?" draws attention to the growing impacts of climate change on whales．They range from changes in sea temperature and the freshening of the seawater because of the melting of ice and increased rainfalls, to a sea level rise, loss of icy polar habitats and the decline of krill populations in key areas．Krill, a tiny shrimp that is dependent on sea ice, is the main source of food for many of the great whales．

The speeding up of climate change adds greatly to trouble from other human activities, such as chemical and noise pollution, which kills some 1000 whales every day．

"Whales and dolphins have an ability to adapt to their changing environment," said Mark Simmonds, International Director of Science at WDCS．"But the climate is now changing at such a fast pace that it is unclear to what extent whales and dolphins will be able to adjust．"

Climate change impacts are currently greatest in the Arctic and the Antarctic．According to the report, cetaceans that rely on polar, icy waters for their home and food resources are likely to be greatly affected by the reduction of sea ice cover．

WDCS and WWF are urging governments to cut global production of C02 by at least 50 percent by the middle of this century．The latest report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change showed it was possible to stop global warming if the world's emissions start to decline before 2015．

1.Which of the following is the most important for whales and dolphins?

A．Rainfall         B．Krill               C．Sea ice cover    D．High sea level

2.From the passage, we can learn that whales mainly feed on _____．

A．dolphins         B．krill                   C．sea horses      D．sharks

3.The underlined word "decline" in Paragraph 2 means _____．

A．increase            B．control            C．protection          D．fall

4.In what place is climate change greatest?

A．The Pacific Ocean                          B．Asia．

C．Two polar areas．                        D．Equator．

5.Which of the following is not right according to the passage?

A．Climate change will lead to the changes in sea temperature．

B．Climate change will result in the freshening of the sea water．

C．Climate change will have a bad effect on human activities and whales．

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

The USA, New York—Whales and dolphins are facing increasing threats from climate change, according to a new report published by WWF and the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society （WDCS）．

The report "Whales in hot water?" draws attention to the growing impacts of climate change on whales．They range from changes in sea temperature and the freshening of the seawater because of the melting of ice and increased rainfalls, to a sea level rise, loss of icy polar habitats and the decline of krill populations in key areas．Krill, a tiny shrimp that is dependent on sea ice, is the main source of food for many of the great whales．

The speeding up of climate change adds greatly to trouble from other human activities, such as chemical and noise pollution, which kills some 1000 whales every day．

"Whales and dolphins have an ability to adapt to their changing environment," said Mark Simmonds, International Director of Science at WDCS．"But the climate is now changing at such a fast pace that it is unclear to what extent whales and dolphins will be able to adjust．"

Climate change impacts are currently greatest in the Arctic and the Antarctic．According to the report, cetaceans that rely on polar, icy waters for their home and food resources are likely to be greatly affected by the reduction of sea ice cover．

WDCS and WWF are urging governments to cut global production of C02 by at least 50 percent by the middle of this century．The latest report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change showed it was possible to stop global warming if the world's emissions start to decline before 2015．

1.Which of the following is the most important for whales and dolphins?

2.From the passage, we can learn that whales mainly feed on _____．

3.The underlined word "decline" in Paragraph 2 means _____．

4.In what place is climate change greatest?

5.Which of the following is not right according to the passage?

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

For a few months twice a year, the waters off California are home to gray whales moving north or south between the coast of Mexico and the Bering Sea. This year, however, it seems that fewer whales are surviving the journey north. So far this year, a total of 30 dead gray whales have washed up on the West Coast: Eight in Washington, one in Oregon and 21 in California. Those numbers are unusually high.

In Northern California, three out of four of the dead whales that have been examined so far appear to have died of starvation and the fourth was killed by a ship strike, said Barbie Halaska, a research assistant at The Marine (海洋的) Mammal Center (TMMC), a nonprofit organization that rescues and rehabilitates (使康复) marine mammals in California. Halaska and her colleagues examined the four whales—three young whales and one adult male — and planned to examine the remaining dead whales in the region in the next couple of days.

Gray whales were once severely threatened by whalers. Only around 2,000 of them lived in the ocean in 1946, so an international agreement to stop gray whale hunting was signed in order to help the population recover. Gray whales were removed from the endangered species list in 1994 when the population reached 23,000 individuals and TMMC predicts there are now around 26,000 gray whales in the Pacific Ocean, which is about the number before the whaling boom got up steam almost 200 years ago.

Although the gray whale population has recovered to a certain degree, the number of dead whales washing up this year is alarming, Halaska said. Climate change and declining fish stocks are likely key factors in the whales’ poor health, she said .

Halaska stressed that boaters and beachgoers on the West Coast should watch out for gray whales this time of year.

1.What are the statistics in paragraph 3 about?

A.Severe conditions facing gray whales.

B.An agreement to stop killing whales.

C.The evolving development of gray whales.

D.The number of gray whales in different times.

2.What’s Halaska’s attitude towards the population of gray whale?

A.Worried. B.Discouraged.

C.Optimistic. D.Uncaring.

3.What may be talked about following the last paragraph?

A.The importance of gray whales.

B.Gray whales’ living environment.

C.Things to do to help gray whales .

D.Ways to increase gray whales’ population.

4.What can be a suitable title for the text?

A.Gray Whales Are Threatened by Whalers

B.Why Many Gray Whales Died on California’s Coast?

C.Gray Whales Are in Great Danger of Dying Out

D.Where Gray Whales Move to Avoid Being Hunt?

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Blue whales are the largest animals ever known to have existed on the planet, and they can grow to a length of 100 feet and weigh more than 330,000 pounds.　 But recently researchers have found that these whales are on the move and they have migrated from California waters to areas off Canada and Alaska for the first time since commercial whaling ended in 1965.

The researchers identified 15 blue whales that have appeared off the coast of British Columbia and the Gulf of Alaska since 1997. Four of these whales were recognized as ones that were once sighted off California shores, suggesting that the whales are returning to an old migration pattern between the coasts.

Before commercial whaling began in the early 1900s, blue whales were found widely throughout the North Pacific and California waters. But from the 1920s to the 1960s,whaling severely reduced the whale populations. Blue whales never recovered in the Northern Pacific, making sightings in this area rare.　 However, much larger groups of whales have been observed close to California since the 1970s.

The scientists had previously thought that the California population was separate from the population that had historically lived in North Pacific waters. But the current study shows that whales off the coast of British Columbia and the Gulf of Alaska are likely part of the California population.

To identify the blue whales, the researchers looked at photos of cetaceans taken in the North Pacific Ocean and compared them with a library of blue whale pictures taken along the West Cost of the United States and Southern Pacific. Up to now, the researchers are not quite sure why the whales are changing their migration patterns, but they suspect that the whales may be following their food moving farther north by the changes in ocean conditions.

1.According to the passage, blue whales are 　　　　　　 .

A. following a fixed route of migration

B.　 dying out due to commercial whaling

C. moving from the south to the north

D. rarely found in the Southern Pacific

2.The whale population in the northern Pacific　　　　　　 .

A. is different from the California population

B. is probably part of the California population

C. has become the largest group since the 1970s

D. has lived there since the 1960s

3.The underlined word "cetaceans" in Paragraph 5 probably means 　　　　　　 .

A. land creatures　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. whale species

C. ocean conditions　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. migration patterns

4.What might make blue whales migrate according to the researchers?

A. Commercial whaling.　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. Weather conditions.

C. Life reproduction.　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. Food resources.

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Blue whales are the largest animals ever known to have existed on the planet, and they can grow to a length of 100 feet and weigh more than 330,000 pounds. But recently researchers have found that these whales are on the move and they have migrated (moved) from California waters to areas off Canada and Alaska for the first time since commercial whaling ended in 1965.

The researchers identified 15 blue whales that have appeared off the coast of British Columbia and the Gulf of Alaska since 1997. Four of these whales were recognized as ones that were once sighted off California shores, suggesting that the whales are returning to an old migration pattern between the coasts.

Before commercial whaling began in the early 1900s, blue whales were found widely throughout the North Pacific and California waters. But from the 1920s to the 1960s, whaling severely reduced the whale populations. Blue whales never recovered in the Northern Pacific, making sightings in this area rare. However, much larger groups of whales have been observed close to California since the 1970s.

The scientists had previously thought that the California population was separate from the population that had historically lived in North Pacific waters. But the current study shows that whales off the coast of British Columbia and the Gulf of Alaska are likely part of the California population.

To identify the blue whales, the researchers looked at photos of cetaceans taken in the North Pacific Ocean and compared them with a library of blue whale pictures taken along the West Coast of the United States and Southern Pacific. Up to now, the researchers are not quite sure why the whales are changing their migration patterns, but they suspect that the whales may be following their food moving farther north by the changes in ocean conditions.

1.According to the passage, blue whales are __________.

A. following the fixed route of migration

B. dying out due to commercial whaling

C. rarely found in the Southern Pacific

D. moving from the south to the north

2.The whale population in the northern Pacific __________.

A. is different from the California population

B. has become the largest group since the 1970s

C. is probably part of the California population

D. has lived there since the 1960s.

3.The underlined word “cetaceans” in Paragraph 5 probably means __________.

A. whales species　　　　 B. land creatures

C. ocean conditions　　 　 D. migration patterns

4.What might make blue whales migrate according to the researchers?

A. Commercial whaling.　　　 B. Food resources.

C. Weather conditions.　　　 D. Life reproduction.

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

阅读下列短文，根据短文内容填空。在未给提示词的空白处仅填写1个适当的词，在给出提示词的空白处用括号内所给词的正确形式填空。

Orca whales live in the sea, which are in fact the 1. (large) member of the dolphin family. Sometimes they 2. (call) killer whales. In the sea, they can swim 3. they want to. There are no fences to keep them in one place. The orcas are free. In the sea, orcas don’t attack people. When orcas are taken away from their home, it can be different. They don’t live as long out of their home.

高三英语语法填空中等难度题查看答案及解析