↑ 收起筛选 ↑
试题详情

A team of farmers, university researchers and environmentalists is busy at work in the wetlands of eastern England. They are digging into the area’s wheat fields, looking for wet earth that could hide lost ponds underneath. It takes the group of diggers just a few hours to revive (使复活) one dying pond. It’s near Hindolveston, a thousand-year-old village close to the North Sea.

“As soon as the buried ponds get water and light, they just spring to life,” says Nick Anema, a farmer in nearby Dereham. He’s brought seven ponds on his farm back to life. “Frogs and all the insects like dragonflies can be seen here again,” he said.

But the battle for the wetlands is a struggle. While efforts to stop losses are continuing, wetlands around the world are still being filled in and covered up. Over the past three centuries, almost 90% of the world’s wetlands have disappeared. The loss rate has increased since the 1970s, with wetlands now disappearing three times faster than, the world’s forests.

Some 5,000 wetland-dependent animal species could die out because of such losses. Wetland loss can also affect human beings. Wetlands act as natural storage areas for water. Losing those areas could lead to more severe flooding in many parts of the world. And the act of removing water from wetlands can release huge amounts of carbon dioxide, a major contributor to climate change.

Human-made wetlands, however, aren’t decreasing in number. Rice fields, water reservoirs and agricultural stock ponds have all increased since the 1970s. Yet scientists are concerned about this phenomenon. “People brag (自夸) about the fact that there’s been no net loss (净损失) of wetlands. But what they’ve done is destroy natural wetlands and create artificial ones,” says Stuart Pimm, a Duke University professor. “It makes it look like you’re doing no harm when the reality is very different.”

1.What’s the team’s work in eastern England intended for?

A.Digging wet earth for research. B.Researching into an old village.

C.Bringing dying ponds back to life. D.Finding wetlands created by people.

2.What does paragraph 4 mainly talk about?

A.Various functions of wetlands. B.Serious consequences of wetland loss.

C.Wetlands’ key role in climate change. D.Wetlands’ importance to living things.

3.Which of the following reflects Stuart Purim’s opinion?

A.Artificial wetlands can’t replace natural ones.

B.Creating artificial wetlands upsets the balance of nature.

C.Keeping the total number of various kinds of wetlands is important.

D.It’s important to balance the numbers of natural wetlands and artificial ones.

4.What can be the best title for the text?

A.Seeking for More Wetlands B.Saving the World’s Wetlands

C.Causes of Wetlands’ Disappearance D.Natural Wetlands vs. Artificial Wetlands

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题

少年,再来一题如何?
试题答案
试题解析
相关试题