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    08 Passage 1 - Otter Q1-13

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    Cương Nguyễn Duy
    Otters have long, thin bodies and short legs adapted for moving through dense vegetation and tunnels. They have two types of fur - stiff guard hairs and fine underfur - that keep their skin dry and insulated. While otters have a keen sense of smell, their eyesight on land is poor but they can modify their eye lenses underwater for better vision. Otter populations declined dramatically due to pesticide use but have been recovering thanks to conservation efforts like captive breeding programs and protecting habitats, though reintroducing captive otters remains a debated strategy.

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    08 Passage 1 - Otter Q1-13

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    Cương Nguyễn Duy
    171 views5 pages
    Otters have long, thin bodies and short legs adapted for moving through dense vegetation and tunnels. They have two types of fur - stiff guard hairs and fine underfur - that keep their skin dry and insulated. While otters have a keen sense of smell, their eyesight on land is poor but they can modify their eye lenses underwater for better vision. Otter populations declined dramatically due to pesticide use but have been recovering thanks to conservation efforts like captive breeding programs and protecting habitats, though reintroducing captive otters remains a debated strategy.

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    08 Passage 1 - otter Q1-13

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    Otters have long, thin bodies and short legs adapted for moving through dense vegetation and tunnels. They have two types of fur - stiff guard hairs and fine underfur - that keep their skin dry and insulated. While otters have a keen sense of smell, their eyesight on land is poor but they can modify their eye lenses underwater for better vision. Otter populations declined dramatically due to pesticide use but have been recovering thanks to conservation efforts like captive breeding programs and protecting habitats, though reintroducing captive otters remains a debated strategy.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    171 views5 pages

    08 Passage 1 - Otter Q1-13

    Uploaded by

    Cương Nguyễn Duy
    Otters have long, thin bodies and short legs adapted for moving through dense vegetation and tunnels. They have two types of fur - stiff guard hairs and fine underfur - that keep their skin dry and insulated. While otters have a keen sense of smell, their eyesight on land is poor but they can modify their eye lenses underwater for better vision. Otter populations declined dramatically due to pesticide use but have been recovering thanks to conservation efforts like captive breeding programs and protecting habitats, though reintroducing captive otters remains a debated strategy.

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    Passage 1 otter

    SECTION 1
    READING PASSAGE 1
    You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 1-13 which are based on Reading
    Passage 1 below.

    otter

    A
    Otters have long, thin bodies and short legs – ideal for pushing through dense
    undergrowth or hunting in tunnels. An adult male may be up to 4 feet long and 30lbs.
    Females are smaller typically. The Eurasian otter’s nose is about the smallest among the
    otter species and has a characteristic shape described as a shallow ‘W’. An otter’s tail (or
    rudder, or stern) is stout at the base and tapers towards the tip where it flattens. This
    forms part of the propulsion unit when swimming fast under water. Otter fur consists of
    two types of hair: stout guard hairs which form a waterproof outer covering, and under-
    fur which is dense and fine, equivalent to an otter’s thermal underwear. The fur must be
    kept in good condition by grooming. Sea water reduces the waterproofing and insulating
    qualities of otter fur when salt water in the fur. This is why freshwater pools are
    important to otters living on the coast. After swimming, they wash the salts off in pools
    and the squirm on the ground to rub dry against vegetation.
    B
    Scent is used for hunting on land, for communication and for detecting danger. Otterine
    sense of smell is likely to be similar in sensitivity to dogs. Otters have small eyes and are
    probably short-sighted on land. But they do have the ability to modify the shape of the
    lens in the eye to make it more spherical, and hence overcome the refraction of water.
    In clear water and good light, otters can hunt fish by sight. The otter’s eyes and nostrils
    are placed high on its head so that it can see and breathe even when the rest of the
    body is submerged. Underwater, the cotter holds its legs against the body, except for
    steering, and the hind end of the body is flexed in a series of vertical undulations. River
    otters have webbing which extends for much of the length of each digit, though not to
    the very end. Giant otters and sea otters have even more prominent webs, while the
    Asian short-clawed otter has no webbing – they hunt for shrimps in ditches and paddy
    fields so they don’t need the swimming speed. Otter ears are tiny for streamlining, but

    1
    Passage 1 otter

    they still have very sensitive hearing and are protected by valves which close them
    against water pressure.
    C
    A number of constraints and preferences limit suitable habitats of otters. Water is a
    must and the rivers must be large enough to support a healthy population of fish. Being
    such shy and wary creatures, they will prefer territories where man’s activities do not
    impinge greatly. Of course, there must also be no other otter already in residence – this
    has only become significant again recently as populations start to recover. Coastal otters
    have a much more abundant food supply and ranges for males and females may be just
    a few kilometres of coastline. Because male range overlaps with two or three females –
    not bad! Otters will eat anything that they can get hold of – there are records of
    sparrows and snakes and slugs being gobbled. Apart from fish the most common prey
    are crayfish, crabs and water birds. Small mammals are occasionally taken, most
    commonly rabbits but sometimes even moles.
    D
    Eurasian otters will breed any time where food is readily available. In places where
    condition is more severe, Sweden for example where the lakes are frozen for much of
    winter, cubs are born in spring. This ensures that they are well grown before severe
    weather returns. In the Shetlands, cubs are born in summer when fish is more
    abundant. Though otters can breed every year, some do not. Again, this depends on
    food availability. Other factors such as food range and quality of the female may have an
    effect. Gestation for Eurasian otter is 63 days, with the exception of Lutra canadensis
    whose embryos may undergo delayed implantation. Otters normally give birth in more
    secure dens to avoid disturbances. Nests are lined with bedding to keep the cubs warm
    mummy is away feeding.
    E
    Otters normally give birth in more secure dens to avoid disturbances. Nests are lined
    with bedding (reeds, waterside plants, grass) to keep the cubs warm while is away
    feeding. Litter Size varies between 1 and 5. For some unknown reason, coastal otters
    tend to produce smaller litters. At five weeks they open their eyes – a tiny cub of 700g.
    At seven weeks they’re weaned onto solid food. At ten weeks they leave the nest,
    blinking into daylight for the first time. After three months they finally meet the water
    and learn to swim. After eight months they are hunting, though the mother still provides
    a lot of food herself. Finally, after nine months she can chase them all away with a clear
    conscience, and relax – until the next fella shows up.
    2
    Passage 1 otter

    F
    The plight of the British otter was recognised in the early 60s, but it wasn’t until the late
    70s that the chief cause was discovered. Pesticides, such as dieldrin and aldrin, were
    first used in1955 in agriculture and other industries – these chemicals are very
    persistent and had already been recognised as the cause of huge declines in the
    population of peregrine falcons, sparrow hawks and other predators. The pesticides
    entered the river systems and the food chain – micro-organisms, fish and finally otters,
    with every step increasing the concentration of the chemicals. From 1962 the chemicals
    were phased out, but while some species recovered quickly, otter numbers did not –
    and continued to fall into the 80s. This was probably due mainly to habitat destruction
    and road deaths. Acting on populations fragmented by the sudden decimation in the 50s
    and 60s, the loss of just a handful of otters in one area can make an entire population
    unviable and spell the end.
    G
    Otter numbers are recovering all around Britain – populations are growing again in the
    few areas where they had remained and have expanded from those areas into the rest
    of the country. This is almost entirely due to legislation, conservation efforts, slowing
    down and reversing the destruction of suitable otter habitat and reintroductions from
    captive breeding programs. Releasing captive-bred otters is seen by many as a last
    resort. The argument runs that where there is no suitable habitat for them they will not
    survive after release and where there is suitable habitat, natural populations should be
    able to expand into the area. However, reintroducing animals into a fragmented and
    fragile population may add just enough impetus for it to stabalise and expand, rather
    than die out. This is what the Otter Trust accomplished in Norfolk, where the otter
    population may have been as low as twenty animals at the beginning of the 1980s. The
    Otter Trust has now finished its captive breeding program entirely, great news because
    it means it is no longer needed.

    3
    Passage 1 otter

    Questions 1-9
    The reading Passage has seven paragraphs A-G
    Which paragraph contains the following information?
    Write the correct letter A-G, in boxes 1-9 on your answer sheet.
    NB You may use any letter more than once.

    1 A description of how otters regulate vision underwater


    2 The fit-for-purpose characteristics of otter’s body shape
    3 A reference to an underdeveloped sense
    4 An explanation of why agriculture failed in otter conservation efforts
    5 A description of some of the otter’s social characteristics
    6 A description of how baby otters grow
    7 The conflicted opinions on how to preserve
    8 A reference to legislative act
    9 An explanation of how otters compensate for heat loss

    Questions 10-13
    Answer the questions below.
    Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage for each
    answer

    10 What affects the outer fur of otters?


    11 What skill is not necessary for Asian short-clawed otters?
    12 Which type of otters has the shortest range?
    13 Which type of animals do otters hunt occasionally?

    4
    Passage 1 otter

    ANSWER

    1. B
    2. A
    3. B
    4. F
    5. C
    6. E
    7. G
    8. G
    9. A
    10. Sea water/Salt water/Salt
    11. swimming speed
    12. Coastal otters
    13. Small mammals

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