Save the Ili pika守护“天山精灵”

江丽

主題语境：保护伊犁鼠兔 篇幅：349词 建议用时：7分钟

1 It's been 40 years since Li Weidong， 68， a wildlife protection expert， accidentally discoveredthe Ili pika （伊犁鼠兔） in the Tianshan Mountains. Looking back， he's filled withemotion.“ I discovered the endangered species. If I don't protect it and it becomes extinct，I'll be the one to blame，” he says.

2 The Ili pika is a small， fluffy （ 覆有绒毛的）mammal， around 20 centimeters long， with bright fur，big round ears and brown mottled （杂色的） fur on itsforehead and neck. It impresses people with its beautyand cuteness. It looks like a cross between a rabbitand a mouse， but actually belongs to the lagomorpha（兔类） order. Among the world's 24 pika species， ithas the largest ears， longest hind feet and largest bodysize. It's regularly found near the bare rocks locatedbetween 2800 and 4100 meters above sea level in theTianshan Mountains. It lives alone， doesn't drink water， but eats rare alpine plants.

3 When the Ili pika was formally recognized as a new species in 1986， Li estimatedthat its number was around 3000. However， when Li traveled around the area in 2002， hebecame worried that the species had lost half of its habitat. Since then， he has systematicallyinvestigated the population of the Ili pika every four years， mainly by tracking itsfootprints and monitoring its food storage.

4 Li never gives up， and in his late 60s， he continues his journeys through the isolatedland， at an altitude of up to 6000 meters， to seek the Ili pika with his wife. Falling overmeant severe injury as they both personally experienced， yet the couple insisted on going tocapture an image of an Ili pika.

5 Now， 71 percent of the Ili pika's habitat has disappeared， which means there mightcurrently be less than 1000 Ili pikas in the wild. Global warming has led to the speciesmoving up to higher altitudes. Some have made their way to the top of the peak.“ The Ilipika is extremely sensitive to climate change. The disappearance of the Ili pika indicatesthe damage and shrinking of our own living environment，” Li said.

Reading

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1. What does paragraph 2 mainly talk about？

A. How the Ili pika was discovered.

B. The Ili pika's appearance.

C. The Ili pika's habitat.

D. Where the Ili pika comes from.

2. How did Li find out the population of the Ili pika according to paragraph 3？

A. By living in its habitat.

B. By estimating its living environment.

C. By studying its footprints and food storage.

D. By using systematical records.

3. What has contributed to the decline of the Ili pika's habitat？

A. Li Weidong's journeys through the isolated land.

B. Deforestation in the Tianshan Mountains.

C. The Ili pika's sensitivity to water.

D. Global warming.

4. Which word can best describe Li？

A. Generous. B. Cautious. C. Consistent. D. Proud.

Language

Study

Ⅰ. 日积月累

accidentally adv. 偶然地

blame v. 责怪

anxious adj. 焦虑的

seek v. 寻找

be recognized as 被认为是

at an altitude of 在海拔……

make one's way to 前往

Ⅱ. 语法填空

In the 1980s， it was Li Weidong 1.__________discovered and named the Ili pika.Since then， the former public health expert 2.__________（turn） his career focus to wildlifeprotection. As he himself has put it， he“ has served 3.__________a spokesperson for wildanimals” for four decades.

He has joined protection programs for the Ili pika， Tibetan antelopes， wild camels，4.__________Mongolian wild asses. And over the years， he has been consulting on， anddelivering environmental impact assessments of， major construction 5.__________（project）in the region. He's also 6.__________lagomorph expert for the International Union for Conservationof Nature Species Survival Commission.

The wildlife passages over the G7 Expressway， 7.__________（build） on a total cost ofmore than 200 million yuan， aim 8.__________（minimize） humans' influence and guaranteesafe passages for the animals. The passages 9.__________（cover） with sand and gravel tosimulate （模擬） natural conditions. The railway?wildlife passage?highway structure is anunprecedented trial in the country. The expert believes the passages have met the10.__________（base） needs of wildlife migration in the area.