Question

Passenger pigeons（旅鸽）once flew over much of the United States in unbelievable numbers. Written accounts from the 18th and 19th centuries described flocks（群）so large that they darkened the sky for hours.

It was calculated that when its population reach its highest point, there were more than 3 billion passenger pigeons – a number equal to 24 to 40 percent of the total bird population in the United States, making it perhaps the most abundant birds in the world. Even as late as 1870 when their numbers had already become smaller, a flock believed to be 1 mile wide and 320 miles (about 515 kilometers) long was seen near Cincinnati.

Sadly, the abundance of passenger pigeons may have been their undoing. Where the birds were abundant, people believed there was an ever-lasting supply and killed them by the thousands. Commercial hunters attracted them to small clearings with grain, waited until pigeons had settled to feed, then threw large nets over them, taking hundreds at a time. The birds were shipped to large cities and sold in restaurants.

By the closing decades of the 19^th century, the hardwood forests where passenger pigeons nested had been damaged by Americans’ need for wood, which scattered（驱散）the flocks and forced the birds to go farther north, where cold temperatures and spring storms contributed to their decline. Soon the great flocks were gone, never to be seen again.

In 1897, the state of Michigan passed a law prohibiting the killing of passenger pigeons, but by then, no sizable flocks had been seen in the state for 10 years. The last confirmed wild pigeon in the United States was shot by a boy in Pike County, Ohio, in 1900. For a time, a few birds survived under human care. The last of them, known affectionately as Martha, died at the Cincinnati Zoological Garden in September 1, 1914.

1.In the 18^th and early 19^th centuries, passenger pigeons _______.

A. were the biggest bird in the world        

B. lived mainly in the south of America

C. did great harm to the natural environment  

D. Were the largest population in the US

2.The underlined word “undoing” probably refers to the pigeons’ _______.

A. escape     B. ruin     C. liberation     D. evolution

3.What was the main reason for people to kill passenger pigeons?

A. To seek pleasure.          B. To save other birds.

C. To make money.           D. To protect crops.

4.What can we infer about the law passed in Michigan?

A. It was ignored by the public.       B. It was declared too late.

C. It was unfair.                    D. It was strict.

Answer

1.D

2.B

3.C

4.B

【解析】

试题分析：本文是一篇记叙文。叙述了旅鸽逐渐消失的过程。在美国，18世纪和19世纪旅鸽的数量很大。人们认为旅鸽数量多，会永恒的供应，于是成千的人杀害了旅鸽。19世纪末，美国人是为了需要木材而驱赶旅鸽。在1897年，到密歇根州通过禁止屠杀旅鸽的法律时，在美国已经10年没有见过大的旅鸽群。最后一批旅鸽，于1914年，在辛辛那提动物园死去。

1.D. 考查细节理解。在18世纪和19世纪初期，旅鸽的数量怎么样？根据Passenger pigeons（旅鸽）once flew over much of the United States in unbelievable numbers. Written accounts from the 18th and 19th centuries described flocks（群）so large that they darkened the sky for hours.可知在美国，18世纪和19世纪旅鸽的数量很大。故选D。

2. 考查词义猜测。划线单词undoing可能指的是旅鸽发生了什么情况？根据Where the birds were abundant, people believed there was an ever-lasting supply and killed them by the thousands.可知人们认为旅鸽数量多会永恒的供应，于是成千的人杀害了旅鸽。因此判断此处undoing的意思是死亡，毁灭。故选B。

3. 考查细节理解。人们杀死旅鸽的主要原因是什么？根据Commercial hunters attracted them to small clearings with grain, waited until pigeons had settled to feed, then threw large nets over them, taking hundreds at a time. The birds were shipped to large cities and sold in restaurants.可知商业猎人捕捉了大量的旅鸽，把他们卖到大城市的餐馆里，因此推测人们杀死旅鸽的主要原因是为了赚钱。故选C。选项A的意思是寻开心。文中没有提到让人们高兴的内容，故不符合文章的意思。选项B，为了挽救其他鸟类。在文中没有提到其他鸟类，故不符合原文，故排除B项。选项D,为了保护庄稼。根据the hardwood forests where passenger pigeons nested had been damaged by Americans’ need for wood, which scattered（驱散）the flocks and forced the birds to go farther north,可知美国人是为了需要木材而驱赶旅鸽，而不是为了保护庄稼，故排除D项。

4.n 1897, the state of Michigan passed a law prohibiting the killing of passenger pigeons, but by then, no sizable flocks had been seen in the state for 10 years.可知到密歇根州通过禁止屠杀旅鸽的法律时，在美国已经10年没有见过大的旅鸽群，这可推断旅鸽数量已经很少了，因此这项法律通过得太晚了。故选B。

考点：环保类短文阅读。