Question

Dolphins call out the specific names of loved ones when they become separated, a study finds．Other than humans, they are the only animals known to do this, according to the study．The big difference with dolphins is that these communications consist of whistles（鸣叫）, not words．

Earlier research found that dolphins have a “signature whistle” that would be somewhat like human shouting, “Hey everybody! I’m an adult healthy male named George, and I mean you no harm．”

The new finding is that dolphins also say the names of certain other dolphins．“Animals produced copies of the same sound when they were separated from a close partner．This supports our belief that dolphins copy another animal’s signature whistle when they want to reunite with that animal,” Stephanie King, who led the study, says．

King and her colleagues collected acoustic（声音的）data from wild dolphins around Sarasota Bay, Florida, from 1984 to 2009．The researchers also studied four adult male dolphins housed at the Seas Aquarium, also in Florida．

Those males are adults that keepers named Calvin, Khyber, Malabar and Ranier, all of whom, as well as all of the wild ones, developed their own signature whistles that served as names in communication with other dolphins．

“A dolphin uses its signature whistle to broadcast its identity and announce its presence．The signature whistles allow animals to identify one another over long distances and allow animals to recognize one another and to join up with each other,” King explains．“Dolphin whistles can be heard up to 20km away, depending on water depth and whistle frequency（频率）．”

The researchers said dolphins copy the signature whistles of loved ones, such as a mother, when the two are separated．These “names” are always used in positive situations, and are only directed toward loved ones．

While researchers are often unwilling to apply the word language to non-human communications, dolphins clearly have a very complex communication system．

1.The underlined word “housed” in Paragraph 4 probably means “_________”．

A．raised    B．saved    C．discovered   D．hunted

2.Which one plays a part in whether dolphin whistles can be heard over a distance?

A．The dolphin’s identity．

B．The water temperature

C．The whistle frequency．

D．The dolphin’s age．

3.When do dolphins copy the signature whistles of loved ones?

A．When there is a fight．

B．When their keeper comes．

C．When they are apart．

D．When they are hungry．

4.The passage probably is taken from______

A．A magazine about scientific advances．

B．A website about various animals．

C．A report on animal acoustics．

D．An essay about the relationship between humans and animals．

Answer

1.A

2.C

3.C

4.B

【解析】

试题分析:本文讲述的是海豚通过鸣叫其他亲人的“特殊的名字”当他们分开的时候。

1.1】A细节推理题。House作动词有“住，收藏”之意。A．raised养育 B．saved 得救，保存C．discovered 发现D．hunted狩猎；The researchers also studied four adult male dolphins housed at the Seas Aquarium, also in Florida．句意：研究人员也从养在弗罗里达的海洋水族馆的四只成年雄性海豚的身上收集信息。可知，这四只海豚是养在水族馆里的，故选A.

2.C细节理解题。根据第六段：Dolphin whistles can be heard up to 20km away, depending on water depth and whistle frequency（频率）．句意：海豚的鸣叫声能够在20米开外被听到，这取决于水的深度和鸣叫的频率。故选C.

3.3】C细节理解题。根据第七段：The researchers said dolphins copy the signature whistles of loved ones, such as a mother, when the two are separated．句意：研究人员说，海豚复制他们亲人的鸣叫声，比如一个海豚妈妈，当她与亲人分开的时候。故选C.

4.4】B主旨大意题。本文开始提出一个观点：研究表明海豚在跟亲人们分开的时候会呼唤亲人们的“特殊的名字”通过鸣叫声。然后通过几个例子证明这一观点表明这一研究的真实性。推断这篇文章可能是从研究各种动物的不同方面的网站上找下来的。文章既没有提到科技的日新月异，动物的声学报道和人与动物的关系，故选B.

考点：考查说明文阅读