Ⅲ. 阅读理解(每题 2 分，满分 16 分)
A
跨学科 生物 Every year, we learn more about how animals communicate with each other. A case in point is that research shows elephants greet each other by moving their ears and making low noises. It’s clear that communication in the animal kingdom is complex. But with all unique ways to communicate, is it possible for an animal to learn the “language” of another species (物种)?
It turns out, there are examples of animals learning to understand—and even use—vocalizations or signals from species other than their own. But there’s still a lot of questions about what’s going on inside those animals’ heads.
First off, although “language” is a useful metaphor when we’re thinking about one species understanding another, animals don’t actually have languages in the way humans do. “Language is kind of a communication system that is only connected with humans,” Simon W. Townsend, a professor of evolutionary anthropology, told Live Science.
When it comes to learning from the sounds of other species, birds are one of the best-studied animals. But learning a “language” is about more than just understanding what you hear; it’s about being able to speak it too. That’s where the fork-tailed drongo—a small, black bird found across Africa—excels (擅长).
Drongos have a habit of following other animals around in the hope of stealing some of their food. Thomas Flower, a biology instructor, studied these birds in the field as they followed a group of meerkats. He found that the drongos would use their own alarm calls—a squawk that indicates a predator (捕食者) is approaching—to scare the meerkats into their holes, allowing the drongos to dive in and grab any leftover food.
1. 语言能力 推断能力 Why does the author mention elephant’s greeting in Paragraph 1?
A. To display elephants’ talent.
B. To introduce animal communication.
C. To present dangers faced by elephants.
D. To state the complexity of animal kingdom.
2. What does Townsend think of language?
A. Difficult to understand.
B. Limited to certain species.
C. Similar among all animals.
D. Well-explored by scientists.
3. What can we learn about fork-tailed drongos?
A. They can interact with humans.
B. They are the only animals that steal food.
C. They are more intelligent than other animals.
D. They can learn and use another species’ signals.
4. What can be a suitable title for the text?
A. Biodiversity Adds Colour to the World
B. Will Animals and Humans Live in Harmony?
C. Can Animals Learn Another Species’ Language?
D. Animals’ Communication Patterns Vary Across Species
A
跨学科 生物 Every year, we learn more about how animals communicate with each other. A case in point is that research shows elephants greet each other by moving their ears and making low noises. It’s clear that communication in the animal kingdom is complex. But with all unique ways to communicate, is it possible for an animal to learn the “language” of another species (物种)?
It turns out, there are examples of animals learning to understand—and even use—vocalizations or signals from species other than their own. But there’s still a lot of questions about what’s going on inside those animals’ heads.
First off, although “language” is a useful metaphor when we’re thinking about one species understanding another, animals don’t actually have languages in the way humans do. “Language is kind of a communication system that is only connected with humans,” Simon W. Townsend, a professor of evolutionary anthropology, told Live Science.
When it comes to learning from the sounds of other species, birds are one of the best-studied animals. But learning a “language” is about more than just understanding what you hear; it’s about being able to speak it too. That’s where the fork-tailed drongo—a small, black bird found across Africa—excels (擅长).
Drongos have a habit of following other animals around in the hope of stealing some of their food. Thomas Flower, a biology instructor, studied these birds in the field as they followed a group of meerkats. He found that the drongos would use their own alarm calls—a squawk that indicates a predator (捕食者) is approaching—to scare the meerkats into their holes, allowing the drongos to dive in and grab any leftover food.
1. 语言能力 推断能力 Why does the author mention elephant’s greeting in Paragraph 1?
A. To display elephants’ talent.
B. To introduce animal communication.
C. To present dangers faced by elephants.
D. To state the complexity of animal kingdom.
2. What does Townsend think of language?
A. Difficult to understand.
B. Limited to certain species.
C. Similar among all animals.
D. Well-explored by scientists.
3. What can we learn about fork-tailed drongos?
A. They can interact with humans.
B. They are the only animals that steal food.
C. They are more intelligent than other animals.
D. They can learn and use another species’ signals.
4. What can be a suitable title for the text?
A. Biodiversity Adds Colour to the World
B. Will Animals and Humans Live in Harmony?
C. Can Animals Learn Another Species’ Language?
D. Animals’ Communication Patterns Vary Across Species
答案：1 - 4 BBDC
【语篇解读】本文是一篇说明文，主要探讨了动物是否有可能学习其他物种的“语言”这一问题，通过列举鸟类等动物的例子进行分析说明。
1. B 解析：写作意图题。根据第一段“Every year, we learn more about how animals communicate with each other. A case in point is that research shows elephants greet...”可知大象打招呼是动物交流的一个例子，从这个例子展开探讨动物能否学习其他物种“语言”。故选 B。
2. B 解析：细节理解题。根据第三段“Language is kind of a communication system that is only connected humans”可知，汤森德认为语言局限于特定物种。故选 B。
3. D 解析：细节理解题。根据最后一段“He found that the drongos would use their own alarm calls—a squawk that indicates a predator is approaching—to scare the meerkats into their holes, allowing the drongos to dive in and grab any leftover food.”可知，叉尾卷尾鸟能学习并使用其他物种的信号。故选 D。
4. C 解析：标题归纳题。通读全文，尤其是第一段“But with all unique ways to communicate, is it possible for an animal to learn the ‘language’ of another species?”可知，文章主要围绕动物能否学习其他物种的“语言”展开讨论，C 选项“动物能学习其他物种的语言吗？”最适合作为文章标题。故选 C。
【语篇解读】本文是一篇说明文，主要探讨了动物是否有可能学习其他物种的“语言”这一问题，通过列举鸟类等动物的例子进行分析说明。
1. B 解析：写作意图题。根据第一段“Every year, we learn more about how animals communicate with each other. A case in point is that research shows elephants greet...”可知大象打招呼是动物交流的一个例子，从这个例子展开探讨动物能否学习其他物种“语言”。故选 B。
2. B 解析：细节理解题。根据第三段“Language is kind of a communication system that is only connected humans”可知，汤森德认为语言局限于特定物种。故选 B。
3. D 解析：细节理解题。根据最后一段“He found that the drongos would use their own alarm calls—a squawk that indicates a predator is approaching—to scare the meerkats into their holes, allowing the drongos to dive in and grab any leftover food.”可知，叉尾卷尾鸟能学习并使用其他物种的信号。故选 D。
4. C 解析：标题归纳题。通读全文，尤其是第一段“But with all unique ways to communicate, is it possible for an animal to learn the ‘language’ of another species?”可知，文章主要围绕动物能否学习其他物种的“语言”展开讨论，C 选项“动物能学习其他物种的语言吗？”最适合作为文章标题。故选 C。
解析：
【分析】
1. 第1题：这是写作意图题，解题时需先抓住段落主旨句。第一段开篇点明“我们每年都能了解到更多动物彼此交流的方式”，随后举大象打招呼的例子，目的是引出动物交流这一话题，进而开启对“动物能否学习其他物种‘语言’”的探讨，所以要选对应引出话题的选项。
2. 第2题：这是细节理解题，解题关键是定位到Townsend的观点所在段落。根据第三段他所说的“Language is kind of a communication system that is only connected with humans”，可直接得出他认为语言仅局限于人类这一特定物种。
3. 第3题：这是细节理解题，需定位到叉尾卷尾鸟的相关描述段落。最后一段提到它们会用警报声吓唬狐獴以获取食物，说明它们能学习并运用其他物种的信号，以此判断正确选项。
4. 第4题：这是标题归纳题，解题要抓住文章核心话题。文章开头就提出核心问题“is it possible for an animal to learn the ‘language’ of another species?”，全文围绕该问题展开论述，所以标题要贴合这一核心问题。
【解析】
1. 写作意图题。根据第一段“Every year, we learn more about how animals communicate with each other. A case in point is that research shows elephants greet...”可知，大象打招呼是动物交流的一个实例，作者提及该例子是为了引出动物交流这一话题，进而探讨动物能否学习其他物种的“语言”，故选B。
2. 细节理解题。根据第三段中Simon W. Townsend所说的“Language is kind of a communication system that is only connected with humans”可知，他认为语言是仅与人类相关的交流系统，即语言局限于特定物种，故选B。
3. 细节理解题。根据最后一段“He found that the drongos would use their own alarm calls—a squawk that indicates a predator is approaching—to scare the meerkats into their holes, allowing the drongos to dive in and grab any leftover food.”可知，叉尾卷尾鸟能够学习并使用其他物种的信号来达成自己的目的，故选D。
4. 标题归纳题。通读全文，尤其是第一段的核心问题“But with all unique ways to communicate, is it possible for an animal to learn the ‘language’ of another species?”可知，整篇文章围绕“动物能否学习其他物种的‘语言’”这一问题展开讨论，C选项最贴合文章核心话题，故选C。
【答案】
1-4 BBDC
【知识点】
写作意图判断、细节信息查找、标题归纳方法
【点评】
本文是一篇跨学科说明文，围绕“动物能否学习其他物种的‘语言’”展开探讨，通过具体实例进行分析说明。题目涵盖写作意图、细节理解、标题归纳等常见阅读理解题型，考查学生抓取段落主旨、定位关键信息以及提炼文章核心话题的能力，有助于提升学生的综合阅读素养。
【难度系数】
0.6
1. 第1题：这是写作意图题，解题时需先抓住段落主旨句。第一段开篇点明“我们每年都能了解到更多动物彼此交流的方式”，随后举大象打招呼的例子，目的是引出动物交流这一话题，进而开启对“动物能否学习其他物种‘语言’”的探讨，所以要选对应引出话题的选项。
2. 第2题：这是细节理解题，解题关键是定位到Townsend的观点所在段落。根据第三段他所说的“Language is kind of a communication system that is only connected with humans”，可直接得出他认为语言仅局限于人类这一特定物种。
3. 第3题：这是细节理解题，需定位到叉尾卷尾鸟的相关描述段落。最后一段提到它们会用警报声吓唬狐獴以获取食物，说明它们能学习并运用其他物种的信号，以此判断正确选项。
4. 第4题：这是标题归纳题，解题要抓住文章核心话题。文章开头就提出核心问题“is it possible for an animal to learn the ‘language’ of another species?”，全文围绕该问题展开论述，所以标题要贴合这一核心问题。
【解析】
1. 写作意图题。根据第一段“Every year, we learn more about how animals communicate with each other. A case in point is that research shows elephants greet...”可知，大象打招呼是动物交流的一个实例，作者提及该例子是为了引出动物交流这一话题，进而探讨动物能否学习其他物种的“语言”，故选B。
2. 细节理解题。根据第三段中Simon W. Townsend所说的“Language is kind of a communication system that is only connected with humans”可知，他认为语言是仅与人类相关的交流系统，即语言局限于特定物种，故选B。
3. 细节理解题。根据最后一段“He found that the drongos would use their own alarm calls—a squawk that indicates a predator is approaching—to scare the meerkats into their holes, allowing the drongos to dive in and grab any leftover food.”可知，叉尾卷尾鸟能够学习并使用其他物种的信号来达成自己的目的，故选D。
4. 标题归纳题。通读全文，尤其是第一段的核心问题“But with all unique ways to communicate, is it possible for an animal to learn the ‘language’ of another species?”可知，整篇文章围绕“动物能否学习其他物种的‘语言’”这一问题展开讨论，C选项最贴合文章核心话题，故选C。
【答案】
1-4 BBDC
【知识点】
写作意图判断、细节信息查找、标题归纳方法
【点评】
本文是一篇跨学科说明文，围绕“动物能否学习其他物种的‘语言’”展开探讨，通过具体实例进行分析说明。题目涵盖写作意图、细节理解、标题归纳等常见阅读理解题型，考查学生抓取段落主旨、定位关键信息以及提炼文章核心话题的能力，有助于提升学生的综合阅读素养。
【难度系数】
0.6