BEST IELTS Academic Reading Test 317

BEST IELTS Academic Reading Test 317

IELTS ACADEMIC READING TEST – PASSAGE – 1

IELTS ACADEMIC READING TEST

READING PASSAGE 1

CREATURES BEHAVE

In their study report, appearing in the Journal of Animal Ecology, the researchers say that highly specialized hunting strategy the cetaceans use is very similar to the strategies cheetahs use.

The researchers have even successfully recorded such remarkable behavior of the whales, hundreds of meters underwater in complete darkness.

Spanish biologists have unearthed evidence that deep-sea whales, which are known to be slow and energy saving creatures, are indeed the cheetahs of the ocean. Experts at La Laguna University say that they have observed super-fast pilot whales sprinting after their preys, which may even include giant squid sometimes.

IELTS Academic Reading Test

“As far as we know, no other whale has been recorded to swim nearly as fast at depth,” the BBC quited marine biologist Natacha Aguilar Soto of La Laguna University in Tenerife as saying.

“Short-fined pilot whales seem to be the greatest burst-speed athletes of the deep-diving mammals,” the researcher added.

During the study, the researchers attached a tag to 23 short-finned pilot whales (Globicephala macrorhynchus) living off the coast of the canary Islands, with the help of which they could record the speed, depth and direction of the whales’ dives, as well as the sounds made and heard by the whales.

IELTS Academic Reading Test

While scientists previously thought that the tags demonstrated that the whales also hunt during the day. The tags also revealed that when the whales surged after their prey, they reached the speeds of 32 km per hour, and might keep up the sprint for 200km (650ft), before either catching the prey or giving up the chase.

Aguilar Soto said the new findings contrasted the existing perceptions of how deep-sea creatures behave, such as the belief that deep diving whales moved relatively slowly due to the need to conserve oxygen while holding their breath.

IELTS Academic Reading Test

“It was completely unexpected that short-finned pilot whales sprint at depth with limited oxygen reserves. Cheetahs for example, more than double their breathing rate during chases,” Aguilar Soto said.

The researchers said pilot whales rely on the same high-risk, high-gain hunting strategy as cheetahs do According to them, the whales do it while still holding their breath. Aguilar Soto said such behavior of whales indicates that they are spotted lazing on the surface perhaps due to the fact that they might be actually recovering from the exertion of the hunt.

IELTS Academic Reading Test

Questions 1-6

Fill in the blanks. Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS for each answer:-

Complete the sentences below from given list or words.

1. Hunting techniques use by whales is common to the strategies of……………………………………
2. Short finned pilot whales have ………………………………………… among the sea mammals.
3. Scientists first thought that whales ……………………………………… at night was not correct.
4. Whales can move with a velocity of …………………………………..in 60 minutes.
5. Whales moved slowly to ……………………………………. The respiration process.
6. Cheetahs in fact more than ……………………………………………..rate during hunting.

IELTS Academic Reading Test

Questions 7-10

Do the following statements agree with the information in reading passage 1? In boxes 7-10.  Write on your answer sheet.

YES – if the statement agrees with the information

NO – if the statement contradicts the information

NOTGIVEN – if there is no information on this in the passages.

• Whales are energy conserving creatures.
• Researchers studied the behavior of whales successfully.
• Tag was attached to measure the weefing of whales.
• Whales can jump up to 200m.

IELTS Academic Reading Test

Questions 11-13

CHOOSE the appropriate Letter A-D and write it in boxes 11-13 on your answer sheet.

1. Tag was attached to know ………………………… of whales
2. Jumping limit
3. Position
4. Velocity and direction
5. Force
6. Short finned pilot whales used limited oxygen during hunting at
7. Depth
8. Middle of ocean
9. Upper surface of sea
10. Sub-surface
11. Choose a suitable title for passage
12. Short-finned pilot whales
13. Cheetahs of Ocean
14. Nature of whales
15. Hunting of whales.

IELTS Academic Reading Test

ANSWERS ARE BELOW

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IELTS Academic Reading Test

Answers:-

1. cheetahs
2. greatest burst speed
3. hunt only
4. 32 km
5. Conserve oxygen
6. Double their breathing
7. YES
8. YES
9. NO
10. NOT GIVEN
11. C
12. A
13. B

IELTS Academic Reading Test