Table of Contents
BEST IELTS Academic Reading Test 484
IELTS ACADEMIC READING TEST 484 – PASSAGE – 1
IELTS ACADEMIC READING TEST – 484
READING PASSAGE – 1
Swordfish
Swordfish, also recognized as broadbills in some countries, are big, highly migratory, predatory fish considered by a lengthy, plane and pointed beak. They are a general sport fish of the billfish category, however elusive. Swordfish are elongated, round-bodied, and lose all teeth and scales by adulthood. These fish are created broadly in tropical and temperate parts of the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans, and can typically be found from near the surface to a depth of 550 m (1,800 ft).
They commonly reach 3 m (9.8 ft) in length, and the maximum reported is 4.55 m (14.9 ft) in length and 650 kg (1,430 lb) in weight. The swordfish is called after its pointed, flat bill, which look like a sword. The species name, Xiphias gladius, originates from Greek (xiphias, “swordfish”), itself from (xiphos, “sword”) and from Latin gladius (“sword”). This makes it sketchily similar to other billfish such as marlin, but upon examination, their physiology is quite dissimilar, and they are members of different families.
IELTS Academic Reading Test
They commonly grasp 3 m (9.8 ft) in length and 550 Kg weight, and the maximum reported is 4.55 m (14.9 ft) in length and 650 kg (1,430 lb) in weight. The International Game Fish Association’s all-tackle angling record for a swordfish was a 536 kg (1,182 lb) specimen taken off Chile in 1953. Females are larger than males, and Pacific swordfish reach a greater size than northwest Atlantic and Mediterranean swordfish. They reach adulthood at 4-5 years of age and the maximum age is believed to be at least 9 years.
Swordfish ages are resultant, with difficulty, from annual rings on fin rays rather than otoliths, since their otoliths are small. Swordfish are ectothermic animals; however, along with some species of sharks, they have special organs next to their eyes to warmth their eyes and brains. Temperatures of 10 to 15 °C (18 to 27 °F) above the surrounding water temperature have been measured. The heating of the eyes greatly advances their vision, and thus advances their skill to clasp victim.
IELTS Academic Reading Test
Of the 25 000+ fish species, only 22 are known to have an apparatus to conserve heat. These include the swordfish, marlin, tuna, and some sharks. Conflicting to popular belief, the “sword” is not used to spear, but in its place may be used to gash at its prey to hurt the prey animal, to make for an easier clasp. Mainly, the swordfish depend on its great speed and nimbleness in the water to clasp its prey. It is no doubt among the fastest fish, but the foundation for the regularly quoted speed of 97 km/h (60 mph) is unreliable.
Swordfish favour water temperatures between 18 and 22 °C (64 and 72 °F), but have the biggest tolerance among billfish, and can be originated from 5 to 27 °C (41 to 81 °F). This highly travelling species typically moves near colder regions to feed during the summer. Swordfish feed daily, most frequently at night, when they increase to surface and near-surface waters in hunt of smaller fish. During the day, they usually happen to depths of 550 m (1,800 ft) and have remarkably been recorded as deep as 2,878 m (9,442 ft).
IELTS Academic Reading Test
Adults feed on a wide range of pelagic fish, such as mackerel, barracudinas, silver hake, rockfish, herring, and lanternfishes, but they also take demersal fish, squid, and crustaceans. In the north western Atlantic, a survey founded on the stomach content of 168 individuals found 82% had eaten squid and 53% had eaten fish, including gadids, scombrids, butterfish, bluefish, and sand lance. Large target is typically slashed with the sword, while small are swallowed whole. Swordfish are not schooling fish. They swim alone or in very loose combinations, unglued by as much as 10 m (33 ft) from a neighbouring swordfish.
They are often found lying at the surface, airing their initial dorsal fin. Boaters report this to be a beautiful sight, as is the influential jumping for which the species is known. This jumping, also called breaching, may be an exertion to dislodge pests, such as remoras or lampreys. Almost 50 species of parasites have been recognized in swordfish. In addition to remoras, lampreys, and cookie cutter sharks, this comprises a wide range of invertebrates, such as tapeworms, roundworms, and copepods.
IELTS Academic Reading Test
A contrast of the parasites of swordfish in the Atlantic and in the Mediterranean designated that some parasites, chiefly Anisakis spp. larvae recognized by genetic markers, could be used as biological tags and backing the being of a Mediterranean swordfish stock.
Fully adult swordfish have scarce natural predators. Among marine mammals, killer whales occasionally prey on adult swordfish. The shortfin mako, a remarkably fast species of shark, occasionally take on swordfish; dead or dying shortfin makos have been with broken-off swords in their heads, close-fitting the danger of this type of prey. Juvenile swordfish are far more susceptible to predation and are eaten by an extensive range of predatory fish.
IELTS Academic Reading Test
In the North Pacific, batch laying mainly happens in water warmer than 24 °C (75 °F) during the spring and summer, and year-round in the equatorial Pacific. In the North Atlantic, spawning is known from the Sargasso Sea, and in water warmer than 23 °C (73 °F) and less than 75 m (246 ft) deep. Spawning happens from November to February in the South Atlantic off southern Brazil. Spawning is year-round in the Caribbean Sea and other warm regions of the west Atlantic.
Large females can carry more eggs than small females, and between 1 million to 29 million eggs have been recorded. The pelagic eggs measure 1.6-1.8 mm (0.063-0.071 in) in diameter and 2.5 days after fertilization, the embryonic development transpires. The surface-living and unique- looking larvae are 4 mm (0.16 in) long at hatching. The bill is obvious when the larvae reach 1 cm (0.4 in) in length.
IELTS Academic Reading Test
Questions 1-7
Write no more than THREE WORDS and/or a number for each answer
1. Swordfish has a long, flat, …………………… beak.
2. Swordfish loses all teeth and scales by ……………………
3. The usual length of swordfish is …………………… meters.
4. Female swordfish is …………………… than male swordfish.
5. Normally the swordfish reaches adulthood at …………………… years.
6. Swordfish has …………………… near their eyes to keep their eyes and brain warm.
7. It is regularly said that the swordfish can travel up to …………………… mph.
IELTS Academic Reading Test
Questions 8-14
Do the following statements agree with the information given in the Reading Passage?
TRUE – If the statement agrees with the information
FALSE – If the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN – If there is no information on this
8. A common swordfish weights around 650 kg.
9. A swordfish has an age expectancy of at least 9 years.
10. Swordfish is the largest fish in the world.
11. Swordfish keeps themselves warm by using a special organ.
12. Swordfish have the broadest tolerance when it comes to adjusting with water temperatures among billfish.
13. Swordfish generally moves to colder regions to feed during the summers.
14. Small females can carry more eggs than large females.
IELTS Academic Reading Test
IELTS Academic Reading Test
ANSWERS
1. POINTED
2. ADULTHOOD
3. 3
4. LARGER
5. 4-5
6. SPECIAL ORGANS
7. 60
8. FALSE
9. FALSE
10. NOT GIVEN
11. NOT GIVEN
12. TRUE
13. TRUE
14. FALSE
IELTS Academic Reading Test