Passenger pigeons（旅鴿）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 19th century, the hardwood forests where passenger pigeons nested had been damaged by Americans’ need for wood, which scattered（驅(qū)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.
【小題1】In the 18th and early 19th 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 
【小題2】The underlined word “undoing” probably refers to the pigeons’ _______.
A．escape B．ruin C．liberation D．evolution 
【小題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. 
【小題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. 


【小題1】D
【小題2】B
【小題3】C
【小題4】B

解析試題分析：本文是一篇記敘文。敘述了旅鴿逐漸消失的過(guò)程。在美國(guó)，18世紀(jì)和19世紀(jì)旅鴿的數(shù)量很大。人們認(rèn)為旅鴿數(shù)量多，會(huì)永恒的供應(yīng)，于是成千的人殺害了旅鴿。19世紀(jì)末，美國(guó)人是為了需要木材而驅(qū)趕旅鴿。在1897年，到密歇根州通過(guò)禁止屠殺旅鴿的法律時(shí)，在美國(guó)已經(jīng)10年沒有見過(guò)大的旅鴿群。最后一批旅鴿，于1914年，在辛辛那提動(dòng)物園死去。
【小題1】D. 考查細(xì)節(jié)理解。在18世紀(jì)和19世紀(jì)初期，旅鴿的數(shù)量怎么樣？根據(jù)Passenger pigeons（旅鴿）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.可知在美國(guó)，18世紀(jì)和19世紀(jì)旅鴿的數(shù)量很大。故選D。
【小題2】B. 考查詞義猜測(cè)。劃線單詞undoing可能指的是旅鴿發(fā)生了什么情況？根據(jù)Where the birds were abundant, people believed there was an ever-lasting supply and killed them by the thousands.可知人們認(rèn)為旅鴿數(shù)量多會(huì)永恒的供應(yīng)，于是成千的人殺害了旅鴿。因此判斷此處undoing的意思是死亡，毀滅。故選B。
【小題3】C. 考查細(xì)節(jié)理解。人們殺死旅鴿的主要原因是什么？根據(jù)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.可知商業(yè)獵人捕捉了大量的旅鴿，把他們賣到大城市的餐館里，因此推測(cè)人們殺死旅鴿的主要原因是為了賺錢。故選C。選項(xiàng)A的意思是尋開心。文中沒有提到讓人們高興的內(nèi)容，故不符合文章的意思。選項(xiàng)B，為了挽救其他鳥類。在文中沒有提到其他鳥類，故不符合原文，故排除B項(xiàng)。選項(xiàng)D,為了保護(hù)莊稼。根據(jù)the hardwood forests where passenger pigeons nested had been damaged by Americans’ need for wood, which scattered（驅(qū)散）the flocks and forced the birds to go farther north,可知美國(guó)人是為了需要木材而驅(qū)趕旅鴿，而不是為了保護(hù)莊稼，故排除D項(xiàng)。
【小題4】B.考查推理判斷。關(guān)于密歇根州通過(guò)得法律我們可以推斷出什么？根據(jù)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.可知到密歇根州通過(guò)禁止屠殺旅鴿的法律時(shí)，在美國(guó)已經(jīng)10年沒有見過(guò)大的旅鴿群，這可推斷旅鴿數(shù)量已經(jīng)很少了，因此這項(xiàng)法律通過(guò)得太晚了。故選B。
考點(diǎn)：環(huán)保類短文閱讀。

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B．turn the car right or left
C．do nothing about it
D．stop the car
【小題4】What’s the author’s attitude towards the autopilot?
A．Approving. B．Objective. C．Negative. D．Doubtful.

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