阅读理解。
Whales, like dolphins, belong to a group of mammals (哺乳动物) called “cetaceans”. This
namecomes from a Latin word meaning “large sea animal”. There are at least seventy-five kinds
of cetaceans. Scientists divide the various kinds into two major groups - baleen whales, which do
not have teeth, and toothed whales, which have teeth.
Whales have the same basic shape as fish, but they differ from fish in many ways. The most
noticeable difference is the tail. Fish have vertical (垂直的) tail fins(鳍), but whales have horizontal
tail fins. Fish breathe by means of gills (腮), while whales have lungs (肺) and must come to the
surface to breathe. But they can hold their breath for long periods.
Like other mammals, whales give birth to live young and feed them with milk produced by the
mother’s body. Most fish, however, lay eggs and do not feed their young. Whales are also
warm-blooded - that is, their body temperature remains about the same all the time. Almost all fish
are cold-blooded. Their body temperature changes with changes in the temperature of the water.
Whales have a highly developed brain and they are highly advanced life forms. They sing to their
young, engage in complex family relationships, and their communication skills are fine.
In December 2005, a whale, after being rescued from fishing nets, didn’t just swim back to deep
water. It hung around and touched each of the divers with its mouth. “Knowing that it was free, it
stopped about a foot away from me, pushed me around a little bit and had some fun,” said dive
master James Moskito. He thought it was “one of the most fantastic moments” of his life.
1. According to Paragraph 1, which of the following shows the correct relationship?
A. Mammals are a type of cetacean.
B. Cetaceans are not a type of mammal.
C. Whales belong to the cetacean family.
D. Mammals are a type of whale.
2. Which of the following is NOT a difference between whales and fish?
A. Whales breathe by means of lungs.
B. Whales have tail fins.
C. Whales feed their young with milk.
D. A whale’s body temperature nearly doesn’t change.
3. What are Paragraphs 2 and 3 mainly about?
A. How whales catch their food.
B. How whales live in the ocean.
C. The differences between whales and fish.
D. Whales are highly advanced life forms.
4. Why didn’t the whale swim back to the sea after it was saved?
A. It lost its way in the sea.
B. It was seriously wounded.
C. It was frightened by the divers.
D. It wanted to thank the divers
