MELBOURNE, Australia – A kangaroo frightened by a man walking his dog attacked the pair, throwing the pet underwater and hitting the owner in the stomach with its back legs. The Australian, Chris Rickard, was in stable condition Monday after the attack, which ended when the 49-year-old struck the kangaroo in the throat.

Rickard said he was walking his blue dog, Rocky, on Sunday morning when they surprised a sleeping kangaroo in Arthur's Creek northeast of Melbourne. The dog chased the animal into a pond, when the kangaroo turned and knocked the pet underwater.

When Rickard tried to pull his dog free, the kangaroo turned on him, attacking with its back legs and tearing a deep cut into his stomach and across his face.

"I thought I might take action to drag the dog out from under his grasp, but I didn't expect him to actually attack me," Rickard, 49, told The Herald Sun newspaper. "It was a shock at the start because it was a kangaroo, about 5 feet high, they don't go around killing people."

"I was stuck having to hold on to the dog with both hands because it was half drowned and I couldn't really see anything because the kangaroo just attacked me.”

He added, "All I could do was just keep pushing for the bank and he was trying to push me under the water, so at that point I struck him in the throat and that made him back off a little bit.

"I don't think I'll ever be able to watch kangaroo programs quite the same as I used to — it might bring back a couple of bad memories.”

Kangaroos rarely attack people but will fight if they feel threatened.

    Dogs often chase kangaroos, which have been known to lead the pets into water and defend themselves there.

Rickard said he ended the attack by hitting the kangaroo in the throat adding Rocky was "half-drowned" when he pulled him from the water.

1.Rickard and his pet dog were attacked when _________.

A. swimming in the pond                     B. he was teasing a kangaroo

C. he was walking his dog                    D. dragging his dog out from water

2.In Australia, kangaroos ________.

A. get along rather peacefully with people        B. are only seen in zoos

C. frequently attack people and pets             D. can be found swimming in ponds

3.The kangaroo attacked the man and his dog probably because ________.

A. the man struck it in the throat               B. it wanted to drown the dog

C. the man wanted to drown it                 D. the dog chased it

4.As a result of the attack, ________.

A. the kangaroo was killed

B. Rickard was left a deep impression

C. kangaroos should be under stricter protection

D. the dog was drowned dead

When many people in the west think of China, the animal that they think of is the dragon. For them, the dragon is an aggressive monster that breathes fire. Many popular legends tell how dragons have killed brave knights and eaten beautiful young girls.
For Chinese people, however, the dragon is not an evil monster. It’s a cultural and spiritual symbol for prosperity and good luck. The dragon’s main task is to create harmony and bring rain. Dragons are celebrated in art and architecture, and of course the dragon dance is a very popular ritual (仪式).
China isn’t the only country to have the dragon as its symbol. Wales in the UK, has a red dragon proudly displayed on its flag. Another country in the world with a dragon on its flag is Bhutan, a tiny country between China and India.
Almost all countries in the world have an animal symbol representing their countries. This is particularly obvious during sports. The English think lions to be brave and proud animal and the English football teams have three lions on their football shirts.
Australia is famous for kangaroos, of course. The national rugby team is more commonly known as the Wallabies, a type of small kangaroo.The South African team is known as the Springboks, a type of African antelope. Likewise the New Zealanders, whether playing sports or not, are commonly known as kiwis. A kiwi is a native New Zealand bird that can’t fly.
All countries are proud of their symbols, which they feel reflect national characteristics or the beauty and variety of their natural environments. Recently, a Shang hai professor claimed that using the dragon as a national symbol could make western countries have a negative view of China. But in an Internet survey 90% of Chinese people wanted to keep the dragon.
【小题1】In the opinion of the west, the dragon is ______.

When many people in the west think of China, the animal that they think of is the dragon. For them, the dragon is an aggressive monster that breathes fire. Many popular legends tell how dragons have killed brave knights and eaten beautiful young girls.

For Chinese people, however, the dragon is not an evil monster. It’s a cultural and spiritual symbol for prosperity and good luck. The dragon’s main task is to create harmony and bring rain. Dragons are celebrated in art and architecture, and of course the dragon dance is a very popular ritual (仪式).

China isn’t the only country to have the dragon as its symbol. Wales in the UK, has a red dragon proudly displayed on its flag. Another country in the world with a dragon on its flag is Bhutan, a tiny country between China and India.

Almost all countries in the world have an animal symbol representing their countries. This is particularly obvious during sports. The English think lions to be brave and proud animal and the English football teams have three lions on their football shirts.

Australia is famous for kangaroos, of course. The national rugby team is more commonly known as the Wallabies, a type of small kangaroo.The South African team is known as the Springboks, a type of African antelope. Likewise the New Zealanders, whether playing sports or not, are commonly known as kiwis. A kiwi is a native New Zealand bird that can’t fly.

All countries are proud of their symbols, which they feel reflect national characteristics or the beauty and variety of their natural environments. Recently, a Shang hai professor claimed that using the dragon as a national symbol could make western countries have a negative view of China. But in an Internet survey 90% of Chinese people wanted to keep the dragon.

1.In the opinion of the west, the dragon is ______.

A．a terrible animal that is not popular

B．a cultural and spiritual symbol of good luck

C．a reflection of China’s national characteristics

D．an animal that can create harmony and bring rain

2.Which of the following does NOT use the dragon as its national symbol?

A．China.            B．Wales.            C．Bhutan.           D．India.

3.According to the passage, which of the following statements is TRUE?

A．The national rugby team from the South Africa is well known as the Wallabies.

B．The Australian team is known as Springboks, a type of kangaroo.

C．The New Zealanders are commonly known as kiwis only when playing sports.

D．The dragon is mentioned to have been used on the flag in two countries.

　　Both warm-blooded and cold-blooded desert animals have ways to escape the desert heat. Warm- blooded desert animals, such as rats and mice, rest during the day, often staying in cool underground burrows. At night they search for food. Animals that are out during the day, such as cold-blooded lizards and snakes, are active only for short periods. As their body temperature rises, these reptiles（爬行动物） move into the shade in order to cool down. In the early evening, when the sun grows weaker, the reptiles become more active and begin their search for food again.

　　Getting enough water to survive is a major problem for all desert animals. Some desert animals, like desert birds, manage to find water holes. Other desert animals, such as the kangaroo rat and the related jerboa, get water only from the food that they eat. Because these animals eat mainly dry seeds, they must survive on a tiny amount of water.

　　Most deserts have only a small number of frogs and toads because these animals must be near water to survive. Yet even these creatures have adapted(适应) to desert conditions. When small amounts of water collect in temporary streams, the desert-living frogs and toads become active. After a rainfall, they lay their eggs. The eggs grow into tadpoles in a few days and into adults in just four weeks. When the puddles(水坑) dry up, the adult frogs or toads dig into the ground. Their metabolism(新陈代谢) slows, and they stay beneath the ground until the next rain, which may be as good as a year away. Until then, their bodily activities continue at a reduced rate.

　　The camel ― often called the ship of the desert ― is one of the most successful desert animals. Camels can go for long periods without water, but eventually they must drink. When water becomes available to them after a long drought, they may drink 95 liters of water or more. When water is not available, what helps camels survive the desert heat is the fat stored in their humps(驼峰). A camel’s hump contains about 12 kilograms of fat. Fat is rich in hydrogen. As the fat is digested, hydrogen from the fat combines with oxygen in the air that the camel breathes. The result is H2O, or water. Each kilogram of fat that a camel digests produces about a liter of water.

41. Desert animals are usually more active at night because _____.

　A. it is cooler at night        B. it is easier to find water

　C. they like the dark         D. they are less likely to be attacked at night

42. Which of the following desert animals can get water only from the food?

　A. The camel.     B. The kangaroo.     C. The frog.    D. The rat.

43. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

　A. All the desert animals rest during the day.

　B. All the desert animals don’t rest during the day.

　C. Cold-blooded desert animals are out most of the day.

　D. None of the cold-blooded desert animals go out during the day.

44. The title for this passage could probably be _____.

　A. Hot Deserts                            B. Desert Animals

　C. How Desert Animals Get Water            D. Ways To Escape the Desert Heat

45. The underlined word “burrows” in the first paragraph can be replaced by _____.

　A. holes        B. caves       C. rooms        D. openings