The red sea urchin

文章大意

文章介绍红海胆的分布、身体结构（长刺、管足、吸盘）与食性，讲述它曾因啃食海带被视为害虫，1970年代后因海胆卵在日本市场需求大增而成为加州最大海产出口，年产值超7500万美元，过度捕捞引发生态担忧；研究还发现海胆能再生刺和足、寿命可达百年且无明显衰老迹象。

题目与答案

1. The Red Sea Urchin

   Background

   The red sea urchin

   ·feeds on 31_____

   答案：plants,coral,rocks

   原文定位：The sea urchin mainly feeds on plants, coral, and rocks

2. ·is covered in 32_____ that protect it

   答案：spines

   原文定位：Sea urchins have a round-shaped body with long spines that come off it, which are used for protection

   同义替换：「spines」↔「protection」

3. ·used to be regarded as a 33_____

   答案：pest

   原文定位：Urchins were once considered a pest because their large appetite for kelp severely affected the kelp harvest

   同义替换：「used to be」↔「once」，「regarded as」↔「considered」

4. From 1970s onwards:

   ·It became clear that 34_____ was an important market for red sea urchins.

   答案：Asia

   原文定位：thanks to the steady market from Asia

   同义替换：「important」↔「steady」

5. ·Scientific interest increased because of a 35_____ in red sea urchin population.

   答案：decline

   原文定位：scientists have begun to worry about the number of population actually declining

6. Research findings

   Study based on biochemical techniques

   Red sea urchins:

   ·grow very slowly

   ·live a very long time(maximum lifespan: up to 36_____ )

   答案：200 years

   原文定位：It can live to be 100 years old and some may reach 200 years in good health

   同义替换：「maximum lifespan」↔「live to be」，「up to」↔「may reach」

7. ·can be harvested only after 6-7 years

   ·after 22 years, only grow 37_____ per year

   答案：0.1 centimetres

   原文定位：At the age of 22, researchers have found it to grow each year from about 12 centimeters to only 12.1 centimeters, which means only 0.1 centimeters bigger than a year before

8. Study measuring radio carbon

   ·no evidence of 38_____ when sea urchins die.

   答案：aging

   原文定位：no signs of aging, such as decline in regenerative capacity or increase in age-related mortality

   同义替换：「evidence」↔「signs」

9. ·They can still 39_____ and grow when very cold.

   答案：reproduce

   原文定位：The evidence suggests that a 100-year-old red sea urchin is just as apt to live another year or reproduce as a 10-year-old sea urchin

   同义替换：「grow」↔「reproduce」

10. ·growth not connected to 40_____ or other external factors

    答案：ocean conditions

    原文定位：growth that's quite independent of ocean conditions or other variables

    同义替换：「not connected to」↔「independent of」，「other external factors」↔「other variables」