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TOEFL Directory > TOEFL writing > TOEFL Reading Class Unit 1_Passage 16_Question 166-176
TOEFL Reading Class Unit 1_Passage 16_Question 166-176
You have about 15 minutes to finish this passage.
First,use about 3-4 minutes to read the passage, try to understand the main idea of this passage.
Don't read it so slowly or try to remember all details.You need to do "fast reading",and "scan" the passage.
Second, read questions 1-11, and with questions you go back the passage again and look for correct answers.
Questions 166-176
Passage 16
Mangrove forests grow along many of the world's tropical coastlines. Mangrove trees are terrestrial plants that have invaded salt water and created one of the most productive ecosystems on Earth. Growing where the water is warm, shallow, salty, and calm, mangrove trees flourish in fine-grained soils rich in nutrients. Because mangrove forests provide dense cover and ample food in a narrow area that bounds marine and terrestrial habitats, they attract a diverse community of birds and other animals. Leaf litter that accumulates on the forest floor is regularly submerged by salt water and colonized by bacteria and fungi.
The roots of some species of mangrove form props to the trunks of the trees and create surfaces on which algae, barnacles, and other organisms can settle. Such organisms become part of a food web that includes not only animals that remain within the forest and the waters beneath it, but fish and birds that venture into other ecosystems at different times of their lives. For instance, juvenile red drum and gray snapper take advantage of the protection and food in the prop roots of red mangroves while they grow. These fish later move into sea-grass beds or onto coral reefs as they mature.
Other species of fish, such as jacks and barracuda, can move far up tidal streams during dry periods, feeding on the rich food produced by the forest. When they return to the waters over sea-grass beds and coral reefs, they take with them the nutrients that the forests have produced. The productivity of mangrove forests can benefit adjacent ecosystems in other ways. For instance, leaf litter that is swept from mangrove forests by tides or storms introduces additional sources of nutrients into sea-grass beds and reef areas.
Taken together, through the abundance and diversity of fish and shellfish that they support, mangrove forests feed coastal people by the millions. In Fiji, as one example, about half of the fish caught in commercial and traditional fisheries use mangrove forests at one or more critical stages in their lives. Furthermore, life for people in many parts of the world is supported directly by local mangrove forests, from which they harvest oysters, clams, mussels, crabs, and crocodiles, as well as wood for building materials and fuel.
166. What does the passage mainly discuss?
a) The habitat of fish
b) Different types of forests
c) A productive ecosystem
d) Nutrients in the ocean
167. According to the passage, mangrove forests attract a variety of species because they
a) contain few predators
b) are kept clean by ocean currents
c) grow in remote areas where there are few people
d) provide food and protection to both sea and land animals
168-171. Omitted
172. The red drum and gray snapper mentioned in paragraph 2 are types of
a) fish
b) birds
c) sea grass
d) coral reefs
173. According to paragraph 3, what is the role of jacks and barracuda in the environment described in the passage?
a) They carry sea grass into mangrove forests.
b) They spread nutrients to other ecosystems.
c) They seek the protection of mangrove forests to breed.
d) They discourage the growth of bacteria during dry periods.
174. The word sources in the passage is closest in meaning to
a) moisture
b) supplies
c) damage
d) areas
175. Omitted
176. Why does the author mention Fiji in paragraph 4?
a) To illustrate the importance of mangrove forests in supporting human life
b) To contrast commercial and traditional fisheries
c) To demonstrate that mangrove forests contain both fish and shellfish
d) To explain where fisheries obtain the fish that they sell internationally
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