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TOEFL Directory > TOEFL writing > TOEFL Reading Class Unit 1_Passage 13_Question 133-143
TOEFL Reading Class Unit 1_Passage 13_Question 133-143
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 133-143
Passage 13
The insect known as a cherry leaf roller begins its life as a flat, legless leaf miner in a cherry tree. The tiny miner is destined to become a brightly colored moth. Feeding on sap that oozes from the plant cells it slices open with scissorslike jaws, the insect tunnels within the leaf for a week or so and then metamorphoses into a caterpillar possessed of legs and a spinneret that produces the silk used in making webs. Somewhere within the complex of neurons that instruct this caterpillar's behavior, a program switches on, directing and monitoring a building instinct. The caterpillar chews its way out of the leaf and moves actively about on the surface, appearing to assess the leaf's features that are appropriate to the task that lies ahead --- constructing a shelter by trying the leaf together with silk.
In late spring and early summer, caterpillars are busily at work rolling, folding, and tying the leaves of trees and plants. In the northeastern United States, caterpillars that build shelters out of leaves are particularly abundant on cherry, maple, oak, and poplar trees. Although the caterpillars are often small, cryptically colored, and short-lived, the compact shelters they create are almost always conspicuous and endure long after the occupant has departed.
Leaf shelters protect residents from predators, but they serve other purposes as well. On cool, sunny days, the shelters act as miniature greenhouses, trapping air that is moister and warmer than the outside atmosphere, and thereby creating a microclimate conducive to the rapid growth and development of the resident caterpillar. Some species construct shelters with vertical, open-ended leaf rolls that function as chimneys. These tubelike structures set up convection currents that draw fresh air through the shelters, preventing them from overheating on hot, sunny days. Leaf shelters also enable some caterpillars to feed on plants that would normally be poisonous to them. The leaves of Saint-John's-wort, for example, contain hypericin, a toxin that is activated by sunlight. Leaf rollers that feed on this plant can do so only because the walls of their shelters filter out the Sun's catalytic rays.
133. The youngest form of the cherry leaf roller is called a
a) moth
b) leaf miner
c) caterpillar
d) spinneret
134. The word conspicuous in the passage is closest in meaning to
a) small
b) edible
c) colorful
d) noticeable
135. What does the leaf miner eat?
a) Sap
b) Leaves
c) Flowers
d) Small insects
136. Why does the caterpillar come out of the leaf?
a) It needs to look for additional food.
b) It is ready to begin building a shelter.
c) The temperature inside the leaf is too high.
d) It wants to avoid eating poisonous substances in the leaf.
137. The word assess in the passage is closest in meaning to
a) count
b) evaluate
c) consume
d) attack
138. The passage mentions all of the following as trees in which caterpillars build shelters EXCEPT
a) poplar
b) oak
c) silk
d) cherry
139. What does the passage suggest about the leaf shelters?
a) They are difficult to see.
b) They benefit the trees in which they are built.
c) The caterpillars consume them at the end of the summer.
d) They are not easily destroyed.
140. The passage suggests that the primary purpose of the leaf shelters is to
a) attract potential mates
b) store food for the winter
c) provide protection for the caterpillar
d) create a cool, damp atmosphere
141. What is the function of the chimneys mentioned in the passage?
a) To provide ventilation
b) To draw in food
c) To act as a greenhouse
d) To keep out predators
142. The word them in the passage refers to
a) plants
b) caterpillars
c) shelters
d) days
143. The word toxin in the passage is closest in meaning to
a) pigment
b) reaction
c) poison
d) cell
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