11
21
3
(4b
huge
square
grizzly
hot
geyser
hiking
a trails
b volcano
c kilometres
d bears
e erupts
f springs
2
15
1 yellowstone national park is so big that
covers 8,980
2 the whole park sits on a
6 km underneath the park.
3 the park is famous for its
and thermal pools.
4 there is also a deep canyon in the park with
great
for nature lovers.
5 there is a lot of wildlife in the grand canyon
such as
and wolves.
6 the
every 90 minutes
and sends water into the air.
write a few sentences about why you
think tourists should visit this park. use the
phrases from ex. 1.
..
36
Only 1800 of them remain, with 200 in captivity. It is crucial that we preserve these beautiful animals, especially when you consider that a female panda on average only has about 7 baby pandas in her lifetime.
In April 2006, more than 40 years after the birth of the first panda in captivity, a 4-year old panda called Xiang Xiang was released into the wild. He is fitted with a radio collar so that scientists can track his movement.
Xiang Xiang, whose name means 'lucky', is the first panda who was born in captivity to be set free. He was raised and trained to be a wild panda from the age of 2 at the Wolong Nature Reserve Panda Center (where more than half of the pandas in captivity live).
Xiang Xiang's habitat training started in a five-acre space, and then upgraded to a much bigger space that was similar to a wild panda's habitat. In that space he learned to build his home and eat bamboo, increasing his energy and improving his health. Xiang Xiang became more aggressive toward humans and began making noises similar to that of a wild panda.
The area around the Wolong Nature Reserve is the biggest giant-panda habitat in the world, so scientists are planning on working out how many more pandas can be released into the wild.
Xiang Xiang was released into the western end of the reserve, where he can possibly meet other wild pandas.
The question is whether he can make friends with them? If he can, then pandas will be released in up to ten different locations in the future, doubling the number of pandas in the wild by releasing 15 annually.
Conservationists hope that more pandas will be released into their natural habitat, but it has been shrinking due to widespread deforestation, which remains the biggest threat to pandas.
The Chinese government has decided to protect 28 natural areas, and set up centres like the Chengdu Research Base, which started with six pandas whose habitat was destroyed.
Presently it has 33, and they plan to release some of them in the future. It is important to breed pandas and release them, whilst also protecting their natural habitats. This is the only way they can survive.