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     What's black and orange and growing for the first time in decades? India's tiger population! On Monday,

officials announced the results of the latest tiger count. The census (统计) totaled 1,706 tigers in forests

across the Asian country-about 300 more than four years ago. "These numbers give us hope for the future

of tigers in the world," said Jim Leape, international director of the World Wildlife Fund.

     A century ago, about 100,000 tigers lived in India's forests. But by 2002, a count showed that there were

only 3,600 left. The number dropped to 1,411 in 2007. What caused India's tiger population to shrink so

dramatically?

     More than anything else, experts say, development has taken a toll. People have moved into tiger territory

and destroyed much of the animal's habitat. Today, tigers live on a just small part of the land they occupied

100 years ago.

     Illegal hunting has also contributed to the decline. Poachers (盗猎者) can demand high fees for tiger parts,

which are a key ingredient in traditional Chinese medicine. The parts from one tiger can sell for tens of

thousands of dollars.

     India's news is a step in the right direction. But while the number of tigers has increased there in the last

four years, the animals' habitat has shrunk. Roads and construction projects have blocked off many tiger

corridors-routes used by the big cats to go from one forest to another. "Securing these corridors should be

taken up as a priority," says Rajesh Gopal, of the National Tiger Conservation Authority.

     Last November, leaders from the 13 countries that are home to wild tigers met in St. Petersburg, Russia,

to develop a plan to help the endangered cats. They set a goal to double the world's tiger population by the

year 2022. Will we reach that goal? With India's tiger population on the rise and conservationists around the

world focused on helping the big cats, it seems it just might happen.

1. The underlined word "shrink" in Paragraph 2 most probably means _____.

A. develop

B. reduce

C. disappear

D. remove

2. Which is one of the reasons why India's tiger population declines?

A. Some living areas of India's tigers are destroyed by humans.

B. Roads and construction projects have bridged tiger corridors.

C. Some India's tigers have been hunted for to attract visitors.

D. Too many tigers are used in making traditional Chinese medicine.

3. It can be inferred from the passage that _____.

A. 1,411 India's tigers were killed between 2002 and 2007

B. Rajesh Gopal is in charge of the World Wildlife Fund

C. the world's tiger population will surely be doubled by 2022

D. international efforts are being made to protect India's tigers

4. What is the author's attitude towards the future of India's tigers?

A. Critical

B. Objective

C. Optimistic

D. Concerned