阅读理解
A striking new species of lungless salamander has been round living in a small stream in the Appalachian foothills of the US.
The salamander is so disting that it's been classified within its own genus, a taxonomic (分类学)
grouping that usually inclodesions host of related species.
The creature breathes through its skin, and unusually for its kind, males and females have different
colouration.
Such a distinct ampbibian (两栖动物) has not been found in the US for half a century.
The researchers who discovered the salamander describe it in the Journal of Zoology.They have named it the "patchnosed" salamander after the yellow patch on the animal's nose.
The tiny animal averages just 25 to 26mm long.
They found so few of the animals that either it is highly secretive, or more likely it survives in such small, isolated numbers that it is already at the risk of extinction.
"This animal is really an amazing find." says biologist Carlos Camp of Piedmont College in Demorest,
Georgia, who led the team which described the new species.
"It is the first genus of amphibian, indeed of any fourfooted vertebrate (脊椎动物), discovered in the
US in nearly 50 years."
Around the world, there are approximately 500 species of salamander.Twothirds of these species are
lungless, breathing entirely through their porous, moist skin.
The Appalachian Highlands of the southeastern US is a hot spot for lungless salamander diversity, with species occupying a variety of moist or wet environments including living in streams, underground, among
the leaf litter of the forest floor, up cliffs and in trees.
"The salamander group of the US, particularly of the southern Appalachians, has been intensively
studied for well over a century, so the discovery of such a distinct form was completely unsuspected." says Carlos.
1. What is the purpose of the writer writing this passage?
A. To tell us a find of a new species of lungless salamander.
B. To tell us how the lungless salamander was found.
C. To stress the significance of the new find.
D. To tell us the difference between the lungless salamander and amphibians.
2. Where does the lungless salamander mostly live?
A. Underground.
B. Under fallen leaves.
C. In damp environments.
D. In streams.
3. From what Carlos says, we can learn that ________.
A. the new species was once discovered some fifty years ago
B. the discovery was not so unusual because they had studied it for over a century
C. they were not sure whether they had discovered the distinct species
D. there was no doubt about their discovery
4. In what way is the newlydiscovered species of salamander distinct from other species of this kind?
A. It breathes through skin.
B. Its males and females have different colours.
C. It lives in streams.
D. It is an amphibian.
