Amazing animals

1 Discuss these questions in pairs or small groups. 1 Do you have a favourite animal? Tell your partner(s) about it. 2 What surprising abilities do some animals have? 2 Read the text about amazing animals. Then complete the tasks on page 79.

HOME ANIMALS HABITATS LOCAL GLOBAL ABOUT US CONTACT US There are thousands of amazing animals in the world, so choosing just five is quite random. But you’re sure to find something interesting in our list, either a new fact about a common animal or one that you never knew existed. Scientists have named about 1,367,555 different species, not including insects, so it’s not surprising that most people have never heard of some of them.

1 Mudskipper Being fish, mudskippers use gills to breathe underwater, but their gills can hold water, which enables them to live on land too. They can even ‘walk’, using their front fins like legs. All this makes them especially interesting to biologists.

2 Leaf-cutter Ant All ants are very interesting, especially the ways they live and work together. But leaf-cutter ants are particularly clever. They build a complex network that allows cool air into their homes and takes warm air out, making an efficient air-conditioning system.

3 Opossum These North American animals are quite famous for pretending to be dead when they are attacked, but they have another defence too. Their bodies produce a protein that protects them from the poison of snakes and other animals. Surprisingly, this defence also works against snakes from other continents, which opossums have no contact with.

4 Mimic Octopus All octopuses are intelligent, and can change their colour and shape. But the Mimic Octopus takes this further: it can actually pretend to be other animals, according to what is attacking it. It has been seen making itself look like various fish, sea snakes and jellyfish, as well as at least ten other species.

AMAZING PLANET

5 Honey Bee Although many people take them for granted, bees are some of the most amazing animals of all, as well as being useful (or even vital) for humans. They are the only insects in the world that make food that people can eat. Honey itself is an amazing food, containing everything necessary for life. More importantly, a third of all the plants we eat wouldn’t exist without the help of bees. 1 Replace the underlined parts of the sentences with words or phrases from the text. (The words and phrases are in the same order as in the text.) 1 The choice of people to answer the survey was unplanned. _ 2 The animal’s colour makes it possible for it to hide in the forest. 3 Scientists who study living things are worried about the effects of climate change. 4 This problem is not at all simple, so it will be hard to solve. 5 The thief entered people’s houses by seeming falsely to be from the electricity company. 6 They took him to hospital after he accidentally drank some liquid that can kill people. 7 The students were put in different classes in connection with their abilities. 8 If you are bitten by this snake, it’s very important to get medical help quickly. _ 2 Decide whether the statements are TRUE or FALSE. If there is not enough information to decide, choose DOESN’T SAY. 1 The website says these are the five most interesting animals in the world.

2 There are more insects in the world than other animals.

3 Leaf-cutter ants do something that other ants don’t do.

4 Opossums have two different ways of defending themselves from attack.

5 Sea snakes are the biggest danger to the mimic octopus.

6 Most people realise how important bees are for humans.

3 Complete this sentence with your own ideas. Then compare and discuss your sentence with a partner. I think _ are the most amazing animals because _

1 Discuss the questions below in pairs. 1 Do you know what this animal is called? 2 What do you know about this animal (where it lives, problems it may have, etc)?

2 Read the blog* about pandas. Then complete the tasks on page 81.

• a blog (short for weblog) is a page on a website which a person uses to record regular thoughts and ideas

  Alan Finn Home Wildlife Links Alan’s Blog Contact Alan Everyone likes pandas, don’t they? And of course, that includes me. Recently, though, I’ve reached an opinion that might upset some people reading this blog. We all know that giant pandas are an endangered species, facing many threats. They struggle to survive in areas of land that are getting smaller every year. But, quite honestly, they don’t really help themselves, do they? They only eat one thing, a plant that doesn’t have many nutrients, and they seem to find it very difficult to produce baby pandas. Are they really worth it? Organisations like the World Wildlife Fund, which uses the panda on all its publicity, spend millions of pounds trying to preserve this one animal, while there are many other species (animals and plants) that are threatened with extinction. They aren’t as pretty as pandas (in fact, some of them are definitely rather ugly), but they all play an important part in the complex network of life on earth. Extinction is part of the Earth’s history. Obviously we can’t preserve every species, so we need to make some hard economic choices. Maybe it’s time to stop wasting all this money on one animal. The biggest problem for all endangered species, including pandas, is loss of habitat. Instead of saying ‘Save the Whale (or Tiger or Panda)’, we should be saying ‘Save the Rainforest (or Desert or Rivers)’. Posted April 19th, 10.35 a.m. 14 comments Maria Collins Are you really suggesting that we should just leave pandas to die out? I’m shocked to read this from someone who calls himself an animal lover. April 21st, 6.33 p.m. Alan Finn Of course I’m an animal lover, and of course I don’t want pandas to disappear. But speaking as a professional biologist, I think that there are lots of things like insects and plants that are just as important, even if they’re less lovable to us humans. April 22nd, 9.45 a.m. 1 Look at these words from the text and decide which meaning makes the best sense in the sentence. 1 opinion: A what someone thinks B destination 2 giant: A dangerous B very large 3 threats: A dangers or risks B special things 4 struggle: A not succeed B find something difficult 5 obviously: A sadly B clearly 6 extinction: A showing something to people B death of a whole species 7 habitat: A something you do very often B area where particular species live 8 publicity: A way of making something known to people B book and magazine production 2 Now use words from Part 1 above to complete these sentences. 1 These plants will only grow in one type of _. 2 Numbers of tigers are so low that they are in danger of . 3 We need better so that people know about the company and its products. 4 People in low-paid jobs often to feed their families. 3 Choose the best way to continue each sentence. Circle A, B or C. 1 Alan Finn says his opinion is A rather an unusual one. B likely to make some people angry. C the only possible solution. 2 He thinks that pandas A should not be treated differently from other species. B should do more to help themselves. C are in less danger than many other animals. 3 In his opinion, the biggest problem for many species is A being killed by people. B losing their living space. C global climate changes. 4 In her comment, Maria Collins says she is _ A sad. B angry. C surprised. 4 In pairs or small groups, discuss what comments you might leave on Alan Finn’s blog.

I agree with what he says. We can’t decide to save a species just because it looks nice.

It’s obvious that people will want to give money to save an animal they like.

1 Look at the examples. Then answer the questions below. Examples A Many animals are threatened with extinction after they have lost their natural habitat. Many animals are threatened with extinction after losing their natural habitat. B Opossums can protect themselves. They use a special protein to do this. Opossums can protect themselves by using a special protein. C Sometimes we need to look at very small things. A microscope is used for this. A microscope is used for looking at very small things.

1 Which example uses a time word? _ 2 Which examples use prepositions? 3 What verb form do we use after these words? 4 Which preposition describes how something is done? 5 Which preposition describes the use or purpose of something? 2 Rewrite the sentences using the -ing form of the underlined verb. 1 The biologist studied these animals and discovered something amazing. The biologist discovered something amazing while . 2 If you work with bees, you need to wear special clothes. When . 3 To protect themselves, octopuses change their body shape. Octopuses protect themselves by . 4 To help them walk, mudskippers use their fins. Mudskippers use their fins for __. 3 Look at the examples of verb/adjective + preposition + -ing. Then match the verbs or adjectives in the table below with the correct prepositions. Examples Opossums are famous for pretending to be dead Many biologists dream of finding a completely new species.

1 sorry (adj) | a in 2 think (v) | b against 3 succeed (v) | c to 4 look forward (v) | d for 5 decide (v) | e at 6 good (adj) | f of

4 Now complete these sentences using prepositions and the -ing form of the verbs in the box. forget get solve do spend write 1 After years of trying, he’s finally succeeded _ the problem. 2 They have decided so much money on saving one animal. 3 I’m sorry to phone you yesterday. 4 This is a much better way. Why didn’t I think it like this before? 5 After such a long time away, they were looking forward home. 6 At school, he was always good _ essays. 5 Discuss the questions below in pairs or small groups. What do you use your mobile phone for? How do you try to stay healthy? What are you looking forward to doing? What subjects are you interested in reading about? What are you good at doing? What are you bad at doing? I try to stay healthy by eating the right food. I’m really bad at remembering people’s names. I’m hungry, so I’m looking forward to having my lunch.

1 Look at the examples of how -ing phrases are used. Then answer the question below. Examples 1: Mud skippers are fish, so they use gills to breath. Being fish, mudskippers use gills to breath. I felt tired so I went to bed early. Feeling tired, I went to bed early. Because pandas don’t have good food, they find it difficult to produce babies. Not having good food, pandas find it difficult to produce babies. Examples 2: I speak as a professional biologist. I think we can’t preserve every species. Speaking as a professional biologist, I think we can’t preserve every species. I am a teacher. I think school hours are long enough. Speaking as a teacher, I think school hours are long enough. Which box gives examples of these meanings or uses? A This is my attitude, how I see the subject. _ B This is the reason why. 2 Join the pairs of sentences to make one longer sentence, using an -ing phrase. 1 I know him well. That’s why I can tell you what his answer will be. Knowing . 2 Some organisations try to preserve pandas. They spend millions of pounds protecting panda habitats. Trying . 3 I am a student. I think exams cause a lot of stress. Speaking . 4 I saw that it was going to rain. I put my coat on. Seeing . 5 I don’t see the problem. That’s because I am someone who isn’t an expert. Not . 6 We are parents. We think we should be told about changes to the education system. . 7 I felt hungry. I decided to have a sandwich. . 8 The tourists realised they were lost. They asked someone for directions to the hotel. _. 3 Look at the examples of en used as a prefix and a suffix. Then complete the table by adding en prefixes or suffixes to the words in the box. Examples Pandas are an endangered species. Many other species are threatened with extinction. force close tight wide dark length courage sure en prefix | en suffix 1 endanger | 6 threaten 2 | 7 3 | 8 4 | 9 5 | 10

4 Complete the sentences with words from the table above. 1 He’s thinner than he was, so he’s had to _ his trousers. 2 The sky began to and they knew it would rain soon. 3 In reply to your request for payment, I a cheque with this letter. 4 He was worried about starting a new school but his parents tried to him. 5 We need to the curtains. They’re too short. 6 Please that you have completed all parts of the form. 7 I agree with the idea of the new law but I think it will be difficult to . 8 They plan to _ the road because it’s too narrow.

1 Read the web news story. Then listen to two people talking about the same story.

News | Sport | Weather | Woman leaves 5-bedroom house to cats A woman in America who died last month has left her large house to her 10 cats. Having no close relations, she decided that she wanted to make sure that her cats would not become homeless after her death. Her lawyer said yesterday: ‘It’s unusual, but it isn’t the first time houses or money have been left to animals.’

Share this story 3 Comments

2 Discuss the questions below in pairs or small groups. What does Debbie (the woman) think about the story? How does the man disagree? Which do you agree with? Why?

3 Look at the comments on the story. Complete Debbie’s comments, then add a short comment of your own in the space at the bottom.

3 Comments debbie@nfl.co.uk In my opinion, it’s wrong. In general, I think people _ 51 minutes ago frank62@nettalk.com As a cat lover myself, I can see why she did it. Why shouldn’t she do what she likes with her own house? 51 minutes ago debbie@nfl.co.uk To be honest, I think this story is crazy because _ 11 minutes ago Add a Comment Hi student@palestine (Sign out) Type your comment here

1 Look at the examples of words and phrases that show opinion or attitude. Then complete the table.

Examples Obviously we can’t preserve every species. In my opinion, it’s wrong. To be honest, I think you’re completely wrong. Personally, I’m sure this is the best solution. Of course not everyone is the same. Generally speaking, most people like animals.

2 Circle the best attitude word or phrase to complete the comment below.

1 Comment Hi student@palestine

1. Of course / To be honest, I can’t see why people are so upset about this story.
2. In my opinion, / Personally, it’s just the kind of thing that happens all the time.
3. Obviously / To be honest, nobody likes seeing students being badly-behaved, but (4) in my opinion / generally speaking, I think people get too worried about things that aren’t important.

   17 minutes ago

3 Discuss the question in pairs or small groups. What do you think the original story in Activity 2 was about?

Obviously someone saw some students doing something bad, so what could it have been? The comment says it wasn’t so important, so maybe they were just being noisy in public.

4 Read the two news story titles (headlines) and discuss them in pairs or small groups. Then, in the boxes below, write a reply giving your opinion and agreeing or disagreeing with the previous comment. Use one or more of the attitude words and phrases in Activity 1.

13-year-old gets into top university ‘We hope he’ll be a professor by the time he’s 20,’ say parents. 1 Comment ahmad32@newstalk.com Personally, I feel sad for him. He’ll never have a normal life, especially with parents like that. 11 minutes ago Add a Comment Hi student@palestine (Sign out) Type your comment here

Over 75% of young people find modern life ‘too stressful’, says new study 1 Comment tom87@netchat.co.au As someone who was alive during the Second World War, I can’t see what their problem is. They don’t know what stressful means! 11 minutes ago Add a Comment Hi student@palestine (Sign out) Type your comment here

In this Unit you have learnt about: animal habits endangered species participle (-ing) phrases prefixes and suffixes with en attitude words and phrases writing opinions in online discussions