A2 Reading - Pandas, Cuddliest of all Bears

A2 Reading - Pandas, Cuddliest of all Bears

by Waine Evans

​What do you know about giant pandas? Read and complete the article to find out more about these cuddly black and white bears. Select the correct words from the boxes.

Multiple Select

Introduction.

The giant panda has a distinctive _____ head with _____ eye patches, ears and shoulders.

• black

• grey

• white

• yellow

Multiple Choice

Unlike other bear species, giant pandas are _____ spending up to 12 hours a day chewing bamboo shoots and roots.

• carnivorous

• herbivorous

Multiple Choice

Because of poaching and habitat loss, they are extremely _____, occurring in small populations in the bamboo forests of China.

• common

• extinct

• rare

Multiple Choice

Despite being the subject of major international conservation efforts, wild populations of giant pandas _____ not be enough to save this species

• can

• may

• must

Multiple Choice

Panda’s Territory: Where do pandas come from?

Giant pandas _____ in the bamboo forests of China for millions years and have been honoured by the Chinese for a very long time.

• live

• are living

• have lived

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In fact, giant pandas _____ in Chinese art for thousands of years.

• appear

• are appearing

• have appeared

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Because the giant panda is considered a national treasure in China, it is protected by law so that it _____ extinct.

• becomes

• becomes not

• does not become

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Although giant pandas have long been known to the Chinese, they _____ a recent discovery for people living outside of China.

• are

• do

• have

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The first westerner to observe a live giant panda in the wild _____ a German zoologist named Hugo Weigold.

• is

• was

• had

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In 1916, he _____ a cub while he was on expedition.

• bought

• has bought

• had bought

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At Panda’s Place: Where do pandas live?

There is only one place where giant pandas _____ in the wild, high in the mountains of central China.

• live

• lived

• were living

Multiple Choice

There, they _____ in cold and rainy bamboo forests that are often misty and shrouded in heavy clouds.

• live

• are living

• have lived

Multiple Choice

Once upon a time, giant pandas _____ in lowland areas.

• have lived

• had lived

• lived

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However, as people _____ more and more farms and cities on that land, the giant pandas were forced up into the mountains.

• builded

• built

• had built

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Today, they _____ at elevations of 5,000 to 10,000 feet.

• lived

• have lived

• live

Multiple Choice

Panda's Lunch: What do pandas eat?

In the wild, a giant panda’s diet is 99% bamboo. Bamboo is a giant grass that _____ in the mountains of China.

• grows

• is growing

• has grown

Multiple Choice

Because bamboo is so low in nutrients, an adult giant panda _____ between20 and 40 or more pounds of it each day. It eats the stems, shoots, leaves and all.

• is eating

• has eaten

• eats

Multiple Choice

There are about 25 different types of bamboo that wild pandas will eat. Some nutritionists _____ that giant pandas need to eat not only different parts of the bamboo,

• are thinking

• think

• have thought

Multiple Choice

but also different kinds of bamboo in order to get proper nutrition. In addition to bamboo, giant pandas _____ other grasses, insects and occasionally, small rodents.

• ate

• have eaten

• eat

Multiple Choice

In zoos, giant pandas eat bamboo too, but they _____ also eat sugarcane, rice gruel, carrots, apples and sweet potatoes.

• have

• may

• would

Multiple Choice

Panda Cubs: How are baby pandas born?

_____ a giant panda is first born, it is tiny.

• If

• While

• When

Multiple Choice

It _____ between four and six ounces and is about the size of a stick of butter. At birth, it is pink, blind, helpless and hairless.

• measures

• tallies

• weighs

Multiple Choice

During this time, the mother cares for it closely, often cradling it in her paw and keeping it close to her chest. The cub _____ its eyes until it is six week old

• opens

• doesn't open

• opens not

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and it _____ until it is three months.

• walks

• doesn't walk

• walks not

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Cubs nurse for about nine months but they stay with their mothers for a long time after that. In fact, it _____ be up to three years before a giant panda cub strikes out on its own.

• can

• must

• should

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Panda’s Day Out: How does a panda spend the day?

In the wild, giant pandas ______ most of their time resting, eating or looking for food.

• have spent

• are spending

• spend

Multiple Choice

Unlike other bear species, giant pandas do not hibernate during the winter months. They also _____ permanent dens. Instead, they shelter in caves and trees.

• build

• do not build

• have not built

Multiple Choice

Pandas are good climbers. They _____ also swim, though they spend most of their time on land.

• can

• could

• should

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Although they might seem pretty quiet, giant pandas _____ make a lot of growling and honking sounds.

• are

• do

• have

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Pandas in Peril: Why are pandas endangered?

Today, giant pandas _____ at risk of becoming extinct. Only about 1,000 giant pandas are left in the wild.

• are

• have been

• will be

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All of these _____ a small area in the bamboo forests of China. About 150 live in captivity.

• inhabit

• are inhabiting

• have inhabited

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This is why the giant panda _____ as endangered in the World Conservation Union's Red List of Threatened Animals.

• listed

• has listed

• is listed

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It is one of the most severely _____ species in the world.

• dangerous

• endangered

• extinct

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Pandas in Pounds: How big are pandas?

Giant pandas are about the size of an American black bear. When they _____ on all four legs, giant pandas are two to three feet tall at the shoulder. .

• are standing

• stood

• have been standing

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They can be up to six feet long. Males _____ usually larger than females.

• are

• have been

• will be

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Males can weigh 250 pounds or more in the wild. Females usually _____ less than 220 pounds.

• grow

• measure

• weigh

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Pandas' Political Importance: What do pandas symbolize?

In China, people _____ for thousands years that pandas are special.

• believe

• have believed

• had believed

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It is said that ancient emperors of China _____ giant pandas as pets.

• kept

• have kept

• had kept

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Chinese books over two thousand years old show giant pandas with mystical powers. People _____ that they _____ to ward off evil spirits and natural disasters.

• thought / could

• think / can

• were thinking / are able

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Today, pandas _____ to be a symbol of peace and good fortune.

• believe

• are believed

• have been believed

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I beg your panda?

The 6th Finger, The giant panda has five fingers plus a "thumb," which isn't a real thumb but a modified bone that _____ the panda to grasp bamboo.

• allow

• allows

• has allowed

Multiple Choice

Docile or dangerous? Typically thought of as docile and harmless, the giant panda can be as dangerous as any other bear when provoked and _____ to attack humans on occasion.

• was known

• has been known

• will have been