Where do tigers live? North eastern China, the Indian subcontinent, and the Russian Far East are all home to different species of this, beautiful big cat, but maybe not for much longer. According to a jp recent study by leading conservationists, the wild tiger is now closer to extinction than previously realized. In fact, itis thought that there are fewer than 5,000 tigers existing in the wild around the world, Ilegal hunting is a huge factor. Most countries have laws that prohibit the hunting and trade of these animals, but the temptation for local poachers is great. A poor villager can earn up to 60 times his _ daily earnings by trapping and killing one tiger. This money may * guarantee the survival of his family. The dead tiger is handed over to @ middle man, who then often smuggles it abroad. Its fur may end up hanging on a wall and its bones may be used for medicinal purposes: The other factor affecting the survival of the wild tiger is the reduction of their natural habitat. When man moves into an arca that was previously tiger territory, the tiger loses its natural prey since the villagers often hunt such animals for their own food. Then the er goes alter the villagers’ cows and goats, and so it becomes the junted. Another problem with reduced habitat is that the tigers will Tot cross open land, so they cannot get to isolated arcas of forest to breed with other tigers ‘One country that has taken action over the competition for habitat is tussia. The ancient foresis of Southern Siberia are being logged for their increasingly expensive thnber. These loggers, along with the E poaching of tigers and their prey, have posed a serious threat to the survival of the tiger population. However, since 1992 the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) las been carrying out The Siberian Tiger roiect. By attaching radio collars to the tigers they can trace their nts and gather a wealth of information about their habits. In tis way, the Russiatt government has been provided with invaluable Support and advice. 1¢ ‘Tiger Response Team’, a special unit of the Russian government, fakes-active steps towards resolving the problems between tigers and jumans. One aim is to keep tigers away [rom human settlements. The team use fireworks or even electrified dead animals ta deter the tigers from approaching villages. Sometimes the tigers are captured and simply moved to other areas. If the animal 1s considered 100 © dangerous, it may be taken to a z00 on the other side of the world At least in a protected environment like this, scientists are able to study ‘wild tigers in a way that they could not in their natural habitat. Also, captive breeding programmes are a way to increase tiger mmbers: 405 | Filective Reading 4 Upper intermediateCOMPREHENSION 1 COMPREHENSION 2 | they can be used to introduce genetic variability into the wild tiger population, The WCS also considers the management of the tigers’ prey essenti to the programme. This requires the establishment of large areas of habitat for both the tigers and their prey to coexist. This can be achieved through properly managed wildlife taurism. Tourism can generate money and jobs for local people, as well as creating opportunities to conserve suitable land for tigers to live on. Itis also an excellent way to educate locals and tourists it conservation issues. There is no clear solution to saving the tiger, but there is still great pressure from conservation societies and environmental TOUS 10 ensure its survival. We will only be able to do this if we can find a balance between the need of people to eam a living with the need to preserve the tigers’ habitat. Read the first paragraph of the text. Find the answers to Pre- Reading 1. Complete the summary with words from the text. Use no more than three words for each gap. One of the threats to the survival of the wild tiger is (1) althongh it is hard to put the blame on the poor peuple why do this 2) is another threat to their survival. Tigers are trapped in small areas of forest and there is no longer any (3) for them to hunt. Various solutions have been suggested. People have been studying the tigers’ habits so that they can help (4) between people and the tigers. Sometimes tigers are caught and taken to 2008, where they are used in breeding programmes to introduce (5) into the wild tiger population. Wildlife tourism can generate (6) for local people and is also useful in helping 10 (7) and tourists, While there are stil a lot of problems between tigers and humans, there are a lot of people who are working hard to save these rare animals (8) Effective Reading 4 Upper intermediateCOMPREHENSION 3 Answer the questions. 1 In ines 8-9, what docs the temptation for local poachers is great mean? Local poachers want to illegally trap the tigers due to .. athe food the animals can provide. Dine respect they can earn from their community, © the money they can ear from selling the animals. In line 12, what is the meaning of the pliasal verb end up? @ The fur may be hung on a wall upside down. D_ The fur may fall to pieces after it has been hanging for a while © The final destination for the fur is to be hung on a wall In lines 18-19, what does the phrase so it becomes the hunted mean? @_ The tiger has to eat cows and goats instead of its usual food. D the villagers begin to hunt the tiger. © The tiger is forced to change ils belavivut In line 41, natwyul habitat means aa man-made home. b a large landscaped zoo. © anarea that an animal lives in, In line 41, what does captive breeding programmes mean? a Introducing captive animals into the wild b Encouraging captive animals to mate in a controlled environment © Teaching Captive autnaly how to survive in the wild 4 Line 52, what Is the best dehnstion of covservation issues? Tow to save money Db How to take care of animals ¢ How to protect wildlife and natural resources VOCABULARY Match a word in bold in the text with a synonym below. SKILLS 1 1 to catch= live in the same place = very old remotertar away ‘most important = toban = Effective Reading 4 Upper intermediateVOCABULARY SKILLS 2 Grammar ‘The passive GRAMMAR 1 Use the words in Vocabulary skills 1 to complete the sentences. You need to change the form ot some words. 1 Itis to chew gum anywhere in Singapore 2. Irs often very difficult for wild animals and people to the same area. 3 Jane Haris is a spukeswornat for auslusal rights. ‘The researchers fet very while they were living in the jingle 5 The zoo-kecpers had 10 seta for the escaped bear. forests should be protected by law to prevent loggers from moving in. The passive is ote use ‘hen tre recive ofthe acon s more important than the performer personal ovganzaton be when te parormer ofthe econ snot someone spect toed saying vhs eponsble o hos ta blame or something. ad with certain verbs of saying and beleving(saythinkbelivenowlestnateconsied Find and underline the following forms of the passive in the toxt. 1 two exainples of the present simple passive Lis Line: ‘one example of the present continuous passive Lin one example of the past simple passive Tine: ___ one example of the present perfect passive ine: ___ four examples of a modal verb + be + participle ies 1g tm Lage one verb of saying and believing + be + participle Line: Effective Keading 4 Upper intermediateGRAMMAR 2_ Put the sentences into the passive. Use the correct tense, modal verb, or verb of saying and believing. Until the late 19" century, wolves (see) across Europe. Iti still the case that elephants (hunt) for their ivory. ss in the wild, 1 2 3. There are. it (think), less than 5,000 4 A large number of dolphins (catch) in fishing nets last year, Fortunately, the escaped lions just recapture). © when we amived at the 200, we (inform) that the pandas (transfer) 10 a reserve, 7 Unfortunately, this type of eagle can only____ (see) in zoos nowadays. 8 ‘The oldest living animal in the world believe) to bea giant turtle called Harriet Discuss the questions with a partner. 1_Do you think big business is more or less important than wild animals? Why? 2. Tow can pod be prevented? Axe zoos and wildlife conservation areas a good thing? Are there any other animale you think need protection?Effective ACTIVATING VOCABULARY SKIMMING Skills Complete the text below with the words in the box. Use a dictionary to help you. — [speed transport. pesticide: retource [fuel pollution _organic__ vehicles The United States has the greatest number of private (1). in the world as not many people use public (2). Cars are responsible for a huge amount at air (3) and in cities such as ‘Los Angeles it can be hard to breathe. Many Americans drive SUVS and these require a lot of (4), ‘even when they are travelling at low (3) Thi is 4 natu (6) Wwe Caumot replace, (On the other hand, in other arcas many Americans are very health- conscious and buy (7) food which has not been sprayed with (s) Read the article on page 111 quickly and answer the questions. Do not worry about unknown words. 1. What is the purpose of this text? a. To persuade people to be greener in their everyday lives b To highlight the consequences of not looking after the environment, ‘To show that some people take environmental problems too seriously. 2 How would you describe the author's tone in this article? a amused. b optimistic Effective Reading 4 Upper intermediate