Features of Tropical Mammals

There are several important features of tropical mammals and their habitats
that differentiate them from temperate-zone mammals. First, tropical mammals
face different environmental stresses than do temperate-zone mammals, and
they respond to stresses in different ways. Many temperate-zone mammals, of
course, must endure extreme variation within a year; from cold winters with
snow and low food supplies to hot summers with dry weather and abundant
food. Many mammals respond with hibernation, staying more or less dormant
for several months until conditions improve. Tropical mammals, except in
the high-altitude mountains, do not encounter such (extreme) annual
changes, but they do face dry seasons, up to five months long, that sometimes
severely reduce food supplies. For some surprising reasons, they cannot
alleviate this stress by hibernating, waiting for the rainy season to arrive with its
increased food supplies. When a mammal in Canada or Alaska hibernates,
many of its predators leave the area. This is not the case in the tropics. A
mammal sleeping away the dry season in a burrow would be easy prey to
snakes and other predators. Moreover, a big danger to sleeping mammals
would be army ants. These voracious insects are very common in the tropics
and would quickly eat a sleeping mouse or squirrel. Also, external parasites,
such as ticks and mites, which are inactive in extreme cold, would continue to
be very active on sleeping tropical mammals, sucking blood and doing
considerable damage. Last, the great energy reserves needed to be able to
sleep for an extended period through warm weather may be more than any
mammal can physically accumulate. Therefore, tropical mammals need to stay
active throughout the year. One way they counter the dry seasons reduction in
their normal foods is to switch food types seasonally. For instance, some
rodents that eat mostly insects during the rainy season switch to seeds during
the dry season; some bats that feed on insects switch to dry-season fruits.

The word “extreme” in the passage is closest in meaning to

 A.great

 B.repeated

 C.unusual

 D.constant
Which of the sentences below best expresses the essential information in the
highlighted sentence in the passage? Incorrect choices change the meaning in
important ways or leave out essential information.

 A.Most tropical mammals do not experience extreme temperature

changes but can suffer severe food losses from long dry seasons.

 B.Tropical mammals in high-altitude mountains encounter more severe

food shortages than other tropical mammals.

 C.Dry seasons up to five months long cause as much damage to food

resources of tropical mammals as extreme annual changes.

 D.Dry seasons do not severely reduce the food supplies of tropical

mammals every year but they do occur sometimes.

According to paragraph 1, mammals in the tropics encounter extreme

temperature variations in which of the following situations

 A.During hot summers

 B.During the dry season

 C.In high-altitude mountains

 D.During the rainy season

According to paragraph 1, a tropical mammal hibernating throughout the dry

season would encounter all of the following difficulties EXCEPT:

 A.It would be easy prey for predators such as snakes.

 B.It would not be able to maintain a steady body temperature.

 C.It might be attacked by army ants.

  D.It could not accumulate sufficient energy reserves.

The abundance of tropical fruit brings up another interesting difference between

temperate and tropical mammals: a surprising number of tropical mammals eat a lot of
fruit, even among the carnivore group, which, as its name implies, should be eating meat.
All the carnivores in Brazil, save pumas, jaguars, and otters, are known to eat fruit on
occasion. Upon reflection, however, it makes sense that these mammals consume fruit.
Fruit is very abundant in the tropics, available throughout much of the year, and, at least
when it is ripe, easily digested by mammalian digestive systems. A consequence of such
frugivory (fruit eating) is that many mammals have become, together with frugivorous
birds, major dispersal agents of fruit seeds, which they spit out or which travel unharmed
through their digestive tracts to be deposited in feces far from the mother tree. Some
biologists believe that, even though the carnivores plainly are specialized for hunting
down, killing, and eating animal prey, it is likely that fruit has always been a part of their
diet.

Paragraph 2 indicates which of the following about fruit trees in the tropics

 A.They have been the plants most studied by biologists in the tropics.

 B.They don't need to grow much before they begin to produce fruit that
tropical animals can eat.

 C.They can spread to areas far from the mother tree, in part because of
the eating habits of some carnivores.

 D.They have become the main source of food for pumas, jaguars, and
otters.

Finally, there are some differences in the kinds of animals inhabiting tropical and
temperate regions. For instance, in tropical regions there are few social rodents like
beavers and prairie dogs and very few rabbit species. On the other hand, some groups
occur solely in the tropics and do extremely well there. There are about 75 to 100 species
of New World monkeys (depending on which primate specialist you consult), all of which
occur in tropical areas. Arboreal (tree-living) mammals such as monkeys and sloths are
plentiful in tropical forests, probably because there is a rich, resource-filled, dense canopy
to occupy and feed in. The closed canopy blocks light to the ground, which allows only an
undergrowth that is sparse and poor in resources, and consequently permits few
opportunities for mammals to live and feed there. [▇]Bats thrive in the tropics, being very
successful both in terms of number of species and in their abundances. [▇] Nine families
of bats occur in Brazil, including more than 140 species; only four families and 40 species
occur in the entire United States, an area similar in size to Brazil. [▇]While most North
American bats feed on insects, the diets of Brazilian bats are more varied and include fruit,
nectar, and fish[▇]

Why does the author provide the information that The closed canopy blocks
light to the ground

 A.To illustrate why rodents living in tropical forests live in social groups

 B.To illustrate why tropical forests have so many species of bats

 C.To explain why there are few mammals that live on the ground

 D.To explain why some species of monkeys do very well in the tropics

It can be inferred from paragraph 3 that the animals most likely to inhabit
tropical regions are animals that

 A.live in trees

 B.outnumber social rodents

 C.do not require a variety of food

 D.resources prefer the dark

What can be inferred from paragraph 3 about the greater variety of bats in
Brazil compared to bats in North America

 A.North America is too cold for many varieties of bats.

 B.The more varied diets of Brazilian bats allow more diversity in the bat
population.

 C.An insect diet is less nutritious than a diet of fruit, nectar, and fish.

 D.Brazilian bats are arboreal and North American bats are not.
Look at the four squares [▇]that indicate where the following sentence could
be added to the passage. Where would the sentence best fit?
A possible explanation for this difference is related to what they eat.

Directions: An introductory sentence for a brief summary of the passage is provided below.
Complete the summary by selecting the THREE answer choices that express the most
important ideas in the passage. Some answer choices do not belong in the summary
because they express ideas that are not presented in the passage or are minor ideas in
the passage. This questions is worth 2 points.

A.Endure extreme temperature fluctuations

B.May reproduce several times a year
C.Endure a long dry season
D.Have thick fur coats
E.Some amass large energy reserves
F.Some have predators that are not present all year
G.Remain active all year
正确答案:AACBC CABC AEF CG