Unit 4

Animal extinction

Fast reading 1. When did dinosaurs live? 2. When did dinosaurs die out? Tens of millions of years ago. 3. According to the UN report, how many animals and plants have disappeared in the last 500 years. 844 About 65 million years ago.

Detailed reading: True or false 1.There were many different kinds of dinosaur and all of them have been found in China. 2.Not long ago, a rare new species of bird-like dinosaur was discovered in Henan Province. a number Liaoning F F

3. Some scientists are sure dinosaurs died out because the earth got too hot for the dinosaurs to live on any more. 4. Dinosaurs died out suddenly about 65 million years ago and many animals have disappeared in the last 500 years. F T think

Discuss the possible reasons for the disappearance of dinosaurs. Think about what is mentioned in the text. 1. It came after an unexpected incident when a huge rock from space hit the earth and put too much dust into the air. 2. The earth got too hot to live on.

For reference The sudden mass extinction of the non- avian dinosaurs, which occurred around 65 million years ago, is one of the most intriguing mysteries in paleontology ( 古生 物学 ). The nature of the event that caused this mass extinction has been extensively studied since the 1970s. At present, several related theories are broadly supported by paleontologists:mass extinctionpaleontology Asteroid collision Multiple collisions Environment changes

dodo 渡渡鸟

Once upon a time I lived on the ______ of Mauritius. I was ______ “dodo”. There were many of us and we were ______ with all the other _______ on the island. One day a ____ animal came to my island. His name was Man, and ___ ____ we _______ to be good friends. We went everywhere together and I ______ my food with him. However, I began to _______ Listen again and fill in the blanks. island friends called animals new seemed shared wonder at first

why several of my dodo _______ had disappeared. Then the ________ of our species began to ________ quickly. I was so _______ that I asked the other animals and they all told me, “Your friends are being ______ and eaten by Man while you are _______ for food.” Had Man eaten them? I couldn’t ______ it! When I asked Man directly, he seemed _________. “I haven’t seen the other dodos ______,” he said. “Maybe ________ else killed them.” friends number decrease worried killed hunting believe surprised someone either

I believed him ____ when more dodos disappeared I set a ____. I went off as if I was going to hunt but ______ I hid in the forest and ______. Sure enough Man came along. He ran after the ____ of my dodo _______ and killed her. I felt so ______ that I rushed out of my hiding place and straight at Man’s _____. He killed me too. After that there were ____ more dodos in the world. So my ______ is: be careful who you _____. but trap instead waited last friends angry spear no motto trust