A
(2020·长春质量监测)Pangolins(穿山甲) are strangelooking creatures, covered with hard scales(鳞). They can roll up into a ball to protect themselves from enemies and have tongues that are longer than their bodies.
Pangolins have recently become the focus of Chinese people. A screenshot of a microblog post showed some people eating pangolins at a feast spread. A few days later, people were angered again by pictures showing people eating protected animals, including pangolins.
Yet this is only the tip of the iceberg. Many more pangolins have been hunted or killed. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature(IUCN), more than 1 million of them have been killed or sold in the last 10 years. It also said that they are the most illegally traded mammals in the world. In September 2016, the IUCN added the pangolin to the world’s “endangered animals list”. They are now more endangered than pandas.
A growing trade of their scales and meat is the main reason for their decline in number. Many people in Asia and Africa consider pangolin meat is delicious. Some people even think pangolin scales have medical qualities. However, their scales are made of keratin(角蛋白), the same material human fingernails are made of.
Luckily, the situation is getting better. World Pangolin Day is on the third Saturday of February each year. It’s a day to help people know more about pangolins. The government now stops anyone from buying and eating pangolins in China. Breaking this law is regarded as a crime, and the trade of pangolins across the world is also not allowed, according to the Convention on Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.
【解题导语】 本文是一篇说明文。文章阐述了穿山甲濒临灭绝的现状以及为保护穿山甲而采取的举措。
1．Pangolins have caught people’s attention these years because ________．
A．they look strange
B．they appear in some movies
C．they are killed and eaten by people
D．they have something to do with pandas
C 解析：细节理解题。根据题干中的关键词“attention”和“these years”，定位在原文第二段。该段开头说，穿山甲近来成为中国人关注的焦点，然后提到一张屏幕截图和一些图片中，穿山甲成为人们的盘中珍馐，这与C项的描述是一致的。
2．What can we learn from the passage?
A．Pangolins can roll up into a ball to attack enemies.
B．More than 1 million pangolins were killed or sold last year.
C．Pangolins were named the most endangered animal in 2016.
D．The pangolin is a kind of mammals.
D 解析：细节理解题。根据第三段内容，尤其是“they are the most illegally traded mammals in the world”可知，穿山甲是一种哺乳动物。故选D。
3．The real aim of World Pangolin Day may be to ________．
A．attract people to the zoo to watch pangolins
B．lift people’s awareness of protecting pangolins
C．remind people of pangolins’ medical value
D．explain the law to people
B 解析：推理判断题。根据题干中的“World Pangolin Day”，定位在原文最后一段。该段主要陈述为保护穿山甲而采取的举措，而这个节日能让人们更多地了解穿山甲，从而提高人们保护穿山甲的意识，故选B。
4．What might be the author’s attitude towards the measures taken to protect pangolins?
A．Positive. B．Negative.
C．Disappointed. D．Unconcerned.
A 解析：观点态度题。根据最后一段内容可知，中国政府禁止任何人购买和食用穿山甲，世界各地也禁止买卖穿山甲，局面正在好转，由此可推知作者觉得这些措施是有效的，故选A。
【难句分析】 A few days later, people were angered again by pictures showing people eating protected animals, including pangolins.
分析：本句是一个简单句。句中有动名词短语作定语修饰pictures以及现在分词短语作宾补。
译文：几天后，人们再次被几张照片激怒，照片显示人们在吃保护动物，其中包括穿山甲。
