Even while saving a species, “slow and steady” can win the race. The Espanola tortoise program on the Galapagos Islands has become one of the most successful captive (被俘获的) breeding programs ever undertaken in the world. Created in the mid-1960s to save that species from extinction, it collected the last remaining 14 tortoises on Espanola island — the only place in the world they are found.

Now, they’ve all made the trip back home, 55 years later, to spend the rest of their days in retirement on their island’s restored ecosystem. The 14 giant Espanola tortoises (plus one that had been at the San Diego Zoo) produced 1,900 babies over the decades which have slowly been reintroduced on the island—many of which have survived to adulthood and have bred (繁殖) later, creating a population of roughly 2,300 children and grandchildren of the original 15.

One giant tortoise titled “Diego” managed to contribute to approximately 40% of the baby tortoises sent back to the island before two weeks ago joining his species where he was taken almost 80 years ago. The dramatic decline of the tortoise population was due mainly to over-exploitation by sailors in the 1800’s who gathered hundreds for food on their long voyages. They also introduced invasive species, particularly goats, which were finally wiped out from the island in 1978.

In the program’s first period, the Galapagos Conservancy conducted a worldwide search to determine if there were more individuals, especially males, that could contribute to the genetic variability (遗传变异) of this unique species. The search paid off, and one adult male (Diego) was found at the San Diego Zoo, having been collected on the island by a research team in the mid-1930s. Diego is now 100 years old, and because tortoises can live to be 150, he may be enjoying a retirement for decades, watching his great, great, great grand nephews and nieces grow up.

【小题1】What was the Espanola tortoise program designed to do?

A．Gain the remaining 14 tortoises.

B．Rescue that species from dying out.

C．Look for a good place to save tortoises.

D．Build up a safe and successful habitat.

【小题2】What’s the main idea of Paragraph 2?

A．A lot has been done to save the tortoises.

B．Many baby tortoises have been born on the island.

C．The original tortoises have made the trip back home.

D．Great achievement has been made to save the tortoises.

【小题3】What was the main reason for the decrease of the tortoises in the 1800s?

A．Those sailors collected too much food on the island.

B．Many goats were introduced to the island.

C．There were too many human activities on the island.

D．They died because of some unknown diseases on the island.

【小题4】What do we know about Diego?

A．Diego is female and deliver many tortoises.

B．Diego will live on the island with his later generations.

C．Diego was born in the San Diego Zoo in the mid-1930s.

D．Diego was once collected by sailors and then kept in a zoo.