Do you know why different animals or pests (害虫) have their special colors? Colors in them seem to be used mainly to protect themselves.
Some birds like eating locusts (蝗虫). But birds cannot easily catch them. Why? It is because locusts change their colors together with the change of the colors of crops. When crops are green, locusts look green. But as the harvest time comes, locusts change to the same brown color as crops have. Some other pests with different colors from plants are easily found and eaten by others. So they have to hide themselves for lives and appear only at night.
If you study the animal life, you’ll find the main use of coloring is protecting themselves. Bears, tigers and other animals move quietly through forests. They cannot be seen by hunters. This is because they have the colors much like the trees.
Have you ever noticed an even stranger act? An octopus (章鱼) can send out a kind of very black liquid when it faces danger. While the liquid spreads over, the enemies cannot find it. And it immediately swims away. So it has lived up to now though it isn’t strong at all.
【小题1】From the passage we learn that locusts ________.
| A．are small animals | B．are easily found by birds |
| C．are dangerous to their enemies | D．change their colors to protect themselves |
【小题2】How can pests with different colors from plants keep out of danger?
| A．They run away quickly. |
| B．Their colors are like their enemies’. |
| C．They hide themselves in the day and appear at night. |
| D．They have to move quietly. |
【小题3】Bears and tigers can keep safe because they ________.
| A．have the colors much like the trees | B．move quickly |
| C．like brown and grey colors | D．live in forests |
【小题4】An octopus lives up to now because ________.
| A．it is very big and strong |
| B．the liquid it sends out helps it escape from its enemies |
| C．the liquid it sends out can kill its enemies |
| D．it swims faster than any other fish |
【小题5】Which is the BEST title for this passage?
| A．The Changes of Colors for Animals and Pests | B．Colors of Different Animals and Pests |
| C．The Main Use of Colors for Animals and Pests | D．Some Animals and Pests |
